Camacho's Real still mired in last season's problems

Real Madrid fans might have expected the return of hard-nosed coach Jose Antonio Camacho, plus spending of 45 million euros ($55.13 million) on defenders, to sort out the crisis that beset the club last season.

Real's 3-0 Champions League defeat by Bayer Leverkusen, a performance described by the Spanish sports press as horrific, pathetic and disastrous, showed however that Camacho is no nearer finding a solution than predecessor Carlos Queiroz.

Real were a caricature of the side that beat Leverkusen 2-1 in the Champions League final at Hampden Park in 2002, when Zinedine Zidane's exquisite volley secured the club's ninth European Cup win.

Raul, who scored the opening goal in that final, showed no signs of rediscovering the form that has long since deserted him, Luis Figo spent more time on the ground than on his feet and Ivan Helguera demonstrated that he no longer deserves a place in central midfield.

Ronaldo and David Beckham, brought in to add even greater lustre to the victorious 2001-02 squad, contributed little to the cause, while striker Michael Owen, the latest galactico, did not even make it off the bench.

New centre-back Walter Samuel could not cope with the guile of Franca or strength of Dimitar Berbatov and Camacho will pray that newly-signed Jonathan Woodgate will form a more reliable partnership with the Argentine when he recovers from injury.

"I don't know why we're incapable of playing football at the moment," Roberto Carlos said after the match. "Things aren't coming off for us and the players are blocked."

The only real consolation for Real is that time is on their side, with five games left to play in the group stage starting with a home clash with AS Roma on September 28.

"There's still an opportunity for us to fight back," said goalkeeper Iker Casillas. "The good thing is that this has happened in the first game rather than the last."

Real know all about the costs of a bad finish after a five-game losing streak in the league last term saw them miss out on a trophy.

This season, they have played just as badly in their opening two league games, against Real Mallorca and Numancia, but have managed to win each of them 1-0.

They now face a dangerous run of league matches over the next five weeks, starting with a trip to in-form Espanyol on Saturday and continuing with games against Osasuna, Athletic Bilbao, Deportivo Coruna, Real Betis and champions Valencia.

Camacho, who coached Real for 22 days in 1998 and was persuaded to return in place of Queiroz before the start of this season, knows a change of attitude is needed if Real are to emerge from that run in decent shape.

"It may be that we're lacking the necessary humility," he said. "Real have been playing great football for two years and now we're not. It may be that it's the coach's fault but I'll have to talk it over with the players."