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This debate had to happen, didn’t it? Madrid and Barca are like two sides of the same coin; they just aren’t complete without each other. As Zinedine Zidane’s Madrid won its seventh title in the last 19 months, the trumpets have been blared and the debates are up: Zidane’s magnificent Madrid or Pep’s brilliant Barca?
Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona were a thing of beauty. Winning a treble in their very first season, that Barcelona team went on to dominate Europe and Spain until Guardiola left in 2012. Between his arrival in 2008 till his departure in 2012, the Catalans won an astonishing 14 titles including the Champions League twice and the league title three times.
He also won the Copa del Rey, the Club World Cup and the European Super Cup twice each and the Spanish Super Cup three times, winning every possible trophy in the process.
Meanwhile, Zidane has done something similar as he already has half the amount of trophies as Guardiola did with Barcelona and has won the Champions League twice in a row – all in the space of just 19 months.
While it is not really advisable to compare two successful teams, we, as humans, have this inscrutable tendency to evaluate things with similar other things – and so we will make an attempt to compare the two teams and decide which team was/is better.
Goalkeeper
Barcelona
The Catalan keeper was never afraid to take on the onrushing forward and was always off his line and cleared surging long-balls with zeal. However, as mentioned above, he was prone to making silly errors and actually conceded quite a few goals because of it.
His positional awareness while stopping shots wasn’t the best either as he was quite often beaten at the near post as well.
Real Madrid
Unlike his predecessors, Zidane didn’t have to worry much about the goalkeeping issue since he had only Keylor Navas and Kiko Casilla at his disposal and not club legend, Iker Casillas. The decision was straightforward: Navas was to be his first-choice.
The Costa Rican’s first season as first-choice was near-perfect as his saves kept Real alive in many games. His valiant efforts in goal helped the club win the Champions League. The next season, however, wasn’t as good as his first as he made quite a few errors for the Madridistas to insist for Kiko Casilla in goal rather than the former Levante man.
Regardless, he picked up form by the end of the season and helped the club lift a double come June.
Speaking of skills, his distribution is very poor, but he is an excellent shotstopper with unbelievable reflex skills. When compared with Valdes, he falls way short in terms of footwork but is a better keeper when shot-stopping and handling are concerned.
Defence
Barcelona
Guardiola brought back Gerard Pique from Manchester United to pair him with Carles Puyol at the heart of the defence with Dani Alves and Eric Abidal on the right and left, respectively. It was perhaps Barcelona’s greatest ever backline as Puyol no-nonsense approach perfectly complemented Pique’s ball-playing abilities and Eric Abidal’s composed nature was the proper partner to Dani Alves’ attacking ventures.
Puyol’s astute defensive abilities are, however, what truly kept that defence together along with Sergio Busquets’ intelligence. The fact that ever since Puyol’s departure, Barcelona have found it hard to exude an unbreakable vibe that they did with him is a testament to how important he was to the team.
Gerard Pique, meanwhile, was brilliant under Guardiola but was a little inconsistent towards the end of his tenure. Eric Abidal was a safe-guard from the left who also played a good role while attacking. And Dani Alves was the best right-back in the world during the Pep era.
Real Madrid
The current backline of the Blancos is perhaps the best unit in the world. Their right-back, Dani Carvajal, is arguably the best in his position while Marcelo is undoubtedly the best left-back there is. Sergio Ramos might have his moments of madness, but he turns up big time whenever needed and has actually improved a lot and seems more stable under the watchful eye of Zinedine Zidane.
The other defender is Raphael Varane. In Zidane’s first year, Pepe was the obvious first-choice. Despite being seen in a negative light by the football fraternity, the Portuguese was Real’s best and most consistent defender.
Varane, however, took over by the end of last season and is one of the indispensable players in the team at the moment. The potential of the Frenchman could make him one of the greatest defenders ever, but he has to get over the lapses in concentration against the smaller teams.
While comparing these two teams’ defences, they are as close as it gets, but Madrid’s defence could be judged as slightly better in terms of individual quality, but Barca’s peak back line was better as a team.
Midfield
Barcelona
Oh, my. What do I write about that midfield? How can you put true love in words? I think that words can’t describe what love is because love is eternal, so how can you limit something that is eternal? Words have limitations, love does not.
And that Barcelona midfield of Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets was pure love.
Sergio Busquets stood in front of the defence, guarding it with his superior wisdom and positioning while also keeping the tempo of the team ticking with his crunch passing. Meanwhile, Xavi orchestrated the team like a conductor in an opera.
His feet were the sticks and the way he moved them defined the tune of the team’s music. And Andres Iniesta? Well, let’s just say that he could do things many could not even imagine let alone execute.
Real Madrid
In terms of individual talent, the midfield trio of Casemiro, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos ooze similar ambiences. While Casemiro might not have the aesthetic feel of Busquets, his presence in the middle is more burgeoning than the Spaniard.
Meanwhile, Kroos is the engine of the team and keeps the car running with his underrated playmaking. He works so deep that his contribution hardly falls on the eyes, but when he doesn’t play, his important becomes apparent.
Luka Modric, the Croat genius, is Madrid’s answer to Andres Iniesta. The former Tottenham man glides around the opponents while weaving some beautiful passes in the attacking third to help the attackers benefit as much as possible.
While there are striking similarities between the two midfields, Barcelona’s trio at their peaks were slightly better than Madrid’s.
Attack
Barcelona
Pep Guardiola’s defence and midfield were constant in his four years’ stay, but he shuffled the attack almost every season. At first, it was the famous trio of Thierry Henry, Samuel Eto’o and Lionel Messi that became the first ever attack in La Liga to score 100 goals in a season.
After that, Zlatan Ibrahimovic was brought in to replace Samuel Eto’o, but he was only a starter for the first few months before Pedro Rodriguez was drafted in to play on the right while Messi took the centre.
The following season, David Villa was signed to replace the outgoing Ibrahimovic. By the time the Catalan manager left the club, he had also used the likes of Isaac Cuenca and Christian Tello in the team. Almost every player that played in attack during Pep’s era was great in his own right, but the treble-winning trio of Messi, Henry and Eto’o was the best.
Real Madrid
BBC with a touch of I instead of a B. When Zidane took over the reins at the club, Benzema, Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo were the undisputed first-choice in attack. Later, due to persistent injuries to Benzema and Gareth Bale, Lucas Vazquez and Isco were drafted in to take up the slots whenever necessary.
By the end of last season, Zidane preferred the trio of Isco, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema instead of the BBC – and it resulted in the club winning its first double since 1958.
When compared to Barcelona’s famous trinity, BBC under Zidane fall short of Eto’o, Messi and Henry. However, BBC under Ancelotti challenged that trio head on.
Playing style and backups
Barcelona
The Barcelona team of that era were known for the tiki-taka approach that revolutionised football. They not only won, but they won with style that defined that period of football. Their playing style helped Spain build their successes and many teams tried to emulate the way Barcelona paid.
In terms of backups, Pep Guardiola wasn’t entirely a believer of rotations. As a result, the Blaugranas didn’t have much strength in depth but yet managed to carve out a winning unit that dominated football for a long period.
Real Madrid
For the first year under Zidane, the Blancos might have won consistently won games but struggled to find an identity. Almost always, the Galacticos won games without any coherence in their playing style.
However, that was fixed once Isco was incorporated to the starting XI at the expense of the injured Gareth Bale. The 4-3-1-2 with Isco in the hole gave the team an instant balance that helped them secure wins with style.
In terms of bench strength, Madrid perhaps have the best group of backups ever. The likes of Mateo Kovacic, Marco Asensio, Dani Ceballos, James Rodriguez, Lucas Vazquez, Alvaro Morata and Nacho would have been starters at any other club – which has become apparent with Morata and James’ moves – but were mere backups at the capital club.
Verdict
While both these teams have dominated the football fraternity in their respective times, it is very hard to pick one from the other as both of them are special in their own way. Barcelona wowed the world by winning 14 titles – including three La Ligas and two Champions Leagues – and gave their fans unspeakable joy.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, have already won 7 titles under Zinedine Zidane in only 19 months – winning the Champions League twice in a row – and have only the Copa Del Rey to add to their cabinet. They also have a great young team for the future and look set to continue their domination.
However, if I had to choose one, I would still pick Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona simply because they not only won, but also defined the footballing style of an era. Zidane’s Madrid have only just picked up an identity, but can certainly better Guardiola’s team in a few years’ time, but right now, Guardiola’s team should be rated higher.
