La Liga clubs spent a week on vacation after the opening round of fixtures because of the international FIFA date, although for Real Madrid and Barcelona, many of their players were on international duty. In particular, ten players from Barcelona and six players from Real Madrid traveled to Buenos Aires midweek for the Argentina – […]

The Real Federación Española de Fútbol (the Spanish FA) released the full schedule for the 2010-11 La Liga season, and Jornada 1 will be held on the last weekend of August. Both Real Madrid and FC Barcelona will commence their campaigns away from home as they visit Mallorca and Racing de Santander respectively. Real Sociedad, […]

Once Lionel Messi scored his club record-tying 34th goal of the season in the 76th minute to increase the lead to 4-0, the 98,772 Culés at the Camp Nou, save for a few hundred Real Valladolid die-hards, began to chant the song that every team wants to hear at the end of the season, "Campeones, […]

On Tuesday, the goalkeepers and defenders were discussed, and Wednesday, the midfielders were discussed. With all of the creative talent in the midfield, that will bring the pressure on the forwards to convert the multitudes of chances that Xavi, Xabi Alonso, etc. will create for them. Obviously, the two starting men up front would be […]

Yesterday, the goalkeeping and the defense were discussed, and while the three goalkeepers contending for the final goalkeeping spot will state their cases to Vicente del Bosque on and off the pitch, they will have little to no chance of participating in the World Cup. The players who will compete for the final midfield spots, […]

The Race for the La Liga Crown If there were a match on which Barcelona would stumble in their path to a second consecutive La Liga title, Villarreal would stand in their way. All involved with FC Barcelona said the right statements after Inter Milan eliminated the Catalans from the UEFA Champions League. Barça president […]

There will be a Spanish team in a European final, but it is not the team that many expected. Atlético Madrid completed their strange and wonderful trip to the Europa League final with an extra time goal by Diego Forlán against Liverpool. As per usual, Atlético did not win the second leg of their Europa […]

Juan Ramón López Muñiz brought Málaga into La Liga in 2008 after a two-year hiatus in the second division. Throughout his playing career, he played on teams constantly scrambling either to stay in La Liga or to be promoted to the first division. He knows the mentality that a team needs to eschew whatever poor […]

La Liga heads down the home stretch with five matches remaining, and Jornada 34 is littered with matches between the top and the bottom of the table. FC Barcelona hosts Xerez at the Camp Nou in the early Saturday kickoff, and both teams are running opposite of their position in the standings. Despite propping the […]

"NINO, NINO, NINO!" chanted Los Chicharreros in the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López. When shouted aloud, the chant sounded like an onrushing ambulance through a traffic-jammed street, and for Getafe, who fell victim to the brilliance of Nino, they needed the assistance of EMT workers. After a 0-0 draw at home to Real Valladolid last Saturday, […]

Sevilla failed to show up against a desperate Real Valladolid side. Mallorca could only muster a draw against Real Zaragoza at La Romareda. Athletic Bilbao knew that a win against Valencia on Thursday would ascend them to within one point of Mallorca for the final Champions League spot. Sure, Athletic has not won away from […]

With El Clásico in the rear-view mirror, La Liga continues forward with a mid-week round that will help shape the European and relegation battles. For Real Madrid, a mid-week match should be good for them so that they can move on quickly from a mentally and physically draining edition of El Clásico. With Barcelona holding […]

Throughout Barcelona's two-year run of groundbreaking excellence, Josep Guardiola i Sala role as a tactician tended to be undervalued. He reinstituted the "Total Football" concept that Johan Cruyff, Guardiola's former manager at FC Barcelona, instilled when he was a player and a manager at the club, and he changed the culture inside the dressing room. […]

Real Madrid and Barcelona's matches in La Liga this season have almost had the feeling of high-level training sessions. A few surprises sprinkled throughout, but the inevitability of the best team in the world and the most expensive team in the world deciding the championship arrives on Saturday night. Barcelona will come off a heavenly […]

After a mid-week round of fixtures, there is no rest for the weary as another slate of weekend matches comes much more quickly than they would earlier in the year. This last quarter of the year becomes a war of attrition, and those who consistently stay fit will reap the benefits as they take advantage […]