FCBARCELONA.CAT

25.11.2009 17:52

Eleventh match for Pellegrini against Barça

Jesús Carrillo

It will be Real Madrid manager Manuel Pellegrini’s seventh visit to the Camp Nou since he arrived in the Spanish game. The Chilean coach has played ten league matches against Barça, losing and winning four and drawing two.

Current Real Madrid manager, Manuel Pellegrini, has been coaching for the last two decades, taking charge of some of the top teams in Chile, Ecuador, Argentina and Spain.

He landed in the Spanish league in 2004 when he took charge of Villarreal, a club of modest means which he turned into force to be reckoned with in both La Liga and in Europe.

Always near the top

Under Pellegrini, Villarreal became a regular candidate for the top six in the first division and therefore a place in the UEFA Cup or Champions League.

In Pellegrini’s first season at Villarreal, he beat Barça in the Madrigal stadium 3-0. The match in the Camp Nou was very special as Barça received the league trophy and Eto’o was on the verge of becoming the league’s top goal scorer. But all that faded away when Forlán got a hat trick and the match ended in a 3-3 draw.

Equality

Pellegrini and FC Barcelona have shared the points, goals and victories in their meetings. Pellegrini has won four matches (always against Frank Rijkaard), lost four and drawn two.

In the Madrigal Pellegrini has won three matches and lost two while in the Camp Nou Barça has won twice, drawn twice and only lost once.

One Cup tie

Apart from the league meetings between Pellegrini and Barça, the two met once in the quarterfinals of the Spanish Cup in the 2007-08 season. The aggregate score after two legs was 1-0 to Barça – a goalless draw away to Villarreal and a single Henry goal in the return leg in the Camp Nou.