The Killer Move That Had No Solution

At the sound of referee Mejuto's whistle, this highly anticipated clash officially kicked off under the watchful eyes of more than eighty thousand fans at the Bernabéu Stadium.

Real Madrid, playing at home, took the kickoff first.

Benitez deployed a three-defensive-midfielder formation tonight. Casillas stood in goal, with Maxwell, Vermaelen, Ramos, and Arbeloa forming the back line. The midfield consisted of Mascherano, Xabi Alonso, and Lass Diarra as the three defensive midfielders, with Sneijder in the center and Yang Yang and Ibrahimovic up front.

Barcelona, meanwhile, took the field in their familiar 4-3-3 Formation.

Valdes was in goal. The back line consisted of Abidal, Gabriel Milito, Pique, and Puyol. The three midfielders were Iniesta, Busquets, and Xavi, while the front three were Pedro, Messi, and Alves.

The change from usual was that Guardiola had moved Messi into the middle for this match, while pushing the original right back, Daniel Alves, up to the right wing. It was a very unexpected adjustment.

Judging from the two lineups, Barcelona had Puyol play right back, clearly intending to contain Real Madrid's left winger, Yang Yang, while using Alves to suppress Real Madrid's left back.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, had specifically deployed a three-defensive-midfielder formation, clearly adopting a more cautious posture.

The match had barely begun. After Real Madrid kicked off, they quickly sent the ball down the right flank.

Lass Diarra pulled out to the wing to receive the ball. Having just crossed the halfway line, he immediately launched a long pass toward Ibrahimovic up front. But after the Swedish Striker won the first ball, he quickly became entangled with Barcelona's defenders.

The ball was lost.

Yet after Barcelona won possession, their players looked forward and found that Real Madrid's players had already rapidly returned to their positions.

The four-man back line, the