Malaga-Madrid Showdown to Prove Pelligrini's Players' Potential

This Saturday evening sees one of the most anticipated match-ups in La Liga take place, as Real Madrid make their way to big-spending Malaga to face old boss Manuel Pellegrino. Added to the intrigue is the fact that, in Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Julio Baptista, the hosts also boast two former Real players and with a 100% home league record thus far, Pellegrino will be desperate to get one over on his replacement at the Bernabeu, Jose Mourinho.

The huge summer investment of talent, instigated by owner Sheikh Al Thani, saw nine players arrive at the club, and with over 50 million euros splashed out on new talent, many feel it’s only a matter of time before the club are challenging for a Champions League spot, if not the ultimate prize of La Liga itself.  Ahead of the showdown with Madrid, WhoScored puts Malaga under the microscope, looking at what the new boys have brought to the side in particular:

Central Defensive Resolve
Last season saw Malaga finished in 11th spot, but as the bottom half of the division was so tight, they ended only three points above the relegation places. Indeed, they were only saved by an incredible run of results that harvested four wins and a draw from their last six fixtures-  a look at their “goals against” column tells the story- they conceded 68 times, the second-worst defence in the entire league. Only bottom club Almeria, with 70 goals against, shipped more over the thirty-eight rounds of fixtures.

The summer saw Pellegrino move decisively to address this frailty. A new centre-half saw plenty of experience to the heart of the back-four as new signing Joris Mathijsen, aged 31, arrived from Hamburger SV to join January recruit Martin Demichelis (30).

The pair have quickly established an understanding and, having played every league game so far, their partnership is one of the key factors in Malaga conceding just 7 goals in their opening seven games- only 1 more than Mourinho’s Madrid. They have conceded just 10 shots per game - only Barcelona (6) have a superior record and while Malaga have averaged 22 tackles and 30 interceptions, they’ve made a mere 11 fouls per game- the most disciplined side, level with Barcelona, though Pep Guardiola’s side make just 19 tackles and 14 interceptions in comparison.

Demichelis has been the more impressive of the pair in the WhoScored rankings; his 3.3 tackles and 4.1 interceptions highlights his superb defensive shifts, with Mathijsen not far behind on 1.7 and 4.4 respectively. Despite picking up four clean sheets in their first five games, though, Malaga have lapsed in recent games, conceding five goals in the following two fixtures, including a 3-0 loss at Levante last week.

Midfield Steel

Although the experienced centre-back pairing's performances have certainly been a major factor in the side's defensive improvement's, the duo have been helped no end by the shield afforded to them by a double pivot of Duda, and another new signings at the club Jeremy Toulalan.

The midfielder’s arrival from Lyon has added a significant ball-winning ability in the central midfield area. The Frenchman has slotted seamlessly alongside Duda and his performances have seen him average 7.45 in the WhoScored rankings to date. Toulalan’s work-rate has caught the eye - 4.7 tackles and 6 interceptions per game is indicative of what he brings to the side, boosting the spine of the team considerably.  With an 86% pass accuracy, he’s offered plenty of security in distribution, too.

Key Creators
While the capture of Joaquin from Valencia was something of a coup, there’s no question the marquee signing was Santi Cazorla from Villarreal. Playing right and left of the attacking midfield three respectively, both have been key in Malaga’s attacking moves, scoring 6 of the club’s 10 league goals between them, with Cazorla grabbing 4 and earning a WhoScored rating of 7.73, the highest of any Malaga player.

Cazorla has managed 2.3 shots –the second-best tally at the club- and his 2.1 key passes per game sees him the chief creator. Playing in every game, this means he’s made 14 key passes to date but has picked up just 1 assist- indeed, no Malaga player has more than a single assist. Joaquin has 0.9 and 1.9 respectively and has recorded more successful dribbles, 1.7 to 1.3. Similar to Cazorla, though, his creativity is not being rewarded- 13 key passes has failed to return any assists.

Julio Baptista has been poor in comparison, particularly in front of goal. Playing just behind Van Nistelrooy in the 4-2-3-1, he’s been Malaga’s main goal threat- over four appearances, Baptista has fired 3 shots per game but scored only once, with an assist also to his name from an average of 1 key pass. It may just be that, as Pellegrino plots his old club’s downfall, his two ex-Madrid players may be the weak spots in his attempts to secure the victory over Mourinho and co.

Failing up Front
While Malaga have strengthened at the back, then, and clearly have the ability to lay on goalscoring chances, a lack of cutting edge is costing them. Pellegrino has a solid base to build upon, but needs a proven goalscorer to provide an end product to their moves. Malaga have managed 12 shots per game, with 5 on target, and have scored just 10 goals. Compare this to Madrid- Mourinho’s side average 22 shots and have scored 24 goals. Barcelona have been even more clinical, averaging 16 shots and finding the net on 26 occasions.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy arrived on a free from Hamburger SV and having had plenty of previous La Liga experience, was expected to be the man to grab the goals. At 35 years old, though, he’s not quite the player he used to be and his returns have been hugely disappointing. The Dutchman has played every game, averaging 2 shots per game, but has scored just 1 goal from his 14 attempts.

Van Nistelrooy has made just 0.3 key passes per game and has, unsurprisingly, failed to grab an assist. A WhoScored rating of just 6.32 sums up his level of performance – it’s quite apparent that if Malaga are looking to challenge further up the table, the one area that needs strengthening desperately is the forward role.

A look at Madrid’s in-form forwards merely highlights just what is missing from this Malaga side right now.  With 21 goals in their last five games in all competitions, the visitors will pose the ultimate test to Pellegrino’s much-improved back-line. Gonzalo Higuain is in the form of his life right now- two hat-tricks in his last two starts and a return of 8 goals from 20 shots (2.9 per game) is indicative of the talent Mourinho has at his disposal. Add Cristiano Ronaldo’s 7.5 shots and 1.9 key passes per game, from which he has grabbed 7 goals and 5 assists, and Karim Benzema’s 3 goals from just 12 shots, and it’s clear that the task ahead of the home side is daunting.

Malaga’s performances so far have definitely hinted at an upturn in fortunes, but they are by no means the finished article. Step by step they are getting there, though it may be another couple of seasons of canny Pellegrino acquisitions –particularly in the forward area- before they can consider themselves as a force to be reckoned with.