Alright so today I was itching to figure out who’s actually bossing it between Valencia and Real Madrid this season. You know, just straight-up comparing where they stand on the pitch. Started kinda simple but man, it got messy real fast.
First, Grabbing the Raw Stuff
Fired up my laptop. Went straight to La Liga’s official site first thing. Figured, hey, that’s gotta have the fresh numbers, right? But ugh, their site layout… it’s like playing hide and seek with stats. Clicked around forever just trying to find average player positions per game. Annoying.
Switched tactics. Pulled out my phone instead. Loaded up those popular football stats apps – you know the ones. They’re way better for this kinda detail. Flicked through Valencia’s last five games, scribbled down where guys were mostly hanging out during play. Did the same thing for Real Madrid. Spent ages just going game by game, jotting positions for defenders, midfielders, attackers. Ended up with pages of scribbles.
Then, the Headache Part
Sitting back, looked at this pile of messy notes. How the heck do you even compare this properly? Like, what’s “higher”? More attackers pushing up? Fullbacks bombing forward? Midfield sitting deeper? Got totally stuck staring at it.
Dug deeper. Decided to look at two things:
1. How much ball they actually have (possession % duh).
2. Where most of the action happens – are they mostly stuck defending their own half, or camped out near the other team’s box?
Checked Valencia’s season average possession first. Hovering around the lower 40%s. Not shocking. Madrid? Sky-high near 60%. Big difference right there. So already, Valencia’s starting deeper, Madrid’s naturally pushing way up.
Started mapping positions onto this. Valencia? Their back line is seriously deep. Midfielders barely get over the halfway line unless they’re countering hard. Forwards feel miles away up top sometimes.
Now Madrid? Whole different story. Their centre backs often act like midfielders, carrying the ball way up. Fullbacks? Basically wingers 90% of the time. The midfield trio (Kroos, Modric, Valverde lately) just camp out between the halfway line and the opponent’s box, pulling strings. Forwards stay way up high constantly pressing.
The Punchline
So, who’s higher? Real Madrid, no contest. Like, it’s not even close.
- Valencia: Deeper defensive block, midfield sits, forwards isolated. Whole shape feels stretched and defensive, positions are lower.
- Madrid: Constant high press, centre backs push up, fullbacks super high, midfield controls high up. They squeeze the life outta teams high up the pitch. Positions are way, way higher.
Was kinda expecting a tighter fight based on their league spots, but nah. Positional stats show Madrid playing on a different level most days, pushing right up in your face. Valencia? Just trying to keep things tight and scrap for counters. Interesting to see it laid out on paper though!