The biggest game in Spanish soccer, El Clásico, is returning to the Copa del Rey. Monday's draw for the semifinal of the Spanish cup competition pits Real Madrid and Barcelona in a two-legged tie. The first of those games is tentatively scheduled for March 1. Then, the return leg at Camp Nou is tentatively scheduled […]

Real Madrid came back to beat Atletico Madrid, 3-1, in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals on Thursday. The Madrid derby is historically one of the fiercest rivals in club soccer. Thursday's game didn't disappoint. The match featured three brilliant goals, as well as a red card. The pre-match hype for the massive match was marred […]

The U.S. Soccer Federation yesterday announced an expanded Open Cup format and schedule, one that will incorporate all MLS and lower division teams in a newly and hopefully more condensed way. In essence, the changes allow the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup to mirror the English FA Cup, where lower division and semi-pro teams have […]

With the league title slipping away from Real Madrid's hands, their two cup competitions, the UEFA Champions League and the Copa del Rey, could be the tournaments that they can realistically expect to win. Real can stamp its name in the final of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night if they can navigate a […]

For the past several seasons, Real Madrid treated the Copa del Rey as a nuisance and a burden rather than a competition worth winning. José Mourinho has changed that mentality. One Taça de Portgual with FC Porto, two Carling Cups and an FA Cup with Chelsea, and a Coppa Italia with Inter Milan signals Mourinho's […]

With the reinstitution of the Galáctico policy following Florentino Pérez's return as President of Real Madrid last summer, Pérez wasted no time in the second construction of his universe-beating side. Lost in the shuffle of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaká, and Xabi Alonso joining the club, Karim Benzema quietly transferred from Olympique Lyonnais to Real Madrid, if […]

Depending on the results of the final round in La Liga this upcoming weekend, Atlético Madrid can finish as high as ninth and as low as eleventh in Spain. Fulham completed their 2009-10 in the Barclays Premier League in twelfth position. All mattered not as they both navigated through massive European obstacles to arrive at […]

Jornada 28 is only the second mid-week round of the La Liga season, the first occurring well back in late September. Three teams in particular are glad that they get to play so soon: FC Barcelona, Getafe, and Xerez. Xerez? Yes, that same Xerez club that threatened to become the team to secure the fewest […]

A ridiculous question with what should be a simple answer. First, a cursory investigation. Is Barcelona on top of the standings in La Liga? Yes. Has Barcelona obtained sixty-one points from twenty-four matches, one more point than it had at the same point last season? Check. Does Barcelona have the edge in its UEFA Champions […]

This weekend, the focus will be on those teams who will play in European competition in the following midweek. The question of domestic vs. European responsibilities remains an individual club decision, but for some teams, choices become more plentiful than others. Real Madrid faces Xerez at El Chapín, but Los Blancos have the capability to […]

The January transfer window is made for the top teams to reinforce their squads for a title run. As a whole, the window flew by with little fanfare. Real Zaragoza was one of the few teams in Europe to make sweeping changes to their roster. While their moves would hardly gather any front or back […]

Two clubs pulled the plug on their managers after a string of poor results that came to a head in the last round. Ernesto Valverde's Villarreal suffered a 0-2 defeat at the hands of Osasuna, and Jose Luis Mendilibar's Real Valladolid could only manage a 1-1 draw at home against fellow relegation strugglers Almería. Villarreal […]

One of the unique characteristics of La Liga is that after the first half of the season, the second half schedule is a carbon copy of the first half, except that the away team will now be the home team. Thus, all those teams who did not achieve the result they desired will have a […]

As La Liga heads into the midway point of the season, these next few rounds are some of the hardest of the campaign because the toil of playing for five consecutive months begins to wear on the players and the coaching staff both physically and mentally. Motivation is a hard concept to renew during these […]

With the gap widening between Barcelona and Real Madrid and the rest of the league, Valencia, Deportivo La Coruña, and the other potential contenders need to keep winning and hope that the top two slip on some wet spots along the way. Real Madrid will visit the cathedral, San Mamés, against Athletic Bilbao, and Barcelona […]