Real Madrid and the 25 January Abyss (www.163.com)

Little is mentioned publicly of a key date in Real Madrid’s calendar. That date is 25 January 2012. On that day, the Real squad will leave the Nou Camp knowing whether it will be in the semi-final of the Copa del Rey or whether it will be ousted from the Copa by its perennial rival. To make matters worse, if Real is eliminated this may mean that it may finish the season without a trophy, an unpalatable scenario in the Spanish capital.
Based on what we have seen, and considering Real Madrid starts the 2012 calendar year with realistic chances on all 3 competitions is taking part, their prospects in La Liga are far from certain. It is involved in a match by match battle with a Barcelona side which wins all of its home games without a fuss and which had beaten them easily at the Bernabeu in December. To make matters harder, Real, which admittedly shows great firing power and disposes of all other teams in the league with ease, must visit the Nou Camp near the end of the title race.