Real Madrid worried by lapses at set pieces

MADRID: Galatasaray coach Fatih
Terim will have watched with
interest after Real Madrid revealed
their vulnerability at set pieces
again, despite them recovering to
thump Real Mallorca 5-2 in La Liga
on Saturday.
Real have been drawn to play
Galatasaray in the Champions
League quarter-finals next month,
and Terim was in the stands at the
Bernabeu when relegation-
threatened Real Mallorca twice took
the lead in the first half.
Mallorca's first came from a
header and the second from a
familiar failing for Jose Mourinho's
men, when a corner was flicked on
to the far post and Alejandro Alfaro
was left unmarked to head past
Diego Lopez in the 21st minute.
Real rallied with three goals in six
minutes at the start of the second
half from Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka
Modric and Gonzalo Higuain but
Real director Emilio Butragueno
expressed his concern in a post-
match interview.
"Today, in the league, there was
room to react but in the
Champions League one goal could
be decisive," Butragueno told
Spanish television.
"We need to be vigilant at these
plays."
Mourinho's assistant Aitor Karanka
was also questioned about Real's
continuing problems at defending
dead-ball situations.
"These plays have been troubling
us since the start of the season,
they are lapses in concentration,"
he told a news conference.
"We will try to improve. It is in our
hands. Luckily these errors haven't
been important in the long run for
today's final result, but we must
draw conclusions."
Real have made it clear their
priority this season is the King's
Cup, where they meet Atletico in
the May 17 final, and the pursuit
of a possible 10th European crown.
Real host the Turkish league leaders
in their quarter-final first leg on
April 3, and travel for the second
leg on April 9.
Saturday's league victory left Real
in second place 10 points short of
leaders Barcelona, who host Rayo
Vallecano on Sunday, and four
ahead of third-placed Atletico
Madrid, who visit Osasuna.
"The message remains the same,"
Karanka said. "It is very tough to
reach the top spot, and we don't
want to complicate life with the
team below us. We have to make
sure of second place."