Forget the Mersyside derby or the Manchester Derby this weekend, the City of Madrid steals the limelight as the showpiece match of Europe as Atletico Madrid make the short trip across Spain’s capital to the Santiago Bernabéu to face the old enemy Real Madrid. Across all competitions, the pair have met a whopping 218 times and unsurprisingly, it is Los Blancos who hold a significant statistical edge over their neighbours. Real have won exactly half of all the encounters with 109 victories between the two whilst Atletico have claimed a poultry 55 by comparison and a total of 54 … [Read more...]
The Rise of the Underdog: Girona, Real Betis, Getafe
This season, many people have been getting carried away by Barcelona’s dominance at the top of the table and Real Madrid’s domestic troubles. But the real story of the season still lies in the upper reaches of the division, just not with teams one may have expected. Girona, Real Betis and Getafe find themselves seventh, eighth and ninth respectively and above the likes of Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, and Espanyol. Remarkably, newly promoted Girona find themselves just two points behind Sevilla and chasing down the unlikeliest of European places for next season. This has opened … [Read more...]
What Happened to Cristian Tello? The Man Expected to Carry Barcelona
When Cristian Tello broke into the Barcelona first team during the 2011/12 season it looked like the man who was part of Spain’s under-21 squad that won the 2013 European Championships would carry the Blaugrana forward line for the next decade. Everything certainly started well after scoring a brace in the 9-0 hammering of CE L'Hospitalet in the Copa Del Rey and then later scoring in his first league start against Real Sociedad in early February 2012. This begs the question, why (with so much positivity surrounding the Spaniard's early career) are we not raving about Tello’s achievements … [Read more...]
Copa del Rey Special: Pique Out as Valencia Eye the Title
The 2017/18 Copa Del Rey semi-finals second legs complete this week with a place in the final just 90 minutes away (barring extra time of course). Across the two semi-finals it is all to play for with Leganes and Sevilla entering their second leg finely poised at 1-1 with Barcelona holding a slender 1-0 lead over a resurgent Valencia. However, with Barcelona soon set to resume their Champions League campaign, the Valencianistes are eyeing a chance to take the crown away from the three-time defending champions with chinks in the seemingly unbreakable Barcelona armour starting to … [Read more...]
Zidane Signs Until 2020
Despite many suggesting the Real Madrid hierarchy have been a little unsettled of late with Los Blancos trailing arch rivals Barcelona by sixteen points at the half way stage in the league, head coach Zinedine Zidane confirmed to press last night after his sides 2-2 Copa Del Rey draw that he has signed a contract extension until 2020. "It's signed, I'm enjoying what I do every day, because that's the way it is. I can't imagine myself as a coach in two, three years, because things are not like that. I know how it goes, nothing more, even with this contract it does not change anything." … [Read more...]
All over for Bale at Madrid? We’ve been here before
Not for the first time in Gareth Bale’s Real Madrid career, the doom mongers have already declared the dream is over for the man from Cardiff after only three league goals this calendar year. However, those who know Bale the best will be well aware of the man’s ability to rise above adversity and once again remind the world why Real Madrid paid a healthy £85.1million for the winger in September 2013. Injuries have been a swear word in the Bale household and after numerous absentees since 2016 have called Bale’s Madrid career into question once again but this is not the first time that … [Read more...]
Can Barcelona take Full Advantage of the Madrid Derby?
Atletico and Real face off on Saturday night in the season’s first all Madrid affair where one team not even involved will look to prosper from the outcome. The derby match is an open opportunity for Barcelona to either take top spot or pull further away from an Atletico team who have been proving a thorn in the side of Real Madrid and Barcelona’s domestic monopoly over the last six years. Real Madrid sit top of La Liga on 27 points and are yet to be beaten. Barcelona are two points back in second place on 25 points whereas Atletico sit in fourth with 21 points from a possible 33. The … [Read more...]
Stoke City Striker Target To Join La Liga Club
Stoke City's search for a new striker has been dealt a blow with one of their targets reportedly set to sign for a La Liga club. The Potters are looking for a new striker to lead the line in the Premier League this season, with Mark Hughes having been linked with a move for Independiente del Valle forward Jose Angulo, whose goals recently fired the club to the Copa Libertadores final. Angulo's agent Matias Lipman told the Guardian last month: "So far Stoke and Monaco have shown an interest but I’m sure when the Copa Libertadores final game is played there will be other Premier League … [Read more...]
La Liga Club To Sign Ex-Spurs Midfielder?
La Liga club Real Betis are reportedly in talks with Paris Saint-Germain over a deal for their former Spurs midfielder Benjamin Stambouli. Stambouli struggled to make an impact in Ligue 1 last season and the arrival of new coach Unai Emery, who has signed Grzegorz Krychowiak from his old club Sevilla, has seen Stambouli slide down the pecking order. However, Stambouli was a surprise selection for PSG's 4-1 Trophee des Champions victory against Lyon at the weekend, excelling alongside Thiago Motta at the base of the midfield. According to a report by L'Equipe, negotiations are ongoing … [Read more...]
Spurs Linked With Bid For La Liga Defender
Tottenham had the joint-best defence in the Premier League last season, but Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly planning to add to his defensive options for the new campaign. According to Italian journalist Emanuele Giulianelli, who contributes FourFourTwo and La Gazzetta dello Sport among other publications, Pochettino is planning to reignite a proposed move for Valencia centre-back Mateo Musacchio. The Belgian pair of Toby Alderweireld and the fit-again Jan Vertonghen are set to be Pochettino's first choice defensive pairing again this year, but with Federico Fazio joining Roma on loan … [Read more...]