Eurocup Final: A match between the best

I said to a friend of mine last Wednesday that I had a feeling Italy would be making it to the final of the Eurocup. I wasn’t thinking about statistical or historical data (Germany has never defeated Italy in official competition) but rather on Italy’s display through the tournament. They may not be the best squad in the tournament but, in my opinion, they have been the best team.

Left behind are the days when Italy was the catenaccio team with its extremely defensive display and lack of offensive football. Prandelli has found a new personality for this team, which still relies on solid defending but also displays a swift transition defense to offence and vice-versa. Italy moves like a unit and rather than giving the ball away, they play it really good thanks to a stellar Pirlo.

Having said all that, Italy is up against the best squad in the tournament. Rather than concentrating on defending or attacking, Spain is the master of possession. If Spain wants to have the ball there is no much their rivals could do. Though this may not guarantee victories, I believe whichever team controls the ball has more chances of winning. Spain has also the psychological advantage of knowing they are the team to beat. Prove of this is how its rivals, even Italy, modify their initial formation when they play against them.

It’s hard to say what will happen this Sunday, as these are, without a doubt, the two best teams of the tournament. Italy needs no only an inspired Pirlo but also a concentrated Ballotelli. He has shown he’s capable of the best (his game against Germany) and the worst (his game against Spain). Spain on the other hand needs to capitalize on the chances they get, which I expect will be not many. May the best team win…

Mourinho: you just don't get it

First things first, congratulations to Real Madrid for a well-deserved title. I love league titles because there is very little chance to have a controversial champions. You have to prove that you are the best for 38 fixtures. Referees’ mistakes are usually compensated over the course of the season as well as shots to the posts and other irregularities.

Real Madrid is the champion because they did not fail as much as their competitors. Sure, I don’t think the gap between Barcelona and Madrid is as big as the table suggests; but the bottom line is that Madrid dominated the tournament and won at every single important stadium.

Now, with that said there is something that Mourinho said today that bothers me big time. During the celebration of the title he mentioned “Some geniuses think there is only one way to win, they think they know football by just doing a Google search”. He also mentioned that his team played spectacularly all season. I won’t say that his team wasn’t impressive. In fact, Real Madrid has probably the best defense-offence transition in the world. Their counter attacks are that good. But to say that his team played spectacularly is a bit of a stretch.

Let’s not forget that this season Real Madrid lost the supercup against Barcelona even though they had a week more of training. They were also eliminated from the King’s cup by Barcelona again and lost at home to the same team after having a 1-0 lead in the first minute.

In Europe, they dominated the champions league until they faced the first big team. Against Bayern, they were completely outplayed and even though the penalties are a lottery they did justice to what was seen on the pitch. Real Madrid let a 2-0  lead score at home escape by playing a stingy football against a team that knows how to move the ball around the pitch and generate chances.

The problem is not that Mourinho’s style is wrong or bad. In fact, he’s a living proof that it works. What I just don’t understand is why he underutilizes his squad the way he does.  He has the players that know how to take care of the ball. Against Bayern I wasn’t expecting a 60-40% possession but I was expecting more control especially after the 2 goals in the first 15 minutes. They gave away the midfield and payed for it.

Mourinho won a well deserve title, but he already proved last season that he can beat 99% of La Liga’s teams. Real Madrid supporters want to see the beginning of an era not just a title per year. The Santiago Bernabeu stadium is not Stanford Bridge or San Siro where you just win. This stadium demands domination, control, and good games. If this wasn’t the case, then why whenever the ultras chant his name there are sectors of the stadium that still boo him? Mourinho demands crowd support but it is hard to be into the game cheering when your team refuses to play! This isn’t a second division team, this is Real Madrid.  

The Santiago Bernabeu stadium knows Mourinho has the tools to have an iconic team like they had not so long ago with Del Bosque. That old man who won 2 champions league and 2 league titles and was fired…

The convenience of ignorance

I really dislike writing about referees and I tend to avoid doing so for many reasons. First, it’s a waste of time as the games’ results are not changeable after the final whistle is blown. Second, referees have a tough job to do and they go completely unnoticed when they do it brilliantly but vilify tremendously when a mistake happens. Lastly, it’s just a vicious cycle and an excuse to hide away from poor team performances.

Despite my dislike for the subject, today I couldn’t stir away from what’s happening in La Liga. More specifically, the Pique situation after the remarks he made regarding the red card he saw in the last match against Sporting. He attended the media and said that, in his opinion, the referee gave him a premeditated red card. The story takes a nasty spin when the referee committee formally asks for an additional sanction against the player.

First of all, I think Pique made a tremendous mistake with such remarks. It gives a bad image to him as a player, and to the club he represents. It makes me sick to see the best players in the world, and the best clubs, complaining about referees. Whether it’s Pique, Messi, Casillas, or Mourinho, all the whining leads nowhere.

However, my biggest problem with all of this is the referee committee’s decision to formally request the additional sanction against Pique for his comments when they have done nothing after 2 years of Mourinho saying equal, or worse, things. Forget about Mourinho, almost every weekend a player, a coach, or a president goes on to the media to say things like “the referee didn’t want to make the call”, or “we were robbed by the referee” etc. So my question is: isn’t accusing someone of robbery as bad as saying he acted on purpose? Why act on Pique’s comment? Why now?

Neither coaches, nor players or media analysts can really explain the criterions used by that committee in order to act. Ignorance of such rules is precisely the best scenario for the committee to act or hide depending on the situation. The ambiguity allows them to pretend they can’t do anything when a player says something to the ref like “why don’t you go and celebrate the victory with them” like Casilla did after Barcelona eliminated his team from the King’s Cup; but it also allows them to call for actions when other players say something they consider “too much”.

The end result makes everything even more pathetic. Pique red card stills on, which means he won’t be able to play next match. Also, he has to pay 600 euros in penalty for his comment and Barcelona 90 euros as well. Sanctions in Spain tend to be at the range of the thousands euros, so this comes across like a formality and a way to compensate for the insanity of the situation rather than a corrective action.

Morale of the story: next time just do like Mourinho and wait in the parking lot next to the ref’s car and insult him there. You won’t escape the media attention but at least you won’t get penalized either. Just Pathetic.

Madrid: that’s almost the way

It was do or die for Real Madrid but sadly for them they did and they died. It was perhaps the best game in Mourinho’s time with Real Madrid and the worst game for Pep Guardiola's since he took charge of the team. Mourinho proved that he’s the most dangerous when he’s against wall. He put almost all his offensive power on the pitch and he almost pulled the upset.

I have never seen Barcelona being dominated at home under Pep Guardiola command. They have lost matches but even then Barcelona was the dominating team. Beyond having a bad day, the main cause was Real Madrid's excellence. They pressed, they passed, and they controlled the ball. This was the Real Madrid that people wanted to see for a long time.

And so, the main question is: why didn’t we see this Real Madrid before? Why didn’t Ozil play the first match? Why did Mourinho choose to give the ball way at home? Why assume the inferior team role when the squad is full of players perfectly fit to create game instead of destroying it?

Only Mourinho has the answers to this. But it is clear that all comes down to the 5-0 lost at Camp Nou last year. Mourinho never digested that defeat. He put those same players and tried to play but Barcelona was perfectly tuned that day and so came the worst defeat in Mourinho’s coaching career.

This is clearly the way to go for Real Madrid as far as pure game comes. Having put their rivals on the top of their nerves should have been a self-esteem shot and a chance to show the world that they are not the bad guys of the movie. It was the perfect chance for them to challenge Barca in all levels: inside the pitch, and outside attitude. Instead, they chose to be the sore loser who blames their misery on the refs.

Teixeira had a bad time refereeing this match but his bad calls were equally distributed. Lass should have never played a minute of the second half. It is clears that Barcelona and Real Madrid were playing. Had it been a player from Granada or Rayo, Lass would have seen a second yellow card after his tackle on Messi. Somebody get some guts to these referees.

Real Madrid and Barcelona will meet at least once more this year. At this moment, what Mourinho will do remains a mystery. Logic indicates he will repeat his last strategy but I doubt Barcelona will have yet another bad day. Barcelona moves on to the semifinals, Real Madrid players can have much needed confidence. Mourinho, on the other hand, will continue to be the target of critics; his strategy at home cost his team a semi-final.

Pepe is insane: Albert Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing expecting different results. By this definition Pepe is absolutely insane. Once again we had to suffer watching every dirty trick of the book: violent tackles, faking faults, and constant complaining to the ref in every call. Clearly this man hasn’t learned the lesson. It’s a miracle that he finishes games with only a yellow card (but that doesn’t count as bad referee for Real Madrid of course). I can’t wait until this player moves to another league but the question is: which team is willing to build him an asylum?

Moral Consequences

If you were to ask fans to mention one thing about the recent “El Clasico” the probable answer would have to be related to Pepe and the stepping on Messi’s hand. The world media has focused their attention on this action. Almost everybody agree that Pepe should be sanctioned by his club and by the committee responsible for fair game. And I say almost everybody because, sadly, there are two organizations that disagree with this: precisely his club and the Spanish referee committee.

Florentino Perez (Real Madrid’s President) has decided to stay in the shadows in this matter and after seven days he hasn’t spoken to anybody outside the club to explain where the team stands in this matter. The reality is that they are ping-poing this subject across the leaders of the team with no one wanting to make a final call. Florentino delegates this to the manager, Mourinho, who has defended the player in public. As a coach he’s responsible for the physical and psychological state of his players; however, as a manager his obligation include dealing with controversies such as this and punish anti-competitive behaviour.

The referee committee says they would not act on the matter since there wasn’t anything written about it in the ref report of the game. Unlike England, where Ballotelli got a four game sanction for a very similar action, Spain has decided to turn a blind eye on the matter. Not even the pressure from all around the world has been enough to make the committee reconsider their positions.

I understand, but fully disagree with both parties. It all comes down to morals and previous decisions taken. Mourinho had an anti competitive behavior in August when he shamelessly poked Barcelona’s second coach, Tito Vilanova in the eye. Neither his club nor the referee committee acted diligently. His club showed full support for him, even showing a tifo that read “Mou, your finger guide us” in reference to the poking incident. The committee settled for an innocent punishment of two games suspension from the supercup tournament only. Meaning that he may never be affected by this decision.

How can they punish Pepe when they turned a blind eye on something as bad, or even worse, from his coach? Judging Pepe by strict standards would be like giving an assassin a death penalty while his assassin partner gets only a community service penalty. Again, I understand the reasoning behind this but it is pathetic to say the least.

Football has evolved from the contact game in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, to a gentlemen’s game. No longer you see in the main European leagues players like Andoni Goikoetxea who intensionally injured Maradona breaking his ankle in the middle of a game. You still get Carvalho tackling knees but the degree of violence is toned down. These players. Pepe, Marcelo (against Fabregas), and Carvalho are a step back to the time where football was warfare.

Take note Spain, the best league is not about having the best players only but having the best system that supports the game. TV rights favour the strong teams economically, which polarizes the league. Referee committees turn a blind eye on crucial matters instead of protecting players and setting example for troublemakers.

It all comes down to morals. Just like its economy, Spain’s morals in these matters are a joke to the rest of Europe, and the world.

Oh, and there is a game today too...

Florentino Strikes Back

Florentino Skyrockets the Market: when Florentino Perez entered the race to become president of Real Madrid we all saw what was soon to come. Millions and Millions of dollars spent in world class players with the excuse of getting the money back solely on marketing. The man has done it again; 67 million euros in Kaka and 94 in Ronaldo. The truth is that Real Madrid obtained a 300 million euros loan from Banca Madrid of which now they only have 89 since they spent another 36 in Benzema and 15 in Albeol (the only Spanish player). Last year, Barça was able to arm a champion team with 94 million euros; although, the nucleus of the team was already in Barça and it was all made at home through their junior development system. This year however, 89 millions euros are so little that it will give Madrid the chance to buy maybe 2 more players. The effect Florentino is already present; last year, for example, to buy Villa any team would have to pay 30 million; now that quantity seems like a joke. Now for Madrid had to pay 36 millions plus incentives for the Benzema who had a mediocre season overall. Liverpool is asking for “just” 35 millions for midfielder Mascherano and the funny thing is that due to the effect of Florentino’s crazy acquisition it look as if 35 millions were just OK even though a player like that may be worth 25 Millions at maximum in a regular transfer season.

The Almost Perfect Picture: The story seems to have all the ingredients for another epic journey by Real Madrid in the Champions League and La Liga; but there is already a “mole” to the otherwise seemingly perfect body that is this team. One of the mistakes that Florentino had in his first era as president of Madrid was the absence of Spanish players. Saved for Raul, Casillas, Guti and Hierro the rest of the team was made of foreign players such as Zidane, FIgo, Ronaldo, Beckham, Makelele, Panucci, and others. There were Spanish players and they bought Ramos; but Perez always seemed to think that Spanish players were overpriced and foreign players not. His first promise this time was to make a more Spanish team and the man to cause that effect was no other than David Villa. The payment 94 Millions for Ronaldo and 67 for Kaka to make a huge impact; but these moves also backfired when they asked for Villa the response by Valencia was 45 millions which Perez considered to be “too much”. Once again Florentino makes the mistake of underestimating Spanish players once again. They ended up paying 36 millions for incentive for Benzema rather than 42 for Villa who is already adapted to La Liga and scores at least 22 goals per season. Villa is now on the verge of signing with Barça and that will be the first defeat of the “new” Real Madrid. It is subject of envy when you see Barça winning the first ever Spanish treble with not only Spanish players but players made in their youth development system. Real on the other hand is a team made in the banks and despite Florentino’s speech of having learned his lesson it all seems more of the same.

Villa Is “Just A Matter of Time”: that was the heading of Madrid’s newspapers during the confederation cup when their “secret sources” could confirm that Madrid was going to buy Villa. Even Florentino said it that they just needed time to negotiate the overpricing of the player which they were hoping to buy for 28 million euros. Now the situation happens to be true but with Barça’s name instead of Madrid. The player has negotiated his contract with Barça and has already talked with Guardiola of what his role will be in the team. The only problem right now is convincing the president of Valencia who was asking for 42 to Madrid and now he’s asking for 50 to Barça. The player has spoken with the president of Valencia and knows that the player wants to leave; he was put on the market before and now he demands to be transferred. Villa has been very passive but soon won’t be if he’s made to stay in Valencia. The worst part of the story is that this player should already be in Barça who is starting the pre-season in less than 10 days from now. It’s just a matter of time, but Guardiola doesn’t have that much of a time and plan B is there; 30 years old, two times golden boot and Atletico De Madrid’s own Forlan. This summer’s transfer is a long way from over but many feel that more movement should have happened already; Florentino has done it again.

Champions To Become Champion

King of Kings: Barça became the champion of the king’s cup for the first time since 1998 last Wednesday in Mestalla; a stadium that oddly enough was the same where they conquered the same title 11 years ago. Barça entered the final with the handicap of having played three decisive games in a row against Madrid, Chelsea, and Villareal; each of those games meant a lot to the team and Pep did not hesitate to put his best men in every single of those games. Athletic, on the other hand, had been preparing the final with up to 2 month un advance; and since they had already saved a spot for the next year’s Liga they weren’t even playing their best men for a couple of weeks so they could be rested for the final. But this Barça is just too good and too tough to beat. Despite the fact that Athletic scored first, Barça was able to remain quite and soon take control of the game which led to a water clear victory over the “lions” of Bilbao. It is fair to say that Athletic put a lot of pressure on Guardiola’s men but Barça never gave up their style; something that caught up my attention was how Pinto never kicked the ball away but rather passed it to his defenders despite the fact that he had 2 rivals near him; even though this was a risky move by Pep it ended up paying as the first two goal started from the goalkeeper which is one of the elemental rules of this team.

La Liga Almost Ready: Even though winning La Liga should have happened last weekend at Nou Camp when Barça was playing Villareal, a tie played out to be the best to happen. It allowed the team not to distract from the King’s Cup final while celebrating La Liga. Sure, it would have been nice to win it at their home stadium accompanied by their people but realistically speaking after the victory against Madrid La Liga has already an owner; it’s just a matter of when they will officially proclaimed. This weekend they can start playing being champions already if Real Madrid do not comes from El Madrigal with three points; the best thing about winning la Liga before playing is that it would allow him to put a lot of bench players in the main team and give a well deserved rest to men like Messi, Eto’o, Xavi, or Pique. If Madrid wins, which is very unlikely seeing how well Villareal is playing, then Barça would only have to tie in their feud against Mallorca. Statistically speaking, they have added at least one point every time they have played in Las Palmas the last 7 years. Once this title of officially given to Barça they would be the first absolute champions of Spain (League & Cup winner) in 11 years.

Thinking in Rome: With the King’s Cup won and La Liga almost done, Pep has his eyes on only in the final of the champions’ League. Winning La Liga this weekend would give him a lot of time to think only in Rome, take the pressure of his men, and don’t let any euphoria enter the locker room. Just to show how serious Guardiola is about this tournament he fined six of his players for showing up one minute late for the training of today. Not even after playing such a beautiful final was Pep to go easy on his player. The message is perfectly clear: the job is not over. Barça is right now in a unique position of completing the hat-trick of titles; something that only four teams have been able to do and none of which are from Spain, Pep knows it and he wants his team to know it as well. Rome is in the horizon but for now let’s enjoy this weekend which will be when Barça claims the title for the 19th time.

Game, Set, & Match: Barça!

Unforgettable: what happened this past Saturday in the Santiago Bernabeu will not be forgotten ever by football fans around the world. Saying that Barça had been superior to Madrid in terms of their game was a statement that needed to be confirmed and Guardiola and his players were responsible to show the world that without any shadow of doubt they were the best team. In the 50s there was the Barça of the 5 cups -the best Barça to date in the writer’s opinion- then the Barça of Cruyff (player) is remembered for the 0-5 in the Bernabeu; then there was the Dream Team of Cruyff, now the coach, who’s remembered for many things such as the first champions league title and the 5-0 against Madrid at home; lastly we had the Barça of Frank Rijkaard which was a team called to make history but died sooner than they expected; they will always be remembered as the team that brought the second champions league title and the one that beat Madrid 0-3 at the Bernabeu the day that the Madrid’s fan cheered for Ronaldinho. Now Guardiola’s team has entered history; they will always be remembered for the 2-6 victory at the Bernabeu. The display of football as an art is appreciated even by the most ultra fans of Real Madrid.

Only 2 New Faces: Comparing this game to what happened a year ago when the Catalans lost 4-1 to Madrid one may think that Guardiola did an intensive renovation of the team bringing new faces and getting rid of many but the truth is that Pep used only two new players yesterday: Alves and Pique. Henry, Eto’o, Messi, Xavi, Abidal, Toure, Iniesta, Puyol, & Valdes were playing for this team last year. This goes to show that what Barcelona needed was not a new philosophy of playing or new players but a strict working ethic. Pep is a coach who was being blamed of lack of experience; however, he acts as a veteran coach guarding every single small detail. Against Madrid, he cracked down were the weak points were and placed Messi in that spot- in between the defensive mid-fielder and the center back- and to do this he had to “sacrificed” Eto’o in the right wing. The strategy worked to perfection and shows that Guardiola spent hours figuring out how to beat Madrid. His next job is not to see how Chelsea plays because he has done that already; instead, he has to fix the problems that his defence is having with corners and free kicks.

Next Objective = Rome: with La Liga almost won and the objective in the king’s cup already achieved- being in the final- the next objective is to eliminate Chelsea at Stanford Bridge in two days. This team deserves to be in the final of the champions’ league but deserving it is not enough and just like they did against Real they have to prove it against Chelsea. Whether the final is won or not is not something they have to think about; the objective has to be a place in the final as it shows that you were a direct championship contender. The biggest concern that Guardiola has is that Marquez is out for the rest of the season and Puyol is serving a suspension so he will only have Pique. Some suggest that Toure will be used as center back and other suggest that Caceres will have the opportunity of a lifetime to shine. Whatever happen I’m confident that this team has the tools to make it to Rome… a 1-1 will do.

Mestalla WIll Judge

Mestalla To Be Remembered: This coming Saturday Barça will visit a stadium that can bring the best memories to fans to this club or the worst. Pep Guardiola’s team will play in Mestalla two games that will determine the successfulness of this campaign. Tomorrow against Valencia half tournament is on the line; if Barça is able to leave with three points they will only have to win tow more games to be champions; even less if Real Madrid loses at Sevilla’s Sanchez Pizjuan. The next time they are back at Mestalla will be may 13 against Atletic de Bilbao in the final of the King’s Cup but now is not the time to talk about that game.

Pep Does not Speculate: Guardiola knows the importance of the coming games. In less than 15 days he will have to face Valencia, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Chelsea, Villareal & Atletic de Bilbao which means that the season will be judged in the next 6 games (7 if they go to the Champions League final in Rome). From now on he won’t give rest to the essential players and the ones like Hleb or Caceres will not be playing so much unless the games are very well finished before the ending time. To prove this Guardiola called the 18 available players to go to Mestallla tomorrow night. He wants to create a good environment by bringing everybody and thus transmitting the importance of the coming games. Against Valencia Henry Eto’o & Messi will be playing from the beginning and will try to win the game as clear as possible to send a direct message to their main rival.

Crucial Victory: With the luck and effectiveness that Real Madrid is having it is crucial that Barça get the three points this weekend; every effort that Madrid has done so far is being nullified by Barça and if they keep this way a bit longer soon Real Madrid will fail. What is happening with this rivalry this year is a metaphor of Barça’s game. Kanoute from Sevilla stated how desperate it is to play against Barcelona in the way that they don’t give you the ball and you spend 90 minute trying to chase the ball which results in them getting exhausted and soon admitting defeat; this has been the Barça VS Madrid race so far. Barça has the points and Madrid is trying to chase them. All logic points that Madrid will sooner rather than later fail but football is an ingrate and sometimes even defies all logic. The only hope that Madrid has is for Barça to get tired from their encounters with Chelsea. However, that is next week. In the mean time La Liga enters in the best part where for Barça a win this Saturday is Crucial.

Real Madrid VS Barcelona: Worlds Apart

Worlds Apart: after watching the round 32 of La Liga it is impossible not to see the immense difference between the two championship contenders Real Madrid and Barcelona. Despite the fact that both of them got the three points from their respective encounters their games are world apart; Real Madrid wins suffering and in the last minute, they allow their rivals to dominate them in their own stadium; if they’re still fighting for the championship it is based only on the never-ending hope that this team has. Barça, on the other hand, is able to liquidate their rivals in just 45 minutes and we are talking of the likes of Bayern Munich, Lyon, Atletico de Madrid and others; at home they dominate completely and mesmerize viewers all around the world with their continues passes and never ending pressure. Playing like that, Barcelona should claim their well deserved title; however, football is an ingrate sport so it is not over until it is over.

Iniesta is Just Too Much: a lot of the time when we refer to Barcelona we talk about the main players such as Eto’o and his goals (27 so far), about Henry and how he’s now a more mature player, about Messi and how he’s the team’s main star. However, right now there is only one player that is making the difference in this team and deserves to have a bit more of recognition; Andres Iniesta. This player right now is one step ahead of everybody, he has the same touch of gods as Xavi, the one-on-one skills that Messi has and now he’s even scoring a lot of goals. Last night, Pep played without Messi and the team played like they always do: dominating and crushing their rivals in less than 60 minutes. Andres brings so much to the game that it is not even funny; just as Eto’o said in the after-game interview “Andres deserves a Golden Ball award along with Messi”. The best thing about Andres is that despite the fact that he plays like only few in the world and that the Nou Camp chants his name on a daily basis he still very humble and his professionalism is enviable.

Pepe’s Madness: while Andres Iniesta mesmerize football fan with his beautiful skills Real Madrid defender Pepe shocks the world with his unforgivable action against Casquero. The defender made a fool of himself losing control and tackling the Getafe striker after he was already in the floor; and not happy with himself, he threw a punch at another Getafe players; and to make things even worst he exists the field insulting the referees. The Spanish Football Federation has to take serious actions against this kind of despicable behaviours; so far it is known that he can miss four games at the very least even though it should be around the 10 games mark. This should be a lesson to anybody playing for a professional club. Pepe not only created a bad image for himself but for the shirt and the colors he represents. Diario Marca from Madrid says today that we shouldn’t make a devil out of Pepe and to some extent it is true; but no explanation can justify what he did. He shouldn’t be playing the rest of the season (7 games) so that the message is clear and a situation like this never happens again.

Barça Double Up the Bet

Round 28 of Liga was played this weekend with a curious reflection of what the whole tournament has been. Real Madrid won their game at home against Almeria which will be remembered more for the tribute to Hugo Sanchez’s coming back to Madrid than for the game itself. Real didn’t play good at all but they were highly effective when it came down to what really matters…scoring. Huntelaar is right now the striker they missed after the injury of Van Nistelroy, Lass has become the chief of the midfield and Juande Ramos has figured out a way to make this broken machine work.

Barça Doubles Up. Before the initial whistle at Nou Camp Guardiola’s men knew that Real Madrid had won against a non-threatening Almeria 3 goals to 0; once again Real Madrid was at 3 points watching their TVs in the locker room waiting to see if the pressure would manifest in Barcelona. Instead, they had to see how Barça massacred Malaga in less than 30 minutes. What had been catalogued as an “interesting” match up between Malaga (the revelation team of this season) and Barça (the most dominating team) ended up being a dominance display by the Catalans. Xavi and Iniesta commanded the midfield as they wanted to; and together make this team play at the rhythm they wanted. Henry is at his best once again and is the King Midas of the team as everything he touches becomes gold; and Eto’o is back on the hunt for the pichichi trophy (Spain’s top scorer). With this result Barcelona not only matched the 3 goals scored by Madrid but also doubled them up to show how superior they are.

Injuries Ruin The Show. Unfortunately for Barça this show did not have the perfect happy ending that it deserved. Their three main pillars in the midfield ended the game injured. Toure Yaya couldn’t last more than 25 minutes and abandoned the field with a torn muscle that will have him apart from the fields for at least 15 days. Iniesta had the exact same injury and will miss about the same time; lastly, Xavi ended up with a sore heel but in his case it shouldn’t prevent him to play in the next round of la Liga. The only “good” thing about these injuries is the timing; next weekend there are international world cup qualifying matches so this players would have to miss only one round as they are all expected to be recovered to face Bayern Munich on the 8th of April.

Numbers of Champions. Something has been said quite a lot in Spanish sport articles this past week about how people should give Madrid more credit for still being competing. With Barcelona’s same numbers Deportivo La Coruna conquered the title in the season 99/00. Real Madrid has not given up and they see the 6 points difference somewhat possible; especially considering the fact that they have to play Barcelona at their home stadium in round 34. However, if we look at the stats Barcelona deserves to win this title; their three main strikers accumulate a total of 57 goals and the team in general add up to 84; if they keep going this way they’d be braking all time record of la Liga held by Real Madrid with 107 goals in one season. The turning point of this tournament is going to be in two weeks when they have to “plug” themselves in very fast and keep adding and when Barça starts playing champions league. If they keep adding 3 points every week then this league will be over soon.

Champions League Hangover (Part II)

The round of 16 is over with very little surprise. Most of the outcomes were very visible after the first games so let’s look at them one by one:

Barcelona VS Lyon: for the first time in Barça’s history they eliminate a French team in a K.O round of a European tournament. Barcelona was very loyal to their principles and their game playing with the lines very close to one another and pressuring the rival and playing very fast. The first 45 minutes were the complete opposite from the first 45 minutes at Lyon. Pure perfection by the Catalans that scored 4 goals; however, it is quite intriguing how this team can be so good and so mediocre in just one game. The first 25 minutes of the second half were quite bad and if Benzema had scored at least one goal then I’m not so sure what would have happened. In the end, Barça was clearly superior but there is still tons of work to do.

Manchester VS Inter: I predicted that Inter was going to eliminate the current and very possible next champions but only with a tie and with horrible game. I wasn’t that far off as Inter sent to balls to the post. In the end the best team advanced and there is no surprise whatsoever. Manchester may be in its way to become the first team to win back to back.

Roma VS Arsenal: Roma is a rollercoaster; some days it can be the best team playing at home and other the worst. Today, they battled until the very last second but in the penalty kicks it is always a lottery. With this win the premier showed once again to be the best league in Europe…unfortunately.

Oporto VS Atletico: if today Oporto didn’t win is not because they didn’t have the chance but because the gods from above were rutting for Atletico; they had so many chances that for whatever reason didn’t become goals. The biggest mistake by Abel was leaving Forlan in the bench. Honestly, in a KO round you have to go for the game from the very first moment. Shameful.

Chelsea VS Juve: Juventus is a team that is very hard to beat at home and Chelsea can give testimony of that. Unfortunately they also need new players, a fresh air so to speak. Juventus is at the moment a team that needs a re-building summer. I don’t expect to see Chelsea going to semi-finals if they have to face a big team.

Panathinaikos VS Villareal: The only surprise of the round was to see the yellow submarine advance to the next round. Definitely the Cinderella team of the tournament; it is nice to see them among the 8 best of Europe.

Liverpool VS Madrid: yes, the first goal was a foul on pepe, the second one wasn’t a penalty but you just cannot justify a 4-0. Benitez gave a lesson of how to win a game from minute one. Real Madrid was never a threat in this game and only Casillas is saved of the media backlash.

Bayern VS Sporting: not much to say here expect that Bayern showed no mercy and gained a lot of respect for the next round.

Championship Contenders:
- Liverpool: strong contender after their dominance display against Madrid. Definitely a semi-finalist

- Bayern: This team needs to face a big team to prove how good there are; in my mind a final contender.

- Manchester: one of my best friend described them the best; he said “they are team with most discipline in the world” I couldn’t agree more. Serious contender for the first ever back to back.

- Barça: when they are good they are the best. But the have gaps that in this tournament can represent the end.

Matches that I want to see:

Manchester VS Bayern
Barça VS Arsenal
Oporto VS Villareal
Liverpool VS Chelsea

Champion's League Hangover

After 3 long months the most prestigious tournament in Europe is finally back. The KO round of 16 was very interesting to say the least and most of the games are way open to put money on the line. Let’s look game by game what happened and the consequences.

Lyon VS Barça: Horrible first half by the Catalans; it was probably the worst display of the season and it comes at the worst time. Pep’s team has not won in three games. Valdes is right now in clumsy mode. Let’s be honest, Juninho’s goal was a piece or art worthy of the mighty ones but Valdes could and should have done something more. It’s not too much that he failed but the fact that it’s his second game in which a mistake of the keeper cost the teams the game. Fortunately Henry appeared (at least once) to save the day and score another goal worthy of the chosen ones. The good news is that 1) the team didn’t lose and 2) a goal away is always a good news; this means that a 0-0 tie will still take Barcelona to quarters of final. The bad news: Barcelona has never passed to the next round after tying 1-1 on the first game. Prediction: Barcelona wins at home next game and advances to the quarters of Final.

Inter VS Manchester: the big daddy of this round was very disappointing; especially for mourinho’s men. Manchester seemed as though they were playing home. They moved very comfortably throughout the game and had many chances of scoring. Mourinho must be extremely grateful to Julio Cesar who was without any doubt the MVP of the night. Ibrahimovic barely appeared during the game and neither did Adriano. However, in this type of tournaments not letting the visitor score in the first game is a success. Prediction: This is a very bold prediction but I ‘m sure Inter will tie at old Trafford and advance. But don’t fool yourself they won’t display any type of futbol; it will be 90 minutes of constant offensive game by Manud.

Arsenal VS Roma: Once again the premier showed to be a better league than Calcio. I’m not a fan of the kick and run show that is seen every weekend on England but even I have to admit that they are miles away at the moment. Arsenal showed extremely superiority at emirate stadium and just as Manchester is a shame that the superiority was not reflected on the final score. A penalty goal by Van Persie was enough for the moment but Roma is a very tricky team at home. It’s hard to know how good they will be the next game or how incredible bad. Prediction: Arsenal is going to advance to the next round without too much problem. A 0-0 at the Olympic Stadium will be more than enough to kick out the hosts of this year’s final.

Atletico VS Oporto: I’m glad these two had to see each other in this round. They are so similar in so many ways that it is nice to the spectacle. Atletico’s men were convinced that in champions league they will be different from the rollercoaster display of La Liga but unfortunately it wasn’t the case. Every time the seemed to figure how to win Lisandro would strike back and get Oporto in the picture once again. The final result is a shame if you are an Atletico De Madrid fan; a 2-2 is not the best score to have with the next game being away. Prediction: Oporto won’t have too many troubles to eliminate Aguero and company. 1-0

Chelsea VS Juventus: the biggest upset of this round for me. I was going to be very surprise if Barça had won at Lyon but Juventus losing and not scoring is an humongous surprise. Let’s be clear, Chelsea is a solid club as they showed last game and nobody forget they are the runner-up of last tournament. Not even almighty Manchester United could win clearly against them in the final; but also let’s not forget who Juventus really is. Juve is like this bee that it doesn’t matter how many times you try to get rid off it always comes back. That’s Juventus in champions league; rarely any other team feel this tournament as Juve does and to see them losing and not scoring is an outrage. Prediction: I think Juve will win 2-1 at home which will leave them out due to away goal advantage…something they lack.

Villareal vs Panathinaikos: as is the case with Atletico and Oporto I’m glad for these two as well. They are such underdogs in this tournament that it’s nice to see them battle each other. I can’t say too much about this game; Villareal never fully recovered after losing to Madrid and Barça in December and this have shown in the qualifying where they are currently at 4th place with 11 point difference from the second. I think they still have a shot but Panathinaikos seems to have this one. Prediction: Panathinaikos advances winning 2-0.

Real Madrid VS Liverpool: this was probably the second big daddy of this round. So much history between these two only made the scenario more intense. Real Madrid is right now the re-emerging phoenix in Spain who is starting to worry their arch nemesis Barça. And Liverpool, while not as solid in the premier as they would want to be still the “never say never” team of Europe. The encounter was hard to describe. Both coaches decided to show their amazing defensive organization but forget to display how well the attack. And to make everything weirder Liverpool ended up getting a victory. In Spain they say Liverpool brought Petroleum back from Madrid and I couldn’t agree more. 0-1 doesn’t seem that bad but at the same time is too much. Madrid will have to suffer a LOT if they want to keep the 10th championship dream. Prediction: Liverpool will take this one 1-0 and go to the next round.

Sporting Lisbon VS Bayern Munich: This was probably the most predictable encounter. The difference between these 2 teams is colossal. I predicted a 0-3 with goals of Ribery, Toni, and Klose but to be honest now that I see it a 0-5 was more than obvious. Prediction: Bayern doesn’t even have to show up to win. 2-0 at home for the Germans