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Real fail to shine without Beckham
MADRID, Spain (Reuters) -- Real Madrid coach Carlos Queiroz may be rueing his decision not to risk David Beckham after the Spanish champions scrambled a lacklustre 0-0 draw at lowly Real Zaragoza. Real had to play the last 20 minutes with 10 men after central defender Francisco Pavon got his marching orders after being shown his second yellow card. The result meant that Real blew their chance to go top of the Primera Liga and stay second a point behind Deportivo who are at home to Mallorca on Wednesday. Beckham trained normally on Monday after suffering a strained hamstring against Partizan Belgrade in the Champions League last Wednesday. But Queiroz decided to rest the England captain and his absence showed. Real's best chance came midway through the second half when a Robert Carlos shot ricochetted off the post but his fellow Brazilian Ronaldo could only send the ball wide. Raul, who was Real's hero when his two goals in the last 12 minutes clinched weekend victory over Racing, had a night to forget on the ground where he made his debut almost nine years ago to the day. The Spanish international striker missed numerous opportunities, including several early in the first half which could have changed the direction of the game. Zaragoza had chances themselves to score a surprise win with Argentine midfielder Luciano Galletti going close twice in the first half, including hitting a post. The man of the match was arguably Zaragoza's Argentine defender Gabriel Milito. He gained revenge over the club that showed him the door during the summer, over a supposed failed medical test. Showing no signs of the alleged knee problems which caused Real to back track on his acquisition, Milito stopped almost everything that Real's star-studded strike force could throw at him.
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