As Dani Carvajal saw red and Lionel Messi slammed in the resulting penalty to put Barce 2-0 up at the Bernabeu, you could see the whole of Spain outside of Catalonia’s shoulders slump and raise the white flag. Aleix Vidal added a third in injury-time to leave Zinedine Zidane’s men to face the baying home support as his side slipped to fourteen points behind their great rivals with the season not even at the half way stage. Catastrophe This week has been a catastrophe for Barcelona’s rivals but a triumph for the Blaugrana as the quartet of Atletico Madrid, Valencia, Real Madrid and … [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...]
Nahuel Leiva: Will the Messi Story be rewritten?
Our story begins with an exciting young Argentine talent, whisked from the footballing hotbed of Rosario to arrive in (an equally) sunny Spain, barely entered into his formative teen years. It doesn’t take too long before the young prodigy begins to showcase his considerable talent, and the interest and attention of scouts and media invariably begin to peak. … [Read more...]
Real Madrid 3-0 Celta: Records Aren’t Easy
With 18 wins in all competitions, Real Madrid have now equaled Barcelona as the Spanish club with the most consecutive wins in all competitions in history, and with a home match vs Ludogorets in a few days, you have to believe that Ancelotti's men will break the record. In fact, Carlo Ancelotti might have his eyes set on Coritiba's all-time record which is the longest stretch of wins in the history of football in all competitions (recorded history at least). Coritiba's streak went to 24 matches, 6 more than Real Madrid's current streak. To equal it, Real Madrid have to win all their remaining … [Read more...]
Who Can Stop Real Madrid?
17 matches, 17 wins, 64 goals scored, just 9 conceded, and 9 clean sheets = Real Madrid's record-breaking 17-match winning streak with Carlo Ancelotti. The longest winning run in the club's history and second longest by any Spanish club in history (second only to Barcelona's 18 wins). Real Madrid have rampaged to a 10-match winning streak in La Liga that propelled them to the top of La Liga rankings in addition to a 5-match winning streak in this season's UCL that secured the top spot in their group. Finally, they also won their 2 matches in the Copa del Rey this season to set up a potential … [Read more...]
All the goals from La Liga Matchday 2
A round-up of the weekend action as Real Madrid lost in spectacular fashion in Sociedad, and both Barca and Atletico struggled past stubborn opposition. There were also wins for Valencia, Sevilla and Getafe in the final week of La Liga before the international break. Friday 29th August Getafe 1 (Vazquez) Almeria 0 http://youtu.be/6mcOqbJISWQ?list=UUTv-XvfzLX3i4IGWAm4sbmA Valencia 3 (Alcacer, Piatti, Parejo) Malaga 0 http://youtu.be/CyG7uTqowEU?list=UUTv-XvfzLX3i4IGWAm4sbmA Saturday 30th August Athletic Bilbao 3 (Aduriz, Iturraspe, Muniain) Levante … [Read more...]
Malaga lose late on as Chairman screams of ‘racism and injustice’
If Tuesday's Champions League quarter final second leg wasn't dramatic enough, the response to the defeat from Malaga's Qatari chairman gave fans some added action to follow on twitter after the game. Sheikh Abdullah N Al Thani, who has funded Malaga for the past couple of years, posted several farcical tweets to the social networking site blaming racism and UEFA for targeting the Spanish club from the beginning of the season, clearly irked by the substandard officiating during the game and Malaga's impending ban from European competition. … [Read more...]
James Rodriguez a.k.a ‘The New Cristiano Ronaldo’ unlikely to move to Manchester United or Barca
Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo first came into prominence when he arrived in Manchester as a fresh-faced teenager in 2003 and subsequently set the Premier League alight for his club, helping them achieve domestic and European silverware galore scoring a whopping 84 goals in the process. Since his high-profile move to Real Madrid in 2009 however, United have never quite been the same which is why it has recently come to light that Sir Alex Ferguson's side are on the hunt for a new winger by the name of James Rodriquez, a Colombian starlet who has been dubbed as the 'South American' … [Read more...]
Levante Season Preview
Who says La Liga is boring and predictable? Ok the title race proved a pretty elitist affair in contrast to the rest of the division and Real Madrid and Barcelona's finances do explode off the chart compared to their 18 fellow Primera amigos, but when teams like Levante surprise us all by finishing 6th then much of the previous becomes insignificant. To understand the scale of what Levante achieved last year, try to imagine Wigan leading the Premier League for a bit, beating Manchester City in the 3rd game and maintaining their charge to finish in a Europa League position. And that their … [Read more...]
Mallorca Season Preview
Over the past season Mallorca have enjoyed a swift turnaround in their fortunes. Carrying on from the narrow escape in 2011 when new Swansea manager Michael Laudrup managed to keep the club in the Primera Liga by the smallest of margins, Mallorca seemed to have ridden their luck too far in the early stages of the next season. Form dwindled and backroom staff squabbled during a turbulent time on the usually relaxing Balearic Island. As a result of poor financial health, a problem plaguing many Spanish sides over the past five years, Mallorca were not granted a licence to … [Read more...]