Real Madrid seems to have found a redemption arc after all came tumbling down following Ronaldo’s departure. To see their foes Atlético Madrid winning LaLiga must be a hard blow on the Merengues, but they weren’t exactly exempt of fault in the entire process. Now, with Carlo Ancelotti, the engineer of the Décima, back on the steering wheel, and Benzema leading the team like a true captain – and arguably one of the best strikers and playmakers in the world – Real Madrid might finally have a true chance to sit on the throne once again. The True Foes Simeone seems to find strategies to win even against all odds; he has done it before in quite some remarkable ways, and the fierceness of his teams is one, if not the biggest, of their qualities. Now, let’s underline the “before” because, as it stands, the Colchoneros have the best squad in the League. Nobody is truly an underdog when their attack is composed by Suárez, Griezmann and wonderboy Félix. And if that isn’t enough, Correa can … [Read More...]
How will the La Liga sides fare in this season’s Champions League?
The UEFA Champions League is, without doubt, the most enjoyable and exciting club soccer tournament in the world. Some loyalists and hipsters might claim the Copa America is more entertaining, but nothing can rival the Champions League in terms of the quality of both individual players and the teams that participate in the tournament. Originally known as the European Cup, it was rebranded in 1992. In that time, there have been 13 different winners, with the clubs coming from seven different nations; Italy, Portugal, Netherlands, Germany, France, England and Spain. Yes, there are some teams who have dominated the tournament for a few years, but overall it is an incredibly open competition, with each of the 32 teams who enter it at the beginning of the season hoping they will be the ones to lift the trophy at the end of the campaign. The current holders of the Champions League are Chelsea, who lifted the trophy for the second time in their history in June 2021, defeating Manchester … [Read More...]
What could be the reason behind La Liga viewing figures being down in 2021?
The last 18 months have been tough on us all. The majority of the world has seen people having to spend large portions of time indoors, unable to go outside and spend time with friends or family. It frustrated us all, as getting some fresh air and socialising is a key part of keeping our mental health in check. Instead, our sofas became our new best friends, as with nothing else to do, it forced people to spend more and more time in front of the television. Streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime saw a huge number of people sign up to their services, to watch shows like Tiger King, The Last Dance and Jack Ryan, often bingeing these shows in a matter of days as there was little else to do. Did these shows make up for not being able to go to a restaurant or a bar with your nearest and dearest? No, but they certainly proved to be a useful distraction during a difficult time. The world of sport was hit very hard during the pandemic, as pretty much everything was either … [Read More...]
How will La Liga fare without the world’s biggest players?
When TV shows lose their main characters, usually things start to fall apart quite quickly, and fans bemoan the fact that the show is no longer as good as it used to be. The US Office is more than just a remake of The Office, made famous by British comics Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant in the early 2000s. With Steve Carrell playing the lovable but hopeless branch manager Michael Scott, millions of people tuned in each week to watch the (US) Office, to see what Michael would get up to next. When Carrell left the show in its 7th season, it was notable how quickly the overall quality of the show dropped, with fewer and fewer people watching. It lasted another two years before it finally ended in 2013. There are many other examples where characters either leaving (or being killed off) meant that fans stopped paying such close attention to what was going on. The Walking Dead, The OC, and Two and a Half Men are just a few shows where the overall quality left when the lead actors, who … [Read More...]
Will El Clasico ever be the same?
For decades, La Liga was blessed with having two of the almighty superpowers of footballing prowess in one league, and at opposite ends of an immensely competitive, rich, and almost age-old rivalry. Ronaldo’s departure from Los Blancos had football fans wondering whether El Clasico would ever be the same after encounters with the other man vying for the title of best footballer in the world, but now with Messi’s departure from Barcelona, many are questioning whether the old and bitter rivalry will ever be as beautifully contested as it was in what has been a golden age for football. Whenever Messi or Ronaldo move clubs, football stands still, and then erupts. High calibre players have been common throughout history, but none left as influential of a mark as those etched into history by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The footballing gods looked kindly on us earthlings when they decided to grant us two of the best footballers in the history of the sport within … [Read More...]
If Lionel Messi leaves, La Liga will Never Recover its Glory Days
Real Madrid’s exit from the Champions League was met with understandably dramatic reactions in not just Madrid, but all over Spain. It was perhaps less the defeat itself, and more the manner of it, which led to hyperbolic exaggerations but the match made one thing clear - La Liga’s star is falling. In the past three seasons, only two of the twelve semi-finalists in the UEFA Champions League have been from Spain - Barcelona in 2018/19 and Real Madrid this season. The Spanish league potentially faces a potential existential threat should the best player in the country, and the world, Lionel Messi decide to leave this summer. LIONEL MESSI’S UNCERTAIN FUTURE Last summer’s biggest story was the Argentine’s burofax delivered to then Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu stating his desire to leave the club. Barcelona had a dismal 2019/20 season - losing the La Liga to Real Madrid, crashing out of the Copa Del Rey to Athletic Bilbao, and being humiliated in the Champions League 8-2 by … [Read More...]
Three Premier League Stars That Could Be On Their Way To La Liga
There have been a number of stars that have decided to swap the Premier League for La Liga over the last ten years, with some of them having more success than others. Luka Modric and Gareth Bale both left Tottenham Hotspur to join Real Madrid and win multiple Champions League honours, while Eden Hazard’s transfer to the same Spanish club from Chelsea hasn’t worked out as well as many would have believed. However, that won’t stop stars from moving to Spain, and there are already a number of players currently playing in the Premier League that are being linked with a move to the warmer climate in the near future. Mohamed Salah One of the biggest transfer rumours over the past couple of weeks has been linking Mohamed Salah with a move to La Liga. Recent reports have claimed that the Egyptian is unhappy at Premier League champions Liverpool, and a move to Spain could be the end goal for the Reds star. The departure of Salah would undoubtedly be a blow for Jurgen Klopp and his … [Read More...]
Inspirational Iago: Celta Find Form
In the previous years of the Premier League when you thought of Arsenal, many would of joke of the number four conundrum, the fact no matter how well Arsenal performed throughout the season they would always wind up fourth. The same can be said in La Liga in recent years for Celta Vigo and the position of 17th, just one place above the relegation zone narrowly avoiding the drop into the Segunda Liga. The past two seasons the Galician side have found them selves finishing the campaign in 17th place, being involved in a relegation dog fight through out the season. However, the 2017/2108 saw Celta finish in 13th place, with inspirational performances from local hero Iago Aspas earning a place in the Spanish national team for the Russian 2018 World Cup. Netting 22 goals and 5 assists, the striker squeezed himself into the La Liga team of the season to top off a successful season. Since the return from the World Cup the performances from the Sky Blues have been equal to the famous … [Read More...]