Last part of my team-by-team round up of the Spanish season. This time, it's the relegated and almost-relegated.
Levante
42 points
Levante are a curious club. They've been in and out of the Primera a fair few times in the last ten years, and at times looked like going straight back down this season along with fellow new boys 'Nastic. Unlike the Catalans, however, they could more or less defend, and that enabled them to scrape the results they needed in the latter half of the campaign to reach the magical 40 point survival barrier.
If they don't improve their squad, however, they will be fighting relegation again next season. Compared to clubs in similar positions, they simply don't have enough quality to stand out above the rest.
Real Betis
40 points
What I said about Depor in my last post more or less applies to Betis, although they weren't doing as well as Depor. Still, a fourth place finish in 04-05 isn't bad. Out of all the non-relegated clubs, I think they've had the worst season. I say that because Betis aren't a small club, and they spend a fair amount on players. Yet they almost got relegated amidst all sorts of chaos both on and off the pitch. That glorious victory against Chelsea in the Champions League (05-06) must seem rather far away now.
Speaking of which, it was their European commitments, first in the Champions League and then in the UEFA Cup, as well as a rash of injuries which were blamed for their struggles in that season. Betis didn't have European commitments this season, but their unfortunate luck with injuries did continue and they were not able to replace several big names who were sold off.
All that rather pales when set next to their various internal troubles, though. Club owner Manuel Ruiz de Lopera makes all the decisions behind the scenes, which wouldn't be a problem except that his decision-making prowess leaves much to be desired. Then there was the mess in the Seville derby which led to the closing of Betis' stadium for 3 matches. In the end, they did get to the magical land of 40 points after a few close calls, but it wasn't pretty. And it involved the club sacking coach Luis Fernandez after they were thumped 0-5 by Osasuna at home. All well and good, except that was the second to last round. Luckily they won their last game.
All in all, a season Betis supporters would probably rather forget.
Athletic Bilbao
40 points
Personally, I've been rooting for Athletic to stay up all through their struggles this season. After all, they have a history to uphold as one of the only three clubs to have never been relegated from the Primera, alongside Barca and Real, all the while sticking to their Basque-only recruiting policy (although it must be noted that their definition of 'Basque' has shifted throughout the years). Besides, as various coaches and players pointed out during the season, it would be strange to go a season without visiting San Mames, that cathedral of Spanish football with its unique atmosphere. So it's nice to see them make it on the last matchday.
Warm and fuzzy feelings aside, though, the fans must be getting alarmed at the downward slide of the club, largely due to the difficulty of signing players. While this may be remedied somewhat since the other Basque powerhouse have been relegated, which may encourage any Basque players to sign on with Athletic instead, the trend is increasingly towards them losing promising players to teams who can promise more money and glory. I don't presume to know about the complexities of the situation, but the winners of the club board elections have some tough thinking to do. Starting with picking a new coach, incidentally, since Mane resigned right after guiding the team to safety for this season.
The following clubs were relegated:
Celta Vigo
39 points
Celta are kind of like Osasuna in their one-season-wonder status, except their feat of qualifying for the UEFA Cup was arguably even more impressive since they did it in their first season back in the top flight. However, European qualification turned out to be a double-edged sword as it often does with teams lacking depth, and their league campaign was seriously affected by having to play in the UEFA Cup. (In which, by the way, they did alright, going out in the round of 16 to Werder Bremen.) Not the first time a club has been relegated because they couldn't handle playing in that many competitions.
However, the twist on the Celta story is that they decided to bring in a new coach towards the end of the season to salvage things. Not uncommon in itself, but somehow, some genius in the Celta club management decided that Hristo Stoichkov was the man to save them from the drop.
Personal confession time - I have an irrational love for Stoichkov, despite the fact that he is evidently just a little bit mad. But then, geniuses often are. And you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who is more devoted to the blaugrana colours than the former Barca player. So yes, I like him a lot. But I wouldn't hire him to save my team from relegation. Stoichkov is apparently going to continue as coach of Celta next season, and I wish him luck in bringing them up at the first opportunity.
Real Sociedad
35 points
Real Sociedad were 2 points off winning the title in 02-03. Now they're in the second division, and there will be no Basque derby in the top flight next season, which is rather sad, although one could argue that the Basque derby being turned into a relegation derby in recent seasons is equally sad for a region with undoubted footballing pedigree. Many predicted mid-season that one of Athletic and la Real were going down, and perhaps given their horrible run to start the season (their first league win was on the 17th of December) Real Sociedad already had too much ground to make up by then.
Once upon a time, la Real had a lot of good players who all had a great season, which enabled them to achieve that second place finish. All those players either left (Xabi Alonso being the most notable) or are past their best (most notably Darko Kovacevic, who has been plagued by injury as well). Their squad simply wasn't good enough to get them the 40 points they needed this time. The defence wasn't great, but there were worse in the Primera. What they really lacked was goals.
Hopefully la Real will come straight back up again. They are a club with a proud tradition and it will be strange not seeing them on the fixture list for next season. A lot needs to change if they are to compete again, though.
Gimnastic de Tarragona
28 points
'Nastic's points total reflects the hard time they had in the Primera. Nobody can say they didn't try, and there were a couple of memorable victories over the likes of Sevilla and Zaragoza, but they weren't really expected to survive given the resources of the club and the limitations of the squad.
Actually, while I'm on the topic, I had been informed by an Espanyol supporter that the 'Nastic fans disliked Barca almost as much as they did, but it appears that they're actually very confused. They don't like Barca, that's true, but judging by the cheering that greeted the news of Mallorca's goal in the Bernabeu in the last round during the Nastic-Barca game, they don't like Real much either. Hating both of the big two: kind of refreshing, really.
That's it. It's been a tremendous season. As a Barca supporter, I obviously prefer the events of last season, but I suspect the neutrals will have delighted in the exciting unpredictability this time around.
Next up: a Barca news round-up, a (probably) overwrought post about Riquelme, Boca and Argentina and my end of season awards.
Showing posts with label nastic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nastic. Show all posts
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
La Liga results: last round
Nastic 1 - 5 Barcelona
Real Madrid 3 - 1 Mallorca
Sevilla 0 - 1 Villarreal
Congratulations to Real Madrid for a title race well fought and well won. Condolences to Sevilla, who perhaps deserve a lot more than they're getting. Still, the Champions League ain't bad.
And above all - thank you to my boys for their efforts today, and for much of this season. It has been heartbreaking, but there have still been many moments that will live long in my memory. Much more later, including end of season reviews.
Condolences to the fans of 'Nastic, Celta and Real Sociedad and congratulations in particular to Real Betis and (thank god) Athletic Bilbao. When everything's settled I'll post more on the European places.
I'll leave you now with this lovely quote from a Marcela Mora y Araujo article on Boca Juniors (speaking of which, post on Roman's progress there soon):
We'll be back next season.
Real Madrid 3 - 1 Mallorca
Sevilla 0 - 1 Villarreal
Congratulations to Real Madrid for a title race well fought and well won. Condolences to Sevilla, who perhaps deserve a lot more than they're getting. Still, the Champions League ain't bad.
And above all - thank you to my boys for their efforts today, and for much of this season. It has been heartbreaking, but there have still been many moments that will live long in my memory. Much more later, including end of season reviews.
Condolences to the fans of 'Nastic, Celta and Real Sociedad and congratulations in particular to Real Betis and (thank god) Athletic Bilbao. When everything's settled I'll post more on the European places.
I'll leave you now with this lovely quote from a Marcela Mora y Araujo article on Boca Juniors (speaking of which, post on Roman's progress there soon):
In a wonderful documentary following Boca to Tokyo for the match against Bayern Munich in 2001, Argentinian novelist and devout Boca follower Juan Sasturain witnessed his team's defeat up close. As his parting shot in a film called Thank You For The Game; What We Talk About When We Talk About Football, Sasturain delivers one of the most hopeful sentiments I have heard. Not winning one trophy is not so bad, he says, because we always have next season, next time ... "it's infinite. This game is infinite".And it is. Visca el Barca!
We'll be back next season.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
News round-up: Barca transfers and La Liga title race
Barca transfer news
Edmilson says that he's ready to leave if the club want him to, with Marseille a possible destination. He also has some sober insights about the Liga finale.
Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon denies reports that the Saviola deal is done. I really hope he's right, here. This move would be the worst possible outcome, from my perspective.
Undeterred by the angry response from Lyon which greeted Barca's rather low offer for Abidal, we have enquired after Tiago instead, according to the French club. Not sure about this idea. I see what they're trying to do, and yes we do need a defensive midfielder, but we don't need another Motta, as much as I love him. What we do need is someone like Edgar Davids in his prime, who had such an effect when he was signed 3 years ago. (I keep saying we need a Frank Rijkaard, really, but where are we going to get that?) What little I've seen of Tiago doesn't give me much confidence that he's the one we're after. Surely we can spare some cash for such an important position.
Eto'o's not going anywhere, like I keep saying. AC Milan can stop trying to unsettle him any minute now...any minute now. Great friendship between the two clubs and all that. Really.
Title race updates
For those of you who are not living and dying by this title race, the fixtures for the last week of La Liga are:
Real v Mallorca
'Nastic vs Barca
Sevilla v Villarreal
As the table stands now: Madrid 73, Barca 73, Sevilla 71
Differences are decided by head to head results, which are as follows: Madrid 5 - 3 Barca, Barca 4-3 Sevilla, Madrid 4 - 4 Sevilla (Sevilla has the superior goal difference)
Related news items
"The single motive of my life is to defeat Barça." - 'Nastic coach Paco Flores gets just a little carried away. I know they don't like us there, but that's a bit much, isn't it?
Sevilla's Chevanton is not happy about the refereeing, which he says has affected Sevilla's title changes. No doubt he's right, and if the bias towards the big two, especially at home, didn't exist Sevilla would probably have an easier time of it. Although to be fair they've blown their chances almost as many times as Barca have this season. No matter what happens, I think they're going to be my team of the season, just for their accomplishments thus far, which are no mean feat given the domination of the established old order in European football.
Barca 'keeper Victor Valdes (who has had an excellent season, really) still believes in the remote possibility of the blaugranas coming out on top.
The ever-wise Raul says that nobody should believe that the title is already won and urges caution ahead of their game. The Madridista media, for one, don't seem to have heard him, but fair enough given the circumstances.
In related news, Calderon denies celebrating winning the league one game early. Again, I can understand why he was excited - I would have been, too, and as the media are saying, they've got 9 fingers on the trophy. Just one more week. You've waited 3 years (which is I believe about the same length of time as Barca's last drought), surely that's not difficult?
The ever-sensible Juande Ramos of Sevilla isn't too happy about Real's celebrations, but still thinks they'll probably win it. I really like Ramos. He's a good manager who just gets on with the job and is always diplomatic.
The Brazilian national team are adamant that Robinho report for international duty instead of staying for Real's game.
Diarra, on the other hand, is ready to abandon club for country to play for Mali in their crucial qualifer for the African Cup of Nations.
On the other hand, Eto'o's not going to play for Cameroon, but they're doing pretty well anyway with 12 points from 4 games, so unlike Mali they don't have much to worry about. He also has some harsh but very pertinent words regarding the Liga finale in the article linked above.
Just as an aside, I have to say, this entire mess where as many as 27 players could be missing from their final game because of international commitments can be entirely blamed on the ineptitude of the LFP (the Spanish FA). Nice scheduling, guys.
Update: Real claim that they have made deals with both Diarra and Robinho's national federations that will allow them to play in the last round. Dunga still doesn't sound happy, though.
Gudjohnsen has been ruled out for Barca with a knee injury. On the Real side, David Beckham's ankle is still giving him problems and he is racing to be fit.
Controversial Spanish NT coach Luis Aragones wants Barca to win the title. Aragones used to coach both Barca and Real's opponents Mallorca (not at the same time, obviously), where he had a stormy but ultimately successful working relationship with a certain Cameroonian striker with the first name Samuel, who calls him 'grandpa'. Anyway, I really don't know what to add to this weird bit of news. Some part of me wants to say that it's really inappropriate for Aragones to comment on this issue, as there are players from all three title-chasing clubs in his national team and there have been enough controversies over selections and who gets to rest ahead of their club matches as it is. But then I suppose he's free to say whatever comes to his mind, as his record shows. So thanks, Luis - I think.
Barca striker Maxi Lopez, who is on loan at Mallorca, has vowed to do his best to help Barca win the title. That is rather sweet of him, and I dare say that if he manages it his own stock will rise amongst those in charge at the Camp Nou. Talk is easy, but the sentiment is definitely appreciated. Vamos Maxi!
Edited to add: updates on a few of the news items above
Edmilson says that he's ready to leave if the club want him to, with Marseille a possible destination. He also has some sober insights about the Liga finale.
Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon denies reports that the Saviola deal is done. I really hope he's right, here. This move would be the worst possible outcome, from my perspective.
Undeterred by the angry response from Lyon which greeted Barca's rather low offer for Abidal, we have enquired after Tiago instead, according to the French club. Not sure about this idea. I see what they're trying to do, and yes we do need a defensive midfielder, but we don't need another Motta, as much as I love him. What we do need is someone like Edgar Davids in his prime, who had such an effect when he was signed 3 years ago. (I keep saying we need a Frank Rijkaard, really, but where are we going to get that?) What little I've seen of Tiago doesn't give me much confidence that he's the one we're after. Surely we can spare some cash for such an important position.
Eto'o's not going anywhere, like I keep saying. AC Milan can stop trying to unsettle him any minute now...any minute now. Great friendship between the two clubs and all that. Really.
Title race updates
For those of you who are not living and dying by this title race, the fixtures for the last week of La Liga are:
Real v Mallorca
'Nastic vs Barca
Sevilla v Villarreal
As the table stands now: Madrid 73, Barca 73, Sevilla 71
Differences are decided by head to head results, which are as follows: Madrid 5 - 3 Barca, Barca 4-3 Sevilla, Madrid 4 - 4 Sevilla (Sevilla has the superior goal difference)
Related news items
"The single motive of my life is to defeat Barça." - 'Nastic coach Paco Flores gets just a little carried away. I know they don't like us there, but that's a bit much, isn't it?
Sevilla's Chevanton is not happy about the refereeing, which he says has affected Sevilla's title changes. No doubt he's right, and if the bias towards the big two, especially at home, didn't exist Sevilla would probably have an easier time of it. Although to be fair they've blown their chances almost as many times as Barca have this season. No matter what happens, I think they're going to be my team of the season, just for their accomplishments thus far, which are no mean feat given the domination of the established old order in European football.
Barca 'keeper Victor Valdes (who has had an excellent season, really) still believes in the remote possibility of the blaugranas coming out on top.
The ever-wise Raul says that nobody should believe that the title is already won and urges caution ahead of their game. The Madridista media, for one, don't seem to have heard him, but fair enough given the circumstances.
In related news, Calderon denies celebrating winning the league one game early. Again, I can understand why he was excited - I would have been, too, and as the media are saying, they've got 9 fingers on the trophy. Just one more week. You've waited 3 years (which is I believe about the same length of time as Barca's last drought), surely that's not difficult?
The ever-sensible Juande Ramos of Sevilla isn't too happy about Real's celebrations, but still thinks they'll probably win it. I really like Ramos. He's a good manager who just gets on with the job and is always diplomatic.
The Brazilian national team are adamant that Robinho report for international duty instead of staying for Real's game.
Diarra, on the other hand, is ready to abandon club for country to play for Mali in their crucial qualifer for the African Cup of Nations.
On the other hand, Eto'o's not going to play for Cameroon, but they're doing pretty well anyway with 12 points from 4 games, so unlike Mali they don't have much to worry about. He also has some harsh but very pertinent words regarding the Liga finale in the article linked above.
Just as an aside, I have to say, this entire mess where as many as 27 players could be missing from their final game because of international commitments can be entirely blamed on the ineptitude of the LFP (the Spanish FA). Nice scheduling, guys.
Update: Real claim that they have made deals with both Diarra and Robinho's national federations that will allow them to play in the last round. Dunga still doesn't sound happy, though.
Gudjohnsen has been ruled out for Barca with a knee injury. On the Real side, David Beckham's ankle is still giving him problems and he is racing to be fit.
Controversial Spanish NT coach Luis Aragones wants Barca to win the title. Aragones used to coach both Barca and Real's opponents Mallorca (not at the same time, obviously), where he had a stormy but ultimately successful working relationship with a certain Cameroonian striker with the first name Samuel, who calls him 'grandpa'. Anyway, I really don't know what to add to this weird bit of news. Some part of me wants to say that it's really inappropriate for Aragones to comment on this issue, as there are players from all three title-chasing clubs in his national team and there have been enough controversies over selections and who gets to rest ahead of their club matches as it is. But then I suppose he's free to say whatever comes to his mind, as his record shows. So thanks, Luis - I think.
Barca striker Maxi Lopez, who is on loan at Mallorca, has vowed to do his best to help Barca win the title. That is rather sweet of him, and I dare say that if he manages it his own stock will rise amongst those in charge at the Camp Nou. Talk is easy, but the sentiment is definitely appreciated. Vamos Maxi!
Edited to add: updates on a few of the news items above
Monday, April 09, 2007
State of the Primera and Spanish teams in Europe
It's another weird and wacky weekend in La Liga, leaving the title race hanging in the balance. Fortunately everyone's played the same number of matches, which makes analysis a bit easier.
Barca (1 - 0 loss to Zaragoza) showed once again just how vulnerable we are without Eto'o in attack. Hopefully he'll be back soon, and thankfully our next game is at home. The good thing is that our fate is still in our own hands, but I'm really worried about that trip to Atletico, who we're traditionally bad against. We can't slip up from now on.
Zaragoza did their own hopes of Champions League football good by moving into 4th place with this victory on the same points but with superior goal difference over Valencia. I would still bet on Valencia to get into the CL places ahead of them in the long run, but there aren't that many games to go. Both of these teams can be wobbly, so we'll see who blinks first. Still, Zaragoza are now only 6 points off Barca. Incredibly, they're in the title race, which I'm sure not many people anticipated at the beginning of the season. A CL place, maybe, yeah, but the title race? Good for them. (I can't help but like any team with such a talented group of Argentinean players. Not to mention old Barca boys Sergio Garcia and Gerard Pique.) Diego Milito for pichichi this season would be delightful.
Also good for Barca, but bad for their own title hopes, Sevilla drew yet again (0 - 0) against Racing at home. If they won they would have been lone leaders, so this was a really bad result especially since they still have trips to the Bernabeu and the Mestalla coming up. Can't really blame them, though, since they had such a mid-week workout against Spurs. Personally, I would like them to retain the UEFA Cup, but it's a crying shame they weren't in the CL this season instead of Osasuna. You never know, maybe Spain would have a few more representatives left in the CL at this point if that was the case.
Racing are doing their own hopes of European football no harm at all. They're only 3 points off sixth-placed Atletico, which is pretty incredible going for a club so used to being mired in mid-table mediocrity. It's going to be interesting to see if they can sustain that to the end of the season.
Real Madrid won (2 - 0 against Osasuna) and are back in the title race, within 2 points of leaders Barca. They still have some tough matches coming up at home against both Sevilla and Valencia, not to mention a visit to Zaragoza which is never fun for them. One advantage Real do possess is that they have a superior head-to-head result against Barca, unlike Sevilla. It remains to be seen if Capello's team has what it takes to grind out the final stretch. I think they're pretty tough, but just grit isn't going to work with the hard matches they have coming up. Still, they along with Zaragoza have the least distractions of any of the top 4 (and Valencia).
As for Osasuna, there's not much to say. They only need 5 more points to reach the magical survival barrier of 40, which I'm sure they'll manage if only by mugging teams at home. However, bravo for that mid-week European performance. You know what would be great? An all-Spanish UEFA Cup final - very possible at this point.
Valencia lost to Athletic away (1 - 0), which left them in 5th place. Not a good position in their push for the title, although they're still only 6 points off Barca. Remember when they were ahead of Real in the table? Can't really blame them though, after the mid-week adventure against Chelsea. On which I have to say, great work. If anyone can take Chelsea on at their own type of game, it's Valencia. I would really like them to win the CL this year - it's about time more than 2 Spanish clubs did. It would also heal some wounds from their two successive final appearances (and defeats) while under Cuper, which I'm sure still smarts.
Athletic helped their chances of survival a great deal by picking up 3 points, which let them climb out of the relegation zone. They're still not out of trouble - Celta are only 2 points off them, and they're only ahead of Levante by goal difference, but there are some rays of hope. Athletic might struggle to get 40 points, given that there are only 9 games left and some of those are against top teams, but if they keep battling they might just make it. A dramatic end of the season looks very possible with that last game against fellow relegation battlers Levante. I like Athletic and hope they do manage to survive, not least because having some representatives of Basque football in La Liga is nice (given the debate over whether Osasuna counts, I'll leave them out), since Real Sociedad look doomed.
Atletico had an impressive away victory against Villarreal (0 - 1). Well, I say that, but Atletico's away form this season has been better than their home form. They're still looking good to qualify for Europe, but CL may be a step too far. They're only 3 points of Zaragoza (and Valencia), but I'm not sure they're going to be anywhere near consistent enough to pull through in the end. My money's still on Valencia out of them, Zaragoza and Atletico, but it's going to be a frantic last few matchdays.
Villarreal are just depressing this season. I read an article saying that getting rid of Riquelme has revitalized them, but they still have the same problems. The team was built around Roman, and when he was brilliant that worked out just fine. But the rebuilding after him leaving is going to take a while. It looks like they're going for a change of guard at the end of this season, which is probably a good way to go. This season is a total write-off. They'll make 40 points, and then there will be nothing to play for - I don't think they have a shot at a European place.
Recreativo played out an exciting game against Celta which they ultimately won (4 - 2). They're still in the running for an UEFA Cup place (only 2 points off Atletico), which is incredible given that most people didn't even give them a chance for survival this season. Great stuff.
Celta on the other hand are in big trouble. The 2 teams below them probably won't catch them, but they still have to haul somebody down to be safe. They do have an easier fixture list than Athletic and probably Levante, but that doesn't really say much since the really key games will be against other relegation battlers. The way they're going, I'd be worried.
Espanyol beat strugglers Real Sociedad (1 - 0) at home. They've had their usual up and down season, but thankfully for the nerves of their fans they're doing much better than last season's frantic scramble to avoid relegation. They've already got 40 points, and although an UEFA Cup spot looks a bit far off they're going strong in the competition this season. Good win over a good team in Benfica (3 - 2), and although I'm a bit worried about their away form and those 2 away goals they conceded, they've still got a good chance of going through to the semi-finals.
As for La Real, I really don't think they're going to beat the drop this year. They've been struggling for a few seasons now, and it's a shame given how great they were not too many years ago, when they nearly won the league. 21 points with 9 games to go is simply not enough, especially given the fixture list they've got. A shame for Basque football in general, but it looks like there's no way back.
Getafe were beaten away by Mallorca (2 - 0). This result is a bit of a surprise. Getafe are strongest at home, but they're no mugs, and I didn't think Mallorca were capable of getting through their defence. This does seem to happen to them every season, though - when they're on the threshold of the 40 point barrier, those last few points take forever. They'll finish comfortably mid-table, which will be another season's good work from everybody involved given the budget of the club but they've got to be disappointed at letting a shot at an UEFA Cup place slip away.
Mallorca are (probably) safe for another season of mid-table mediocrity with short, intense periods of relegation-related terror. They've done the same thing for several seasons now, by being very very stingy at the back and squeezing out a few goals here and there. So no surprises there.
Deportivo beat bottom of the table Nastic at home (1 - 0). This season is a bit of a write-off for Depor, which is understandable given that they're bedding in so many new youngsters who've come in from other team's youth teams. It's just unfortunate that the club itself is run so badly in a way that actually affects the proper operation of the team. They've nearly gone bankrupt how many times now? They're the only club I can think of in the league who have problems paying players their salary. Sad, really, given their status just a few seasons ago.
Nastic are struggling valiantly against the drop, but they're pretty much doomed. Like I said about La Real, 21 points with 9 games to go isn't enough. Their run-in isn't that bad, but I'm afraid their season-ending game at the Camp Nou may be meaningless by the time they get there.
Betis drew (1 - 1) away to Levante, which is a result that doesn't really help either of them. Betis look alright for this season - they might even make 40 points before the last day, if they're really lucky. Still, this has not been a good season for a club with some pretty good players who beat Chelsea just last season in the CL. They should be doing much better.
Levante are still in trouble. They're not too far off the last 3 and even if they do ultimately survive it will probably be by the skin of their teeth. I don't think they were quite ready for the trials of the Primera, to be honest, although they have done well with their meager resources.
Barca (1 - 0 loss to Zaragoza) showed once again just how vulnerable we are without Eto'o in attack. Hopefully he'll be back soon, and thankfully our next game is at home. The good thing is that our fate is still in our own hands, but I'm really worried about that trip to Atletico, who we're traditionally bad against. We can't slip up from now on.
Zaragoza did their own hopes of Champions League football good by moving into 4th place with this victory on the same points but with superior goal difference over Valencia. I would still bet on Valencia to get into the CL places ahead of them in the long run, but there aren't that many games to go. Both of these teams can be wobbly, so we'll see who blinks first. Still, Zaragoza are now only 6 points off Barca. Incredibly, they're in the title race, which I'm sure not many people anticipated at the beginning of the season. A CL place, maybe, yeah, but the title race? Good for them. (I can't help but like any team with such a talented group of Argentinean players. Not to mention old Barca boys Sergio Garcia and Gerard Pique.) Diego Milito for pichichi this season would be delightful.
Also good for Barca, but bad for their own title hopes, Sevilla drew yet again (0 - 0) against Racing at home. If they won they would have been lone leaders, so this was a really bad result especially since they still have trips to the Bernabeu and the Mestalla coming up. Can't really blame them, though, since they had such a mid-week workout against Spurs. Personally, I would like them to retain the UEFA Cup, but it's a crying shame they weren't in the CL this season instead of Osasuna. You never know, maybe Spain would have a few more representatives left in the CL at this point if that was the case.
Racing are doing their own hopes of European football no harm at all. They're only 3 points off sixth-placed Atletico, which is pretty incredible going for a club so used to being mired in mid-table mediocrity. It's going to be interesting to see if they can sustain that to the end of the season.
Real Madrid won (2 - 0 against Osasuna) and are back in the title race, within 2 points of leaders Barca. They still have some tough matches coming up at home against both Sevilla and Valencia, not to mention a visit to Zaragoza which is never fun for them. One advantage Real do possess is that they have a superior head-to-head result against Barca, unlike Sevilla. It remains to be seen if Capello's team has what it takes to grind out the final stretch. I think they're pretty tough, but just grit isn't going to work with the hard matches they have coming up. Still, they along with Zaragoza have the least distractions of any of the top 4 (and Valencia).
As for Osasuna, there's not much to say. They only need 5 more points to reach the magical survival barrier of 40, which I'm sure they'll manage if only by mugging teams at home. However, bravo for that mid-week European performance. You know what would be great? An all-Spanish UEFA Cup final - very possible at this point.
Valencia lost to Athletic away (1 - 0), which left them in 5th place. Not a good position in their push for the title, although they're still only 6 points off Barca. Remember when they were ahead of Real in the table? Can't really blame them though, after the mid-week adventure against Chelsea. On which I have to say, great work. If anyone can take Chelsea on at their own type of game, it's Valencia. I would really like them to win the CL this year - it's about time more than 2 Spanish clubs did. It would also heal some wounds from their two successive final appearances (and defeats) while under Cuper, which I'm sure still smarts.
Athletic helped their chances of survival a great deal by picking up 3 points, which let them climb out of the relegation zone. They're still not out of trouble - Celta are only 2 points off them, and they're only ahead of Levante by goal difference, but there are some rays of hope. Athletic might struggle to get 40 points, given that there are only 9 games left and some of those are against top teams, but if they keep battling they might just make it. A dramatic end of the season looks very possible with that last game against fellow relegation battlers Levante. I like Athletic and hope they do manage to survive, not least because having some representatives of Basque football in La Liga is nice (given the debate over whether Osasuna counts, I'll leave them out), since Real Sociedad look doomed.
Atletico had an impressive away victory against Villarreal (0 - 1). Well, I say that, but Atletico's away form this season has been better than their home form. They're still looking good to qualify for Europe, but CL may be a step too far. They're only 3 points of Zaragoza (and Valencia), but I'm not sure they're going to be anywhere near consistent enough to pull through in the end. My money's still on Valencia out of them, Zaragoza and Atletico, but it's going to be a frantic last few matchdays.
Villarreal are just depressing this season. I read an article saying that getting rid of Riquelme has revitalized them, but they still have the same problems. The team was built around Roman, and when he was brilliant that worked out just fine. But the rebuilding after him leaving is going to take a while. It looks like they're going for a change of guard at the end of this season, which is probably a good way to go. This season is a total write-off. They'll make 40 points, and then there will be nothing to play for - I don't think they have a shot at a European place.
Recreativo played out an exciting game against Celta which they ultimately won (4 - 2). They're still in the running for an UEFA Cup place (only 2 points off Atletico), which is incredible given that most people didn't even give them a chance for survival this season. Great stuff.
Celta on the other hand are in big trouble. The 2 teams below them probably won't catch them, but they still have to haul somebody down to be safe. They do have an easier fixture list than Athletic and probably Levante, but that doesn't really say much since the really key games will be against other relegation battlers. The way they're going, I'd be worried.
Espanyol beat strugglers Real Sociedad (1 - 0) at home. They've had their usual up and down season, but thankfully for the nerves of their fans they're doing much better than last season's frantic scramble to avoid relegation. They've already got 40 points, and although an UEFA Cup spot looks a bit far off they're going strong in the competition this season. Good win over a good team in Benfica (3 - 2), and although I'm a bit worried about their away form and those 2 away goals they conceded, they've still got a good chance of going through to the semi-finals.
As for La Real, I really don't think they're going to beat the drop this year. They've been struggling for a few seasons now, and it's a shame given how great they were not too many years ago, when they nearly won the league. 21 points with 9 games to go is simply not enough, especially given the fixture list they've got. A shame for Basque football in general, but it looks like there's no way back.
Getafe were beaten away by Mallorca (2 - 0). This result is a bit of a surprise. Getafe are strongest at home, but they're no mugs, and I didn't think Mallorca were capable of getting through their defence. This does seem to happen to them every season, though - when they're on the threshold of the 40 point barrier, those last few points take forever. They'll finish comfortably mid-table, which will be another season's good work from everybody involved given the budget of the club but they've got to be disappointed at letting a shot at an UEFA Cup place slip away.
Mallorca are (probably) safe for another season of mid-table mediocrity with short, intense periods of relegation-related terror. They've done the same thing for several seasons now, by being very very stingy at the back and squeezing out a few goals here and there. So no surprises there.
Deportivo beat bottom of the table Nastic at home (1 - 0). This season is a bit of a write-off for Depor, which is understandable given that they're bedding in so many new youngsters who've come in from other team's youth teams. It's just unfortunate that the club itself is run so badly in a way that actually affects the proper operation of the team. They've nearly gone bankrupt how many times now? They're the only club I can think of in the league who have problems paying players their salary. Sad, really, given their status just a few seasons ago.
Nastic are struggling valiantly against the drop, but they're pretty much doomed. Like I said about La Real, 21 points with 9 games to go isn't enough. Their run-in isn't that bad, but I'm afraid their season-ending game at the Camp Nou may be meaningless by the time they get there.
Betis drew (1 - 1) away to Levante, which is a result that doesn't really help either of them. Betis look alright for this season - they might even make 40 points before the last day, if they're really lucky. Still, this has not been a good season for a club with some pretty good players who beat Chelsea just last season in the CL. They should be doing much better.
Levante are still in trouble. They're not too far off the last 3 and even if they do ultimately survive it will probably be by the skin of their teeth. I don't think they were quite ready for the trials of the Primera, to be honest, although they have done well with their meager resources.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Round 5 of the Spanish League: a belated round-up
I know, I know, this is years late, but since there's a nice international break, at least round 6 hasn't started yet. There's a rough assessment of each team's results so far and their chances attached to each match discussion. So without further ado, my view of the action, beginning with Barca as usual.
Athletic Bilbao 1 - 3 FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona (4-3-3): Valdés; Zambrotta, Marquez, Puyol, Gio; Edmilson (Giuly 31'), Xavi, Deco (Iniesta 61'); Messi, Gudjohnsen (Saviola 71'), Ronaldinho
Atletic Bilbao (4-4-2): Lafuente; Casas (red card 20'), Ustaritz, Sarriegi, Garmendia (Gabilondo 73'); Iraola, Orbaiz, Javi Martinez, Exteberria (Urzaiz 62'); Llorente (Exposito 22'), Yeste
Goals:
1-0 Yeste 11'
1-1 Ustaritz, o.g. 45'
1-2 Gudjonsen 61'
1-3 Saviola 77'
Red Card: Casas 20'
Significance
Going into this match, both clubs will have been very motivated to get a win. Barca were criticized and doubted after their quite pedestrian display in Bremen - in fact, they still are, but I'll go into that later. The pressure from the press combined with the loss of Samuel Eto'o for five months due to injury meant that the team had to be seen to respond well, or risk being labelled a club in crisis. Winning away in the San Mames, which is never an easy stadium for away teams to play in, would steady the boat before the international break.
Athletic had their own, more severe problems, having not yet won a game since the beginning of the season, prompting the club President to step down. People - including yours truly - were beginning to label them as relegation fodder, which is plainly unacceptable to a club of Athletic's proud history and tradition as one of three Spanish clubs never to be relegated. A win against Barca would have kick-started their season.
The Match
Barca formation at the start (4-3-3):
--------------------Valdes
Zambrotta--Marquez---Puyol--Gio
------------------Edmilson
----------Xavi--------------Deco
Messi------------------------Ronaldinho
-----------------Gudjohnsen
After the substitutions (4-3-3):
---------------------Valdes
Zambrotta--Marquez----Puyol--Gio
---------Xavi---------------Iniesta
------------------Ronaldinho
Giuly---------------------------Messi
--------------------Saviola
I still suck at diagrams, but you get the idea.
Athletic started brightly, launching several dangerous attacks via Yeste and young Llorente, including a couple of shots that Valdes - sigh - fumbled at. Both of Athletic's forwards were excellent, and I felt for poor Llorente when he had to be substituted 22 minutes in. I'd seen the youngster play in the 2005 World Youth Championships where he was very impressive, scoring 5 goals before Spain was knocked out by Argentina in the quarterfinals. Here's hoping he eventually propers at this club which desperately needs a goalscorer right now.
On the Barca side of things, they had their now traditional poor start, playing badly for the first 15 minutes or so. This has widely been chalked up to the large-scale rotations made by Rijkaard (about 6 players for each match), and much as I support the rotation policy, I can't see any other explanation for it. Look at the list of players who came in for this match, having not started in Bremen - Zambrotta, Marquez, Gio, Edmilson, Xavi, Messi, Gudjohnsen. That's almost an entirely different starting XI. All the defensive players, minus Puyol, were different, which meant it took time for them to gel, and it showed with some bad mistakes at the beginning. Zambrotta of all people was too slow in getting back to defend in the move that lead to Yeste's goal, leaving Marquez with no cover.
However, that said, it was an excellent goal, born of great passing and team work. For me, a team goal like that is to be savoured far more than a long-range volley, because of the intricate effort that's gone into it from different members of team. Athletic had their collective tails up after it, launching waves of attacks at the Barca goal, while Barca continued to play their patient passing game instead of piling forward for the equalizer. The approach paid off, largely thanks to Leo Messi's lethal efficiency on quick counters.
Even before his breakaway run at the Bernabeu gifted Eto'o with the opener in last year's game with Real, the Argentinean U20 team was built around Messi's ability to hit teams on the break by making quick runs through the midfield. Barca are usually more the victim of counters due to their tendency to commit so many men forward in attack, but in this case it worked wonders for them. Messi ran through the midfield, rode two attempts by Athletic defenders to foul him, and passed to Gudjohnsen, who was clean through on goal.
Here lies the controversial moment of this match. Defender Casas made a decision to bring the Icelandic international down from behind in the most professional of fouls, and the referee pulled out a red card. This is the decision that has caused Athletic fans to claim that the match was robbed from them. The question, I suppose, is whether or not you think Casas was the last defender, and whether any professional foul from behind should be a straight red. A yellow card would probably have sufficed, although in that case Barca may have some cause to feel aggrieved since Gudjohnsen was through on goal. I would still have preferred a yellow, if only to shut the mouths of those who claim incessantly that Barca are favoured by the referees.
In any case, Casas' sending off meant that Llorente had to be sacrificed to bring on another defender, Athletic dropping into a 4-4-1, trying to hold onto their fragile lead through massed defending. Can't blame them at all for that choice, and if it had worked it would have been a heroic performance, but Barca are not easy to play against if you're 1 man down, since the extra space allows them to play their game.
Needless to say, the rest of the game was mostly Barca-dominated, although it took them quite a while to turn that domination into a goal. Giuly came on at the half-hour mark to boost the attack, Rijkaard throwing everything forward to get the goals as he often does when behind. This meant a shift in formation (as I attempted to illustrate above) with Ronaldinho in the lone playmaker position just behind the three forwards, and Messi moving to the left wing. There was a risk in playing with no defensive midfielders, but it was worth going for when holding a man advantage.
Just as the first half was about to end with Athletic still a goal ahead, a Ronaldinho corner was controlled by Gudjohnsen, who crossed for Puyol. A combination of the captain and his marker Ustaritz bundled the ball into the net. It actually looked quite a nice strike by Puyol the first time I saw it, but ever the honest man he had to go and tell everyone that it was an own goal. It doesn't matter though, he had atoned for his own goal in the last match by forcing another.
Barca's second started with Messi squaring for the ever magnificent Xavi who set up Gudjohnsen with a defence-splitting pass for a clean finish by the number 7 who beat the offside trap and blasted past the keeper. A nice goal, but not nearly as great as the third, in which both second-half substitutes were involved. It was exactly the type of goal I adore, scored by passing the ball on the ground with precision and speed into the area. Given the physical qualities of the Barca attack at that point (Saviola-Messi-Giuly-Iniesta-Xavi are all below 1.75m, making for a truly height-challenged attacking force) it was the only realistic option. A move started by Ronaldinho came to fruition after again a great pass by Xavi to Iniesta, who made one of his clever defender-drawing runs into the box before squaring for Saviola to finish.
All in all, I was happy with Barcelona's performance. Due to the circumstances of the match it's hard to assess the team's level, but from what I saw, the team seems to be regaining some semblance of form again. There was some of the fluid, passing game of last season's game-winning run, which was highly encouraging. All that is of course without taking into account the first 15 minutes, where as I said before we were dreadful. However, just for now the signs are good for the nightmare weeks ahead.
The Players
Valdes was unsteady in the first half, largely untroubled in the second. Far too many worrisome fumbles for my liking. Zambrotta was arguably responsible for the first goal, but he also made some great tackles and good attacking runs, and settled down as the game went on. Still needs to work on his crossing, though. Marquez had a great game, dealing well with the difficult situations he was sometimes presented with when other defenders ventured too far forward. He also had a spectacular first-time shot which hit the post. Would have been a great goal. Puyol was immense, as usual, and full credit to him for the crucial first goal. What a guy. Gio made some good attacking runs and defended fairly well. Sylvinho is better going forward, I think, but Gio may actually work with Ronaldinho better. They seem to be on the same wavelength more when combining.
Edmilson made a couple of mistakes but still looked better than Motta, at least in the 30 minutes he got to play. Seems like he actually picked up a knock in that half-hour which he is struggling to shake off. Why both our holding midfielders are so injury-prone is a mystery for the ages. Xavi had his typical game - if you don't look for him, he can often seem invisible for large stretches, and then he pops up with a killer pass. The work he does in midfield isn't always flashy, but it is crucial to Barca's success. Iniesta will have someway to go yet in displacing him from the starting line-up. Speaking of which, 'Young White' (Chinese Barca fans' nickname for Iniesta) had a great game as a substitute, which unfortunately for him isn't going to convince Rijkaard to change his status from a supersub into a starter, especially given his unimpressive performance starting in Bremen. His assist for Saviola was wonderful, though, very similar to the one for Messi in the first round game against Celta Vigo. More of those, please.
Deco lost the ball a lot, but that's what happens when you try to get past opponents and create plays. He was very lively, but possibly looked a bit tired having played every game so far. He also seems to be suffering the same problem as Frank Lampard, his fellow expert in scoring deflected goals from range. They just aren't going in like they used to. To be fair, Deco had a couple of close ones this time, so maybe his luck is returning. (By the way, does Mourinho teach all his midfield maestros to do that or something? No one else seems to have picked up on the weird Lampard-Deco parallel.)
Messi had a great game, possibly his best as a starter so far this season. Sure, he didn't score, but he also kept possession better and in general gave the Athletic defence the runaround. Directly responsible for getting Casas sent off and heavily involved in attacking play. A cynical foul which earned him a yellow card was very surprising, in the sense that I think he's never been (officially) booked at Barca before. His performance after Giuly came on was a great demonstration of what an attacking player in a free position can do, alternating between the playmaker spot and the left wing with Ronaldinho. If Basile wants to play Messi in a similar free role against Spain, he would do well to look at this match. I'm really hoping that he can get back to his spectacular best before the Chelsea match. He was so brilliant in that game last season - controversial incidents aside - that anything else would seem a let-down.
Giuly came on and looked dangerous, making some good runs and getting in a couple of threatening shots. Hopefully his performance against Bremen was just a fluke and he will continue to provide good competition for Messi. Gudjohnsen more than paid his dues with a goal and an assist, staking his claim as Eto'o's successor. I'm still not convinced by his first touch, but the way he can hold up the ball and play well with his back to goal is very impressive. His goal was well-taken, and the cross for Puyol was well-struck too, so all credit to him.
Saviola came on with 15 minutes to go and duly got himself a goal too, which has got to be good for his chances of succeeding Eto'o as well. I think the main thing that counts against El Conejo (the Rabbit) is his height and physical strength or lack of. Otherwise, his technique is excellent, he makes good runs and even tracks back. He also seems to be in a good patch finishing-wise, which is great because he can have slumps. I was so pleased for him, getting a goal for Barca again 800+ days after the last one, before his dire loan spell at Monaco and slightly better time at Sevilla. Saviola's highest tally at Barca in his previous 3 season spell is 17 goals. Let's hope he can beat that this time round. Forca Saviola, indeed.
And lastly we come on to the hot potato subject of Ronaldinho. I don't know what game some people seems to have seen, but I thought Ronaldinho was actually pretty good. He could work a bit harder, I suppose, but he tried to get past opponents, sent in dangerous passes and even had a couple of pretty good shots at goal. His dead-balls also seem to be improving. There were a couple that were just wide, as opposed to in the Bremen game when his free-kicks were dreadful. I think a return to form is just on the horizon for him. Barca fans must hope that it's sooner rather than later.
Sevilla 1 - 0 Getafe
Don't know much about this game, unfortunately, since Sevilla still don't have a broadcasting deal. But a good result for both sides. Sevilla will be glad to get back to winning ways after the debacle in Madrid, while for Getafe a one-goal loss away to a team like Sevilla isn't overly concerning, especially since the result still leaves them in 9th place. For a club of their size, staying in mid-table is a great achievement, and I don't think they'll have too much trouble doing that this season. Sevilla stay up there with the leaders in 3rd place, and a win against Barca in the Camp Nou in round 6 will see them overtake the defending champions.
Mallorca 1 - 2 Villarreal
The Yellow Submarines continued their return to winning ways, and not a moment too soon for a team with European aspirations. The old strike partnership of Jose Mari and Diego Forlan, rather than shoehorning Nihat in there instead, is paying off with both goals coming from a Jose Mari pass finished by Forlan. Granted, the first came from a comical error by the Mallorca defence, which Forlan seized on to blast the ball into the net, but that's what a number 9 type striker is supposed to be like. (Forlan, ironically enough, is number 5 for his side. WTF?) The second was a nice header off yet another Jose Mari cross, without the comedy defending this time.
Mallorca's goal was quite a good one, Villarreal's inability to clear corners notwithstanding. The 'clearance' went straight to Jankovic outside the box, and he made no mistake with a first-time shot into the back of the net. Still, the Submarines have the victory to build on, which moves them up to 10th on the table. Mallorca are only 2 points off them at 13th place, but they'll want to actually win again soon.
Zaragoza 2 - 2 Levante
Zaragoza are still flattering to deceive. Having bought in almost as many good players over the off-season as Atletico Madrid, expectations were high for this season. This was supposed to be the year in which they journeyed out of mid-table mediocrity, but if they keep doing what they did against Levante it ain't gonna happen. They'll have expected to win this game against the newly promoted team from Valencia, not to be two goals behind at half-time. The first was a shot from distance off a botched clearance, but the second was pure lax defending. Granted, they had some bad luck in front of goal, but playing at home this shouldn't be happening at all.
Zaragoza's first goal came courtesy of an Aimar assist, which makes me happy. The second was even higher in Argentine-content, D'Alessandro's shot only needing the slightest of pokes from Diego Milito on the goal-line after taking a deflection off a defender and then the post for the easiest goal he'll ever score. It's a good sign that they can pull back like that, but really, it cannot be seen as a good result. Levante on the other hand now lie in 12th place, which isn't a bad place to be after the way they started the season. They have some hope of staying up this season.
Depor 2 - 0 Real Sociedad
Two late goals saved Deportivo from yet another draw with below-par opposition. Young Antonio Barragan (on loan from Liverpool) opened the scoring with a shot that came off the crossbar. The second came from a quick counter, Riki breaking into the box from the right to score from what looked an impossibly tight angle. The win leaves Depor sitting pretty in 6th equal place, while poor Sociedad look like relegation fodder with only 1 point so far out of a possible 15.
Recreativo 2 - 0 Betis
New boys Recreativo are surprising many people so far this season with credible performances against supposedly stronger oppositon. This win over Betis is a case in point. They're a strange club, Betis. Just a few weeks ago they looked pretty good with great new signings in Rafael Sobis and David Odonkor, but results haven't really been that good. Maybe they'll come good with time. In any case, it was a harsh loss for them going down to two late goals, but both were the result of bad defending and they can only blame themselves.
Recreativo are up where they'd probably never expected to be - 6th place, just behind the 5 big guns. If they can keep this going then there should be no worries at all about relegation. Betis on the other hand really shouldn't be the sort of club who have to worry about going down, having defeated Chelsea in the Champions League just last season, but they were nearly relegated and are just 1 point clear of the relegation places right now. Not a good place to be.
Real Madrid 1 - 1 Atlético
Ahh, the Madrid derby. Atletico dominated the first half-hour, and their opening goal was excellent. A Torres pass headed down brilliantly by Maxi and finished well by Mista. Only some really poor finishing prevented them from being further ahead. Real levelled the score with their first shot against the run of play, but give credit where it's due - it was an excellent goal by Raul off a great pass by Guti. He got between the two defenders perfectly and fired home. I found the whole pointing at the name on the back of his shirt celebration slightly unsavoury, but I'm not the greatest striker out of Spain in the last 20 years.
The big talking point in this match was a clear exaggeration of contact by Fernando Torres when Sergio Ramos put an arm across his chest. He went down clutching his face in a re-enactment of the World Cup incident between Thierry Henry and Carles Puyol, except Henry didn't get Puyol sent off. Don't get me wrong, I'm no Real supporter, but it's pretty clear from the footage what happened. You couldn't really say it was a dive, but there was definitely acting involved. That coupled with Torres' inability to score against the club he hates yet again perfectly sums up my frustration with him.
Anyway, that aside Atletico can only blame themselves for not taking all 3 points, with almost everyone taking their turn to miss a clear chance to put them ahead. Real can't be pleased with the result, but they should be at least satisfied that they salvaged a draw after being down to 10 men for so long, and after being somewhat outplayed. They sit in 4th place having drawn two games, which isn't a bad place to be considering the leaders play the 3rd placed side in the next round. Atletico will be cursing this draw for a while to come, since it could have seen them overtake Real in the table. Still, 5th place is a very good start to the season considering the teams they've had to play. Maybe this will finally be their year after so many years of underachievement. We'll see.
Racing 1 - 1 Celta
Celta were unlucky to be denied an opener by the post and would live to regret it. Racing's shiny new giant striker Zigic opened the scoring from a corner. It was a header from the Serbian Peter Crouch, of course. Celta then proceeded to waste more chances but eventually pulled one back through a pass by Gustavo Lopez finished by Iriney. They had the post to thank for that goal, and for its eventual penalty 'save' after Lopez had bought Zigic down.
Both teams needed to win this game, and will be unhappy with a draw, Celta more so I'd imagine given their loftier aspirations. Racing need points more badly though, since they have only 2 and sit deep in the relegation places, only cushioned by the awfulness of Sociedad. From what I've seen this season, Racing aren't that terrible and really should be winning at least some games against weak opponents. Celta aren't weak, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the table. They're 14th, which is a long way down from the UEFA Cup place finish of last season.
Espanyol 0 - 0 Osasuna
Bore draw for Espanyol, who've been continuing their glorious tradition of inconsistency. If I sound happy about it, I'm not. Espanyol have one of my favourite young Argentinean players - former U20 World Cup-winning captain Pablo Zabaleta, and I don't want him mired in a club forever in relegation trouble, or God forbid, actually relegated. They're in 15th place, which is fairly dire, but will probably stay up if the current trends continue simply because there are 3 clubs worse than they are (Sociedad, for example). Osasuna looked like they were recovering from the poor run of results at the beginning of the season, but I guess they shouldn't be too concerned about this result since they're usually very strong at home. An away draw is somewhat acceptable, even against teams like Espanyol. They're 11th, which reflects their poor start to the season, and getting back to the giddy heights of 4th that they achieved last season will be very difficult.
Valencia 4 - 0 Nastic
Poor Nastic were thrashed by Valencia despite putting up a good fight in the first half. Fernando Morientes is an amazing finisher, and I say this about the man whose striking partner is the best Spanish goalscorer right now. I don't know what they did to him at Liverpool, but Spain evidently suits him a lot more. His goal off Villa's cross in the first half was a perfect predator's finish. There was a whiff of offside about the ball to Villa, but Nastic were never going to get the call playing in the Mestella. Oh yeah, their coach got sent off for yelling at the assistant ref soon after. Oops. Inevitably Villa opened his account in the second half by putting the ball in the net off a clever low free-kick by Gavilan. It looked a fine goal since virtually both teams were massed inside the box, and the ball somehow found its way in between everyone. Valencia's third was again from Villa, but most of the hard work was done by Gavilan who rounded the keeper and sent a pass towards goal, Villa finishin at point-blank range. The fourth goal was scored by Angulo off a rebound of a shot by Edu.
The scoreline is very harsh on Nastic, who while inferior to Valencia in skill and organisation were not horrible enough for such a drubbing. But the reality is they let in 4 goals against a strong Valencia side who are very good at taking all their chances. The victory means that Valencia are now second in the table just behind Barca on a goal difference of 1. They look like serious challengers this time around. Nastic look the shakiest of the newcomers right now, although being 16th isn't disastrous just yet. Like I said about Espanyol, there are worse sides at the moment.
A proper preview of Spain-Argentina to come, when I have all the up-to-date information on who'll be playing and what formation.
Athletic Bilbao 1 - 3 FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona (4-3-3): Valdés; Zambrotta, Marquez, Puyol, Gio; Edmilson (Giuly 31'), Xavi, Deco (Iniesta 61'); Messi, Gudjohnsen (Saviola 71'), Ronaldinho
Atletic Bilbao (4-4-2): Lafuente; Casas (red card 20'), Ustaritz, Sarriegi, Garmendia (Gabilondo 73'); Iraola, Orbaiz, Javi Martinez, Exteberria (Urzaiz 62'); Llorente (Exposito 22'), Yeste
Goals:
1-0 Yeste 11'
1-1 Ustaritz, o.g. 45'
1-2 Gudjonsen 61'
1-3 Saviola 77'
Red Card: Casas 20'
Significance
Going into this match, both clubs will have been very motivated to get a win. Barca were criticized and doubted after their quite pedestrian display in Bremen - in fact, they still are, but I'll go into that later. The pressure from the press combined with the loss of Samuel Eto'o for five months due to injury meant that the team had to be seen to respond well, or risk being labelled a club in crisis. Winning away in the San Mames, which is never an easy stadium for away teams to play in, would steady the boat before the international break.
Athletic had their own, more severe problems, having not yet won a game since the beginning of the season, prompting the club President to step down. People - including yours truly - were beginning to label them as relegation fodder, which is plainly unacceptable to a club of Athletic's proud history and tradition as one of three Spanish clubs never to be relegated. A win against Barca would have kick-started their season.
The Match
Barca formation at the start (4-3-3):
--------------------Valdes
Zambrotta--Marquez---Puyol--Gio
------------------Edmilson
----------Xavi--------------Deco
Messi------------------------Ronaldinho
-----------------Gudjohnsen
After the substitutions (4-3-3):
---------------------Valdes
Zambrotta--Marquez----Puyol--Gio
---------Xavi---------------Iniesta
------------------Ronaldinho
Giuly---------------------------Messi
--------------------Saviola
I still suck at diagrams, but you get the idea.
Athletic started brightly, launching several dangerous attacks via Yeste and young Llorente, including a couple of shots that Valdes - sigh - fumbled at. Both of Athletic's forwards were excellent, and I felt for poor Llorente when he had to be substituted 22 minutes in. I'd seen the youngster play in the 2005 World Youth Championships where he was very impressive, scoring 5 goals before Spain was knocked out by Argentina in the quarterfinals. Here's hoping he eventually propers at this club which desperately needs a goalscorer right now.
On the Barca side of things, they had their now traditional poor start, playing badly for the first 15 minutes or so. This has widely been chalked up to the large-scale rotations made by Rijkaard (about 6 players for each match), and much as I support the rotation policy, I can't see any other explanation for it. Look at the list of players who came in for this match, having not started in Bremen - Zambrotta, Marquez, Gio, Edmilson, Xavi, Messi, Gudjohnsen. That's almost an entirely different starting XI. All the defensive players, minus Puyol, were different, which meant it took time for them to gel, and it showed with some bad mistakes at the beginning. Zambrotta of all people was too slow in getting back to defend in the move that lead to Yeste's goal, leaving Marquez with no cover.
However, that said, it was an excellent goal, born of great passing and team work. For me, a team goal like that is to be savoured far more than a long-range volley, because of the intricate effort that's gone into it from different members of team. Athletic had their collective tails up after it, launching waves of attacks at the Barca goal, while Barca continued to play their patient passing game instead of piling forward for the equalizer. The approach paid off, largely thanks to Leo Messi's lethal efficiency on quick counters.
Even before his breakaway run at the Bernabeu gifted Eto'o with the opener in last year's game with Real, the Argentinean U20 team was built around Messi's ability to hit teams on the break by making quick runs through the midfield. Barca are usually more the victim of counters due to their tendency to commit so many men forward in attack, but in this case it worked wonders for them. Messi ran through the midfield, rode two attempts by Athletic defenders to foul him, and passed to Gudjohnsen, who was clean through on goal.
Here lies the controversial moment of this match. Defender Casas made a decision to bring the Icelandic international down from behind in the most professional of fouls, and the referee pulled out a red card. This is the decision that has caused Athletic fans to claim that the match was robbed from them. The question, I suppose, is whether or not you think Casas was the last defender, and whether any professional foul from behind should be a straight red. A yellow card would probably have sufficed, although in that case Barca may have some cause to feel aggrieved since Gudjohnsen was through on goal. I would still have preferred a yellow, if only to shut the mouths of those who claim incessantly that Barca are favoured by the referees.
In any case, Casas' sending off meant that Llorente had to be sacrificed to bring on another defender, Athletic dropping into a 4-4-1, trying to hold onto their fragile lead through massed defending. Can't blame them at all for that choice, and if it had worked it would have been a heroic performance, but Barca are not easy to play against if you're 1 man down, since the extra space allows them to play their game.
Needless to say, the rest of the game was mostly Barca-dominated, although it took them quite a while to turn that domination into a goal. Giuly came on at the half-hour mark to boost the attack, Rijkaard throwing everything forward to get the goals as he often does when behind. This meant a shift in formation (as I attempted to illustrate above) with Ronaldinho in the lone playmaker position just behind the three forwards, and Messi moving to the left wing. There was a risk in playing with no defensive midfielders, but it was worth going for when holding a man advantage.
Just as the first half was about to end with Athletic still a goal ahead, a Ronaldinho corner was controlled by Gudjohnsen, who crossed for Puyol. A combination of the captain and his marker Ustaritz bundled the ball into the net. It actually looked quite a nice strike by Puyol the first time I saw it, but ever the honest man he had to go and tell everyone that it was an own goal. It doesn't matter though, he had atoned for his own goal in the last match by forcing another.
Barca's second started with Messi squaring for the ever magnificent Xavi who set up Gudjohnsen with a defence-splitting pass for a clean finish by the number 7 who beat the offside trap and blasted past the keeper. A nice goal, but not nearly as great as the third, in which both second-half substitutes were involved. It was exactly the type of goal I adore, scored by passing the ball on the ground with precision and speed into the area. Given the physical qualities of the Barca attack at that point (Saviola-Messi-Giuly-Iniesta-Xavi are all below 1.75m, making for a truly height-challenged attacking force) it was the only realistic option. A move started by Ronaldinho came to fruition after again a great pass by Xavi to Iniesta, who made one of his clever defender-drawing runs into the box before squaring for Saviola to finish.
All in all, I was happy with Barcelona's performance. Due to the circumstances of the match it's hard to assess the team's level, but from what I saw, the team seems to be regaining some semblance of form again. There was some of the fluid, passing game of last season's game-winning run, which was highly encouraging. All that is of course without taking into account the first 15 minutes, where as I said before we were dreadful. However, just for now the signs are good for the nightmare weeks ahead.
The Players
Valdes was unsteady in the first half, largely untroubled in the second. Far too many worrisome fumbles for my liking. Zambrotta was arguably responsible for the first goal, but he also made some great tackles and good attacking runs, and settled down as the game went on. Still needs to work on his crossing, though. Marquez had a great game, dealing well with the difficult situations he was sometimes presented with when other defenders ventured too far forward. He also had a spectacular first-time shot which hit the post. Would have been a great goal. Puyol was immense, as usual, and full credit to him for the crucial first goal. What a guy. Gio made some good attacking runs and defended fairly well. Sylvinho is better going forward, I think, but Gio may actually work with Ronaldinho better. They seem to be on the same wavelength more when combining.
Edmilson made a couple of mistakes but still looked better than Motta, at least in the 30 minutes he got to play. Seems like he actually picked up a knock in that half-hour which he is struggling to shake off. Why both our holding midfielders are so injury-prone is a mystery for the ages. Xavi had his typical game - if you don't look for him, he can often seem invisible for large stretches, and then he pops up with a killer pass. The work he does in midfield isn't always flashy, but it is crucial to Barca's success. Iniesta will have someway to go yet in displacing him from the starting line-up. Speaking of which, 'Young White' (Chinese Barca fans' nickname for Iniesta) had a great game as a substitute, which unfortunately for him isn't going to convince Rijkaard to change his status from a supersub into a starter, especially given his unimpressive performance starting in Bremen. His assist for Saviola was wonderful, though, very similar to the one for Messi in the first round game against Celta Vigo. More of those, please.
Deco lost the ball a lot, but that's what happens when you try to get past opponents and create plays. He was very lively, but possibly looked a bit tired having played every game so far. He also seems to be suffering the same problem as Frank Lampard, his fellow expert in scoring deflected goals from range. They just aren't going in like they used to. To be fair, Deco had a couple of close ones this time, so maybe his luck is returning. (By the way, does Mourinho teach all his midfield maestros to do that or something? No one else seems to have picked up on the weird Lampard-Deco parallel.)
Messi had a great game, possibly his best as a starter so far this season. Sure, he didn't score, but he also kept possession better and in general gave the Athletic defence the runaround. Directly responsible for getting Casas sent off and heavily involved in attacking play. A cynical foul which earned him a yellow card was very surprising, in the sense that I think he's never been (officially) booked at Barca before. His performance after Giuly came on was a great demonstration of what an attacking player in a free position can do, alternating between the playmaker spot and the left wing with Ronaldinho. If Basile wants to play Messi in a similar free role against Spain, he would do well to look at this match. I'm really hoping that he can get back to his spectacular best before the Chelsea match. He was so brilliant in that game last season - controversial incidents aside - that anything else would seem a let-down.
Giuly came on and looked dangerous, making some good runs and getting in a couple of threatening shots. Hopefully his performance against Bremen was just a fluke and he will continue to provide good competition for Messi. Gudjohnsen more than paid his dues with a goal and an assist, staking his claim as Eto'o's successor. I'm still not convinced by his first touch, but the way he can hold up the ball and play well with his back to goal is very impressive. His goal was well-taken, and the cross for Puyol was well-struck too, so all credit to him.
Saviola came on with 15 minutes to go and duly got himself a goal too, which has got to be good for his chances of succeeding Eto'o as well. I think the main thing that counts against El Conejo (the Rabbit) is his height and physical strength or lack of. Otherwise, his technique is excellent, he makes good runs and even tracks back. He also seems to be in a good patch finishing-wise, which is great because he can have slumps. I was so pleased for him, getting a goal for Barca again 800+ days after the last one, before his dire loan spell at Monaco and slightly better time at Sevilla. Saviola's highest tally at Barca in his previous 3 season spell is 17 goals. Let's hope he can beat that this time round. Forca Saviola, indeed.
And lastly we come on to the hot potato subject of Ronaldinho. I don't know what game some people seems to have seen, but I thought Ronaldinho was actually pretty good. He could work a bit harder, I suppose, but he tried to get past opponents, sent in dangerous passes and even had a couple of pretty good shots at goal. His dead-balls also seem to be improving. There were a couple that were just wide, as opposed to in the Bremen game when his free-kicks were dreadful. I think a return to form is just on the horizon for him. Barca fans must hope that it's sooner rather than later.
Sevilla 1 - 0 Getafe
Don't know much about this game, unfortunately, since Sevilla still don't have a broadcasting deal. But a good result for both sides. Sevilla will be glad to get back to winning ways after the debacle in Madrid, while for Getafe a one-goal loss away to a team like Sevilla isn't overly concerning, especially since the result still leaves them in 9th place. For a club of their size, staying in mid-table is a great achievement, and I don't think they'll have too much trouble doing that this season. Sevilla stay up there with the leaders in 3rd place, and a win against Barca in the Camp Nou in round 6 will see them overtake the defending champions.
Mallorca 1 - 2 Villarreal
The Yellow Submarines continued their return to winning ways, and not a moment too soon for a team with European aspirations. The old strike partnership of Jose Mari and Diego Forlan, rather than shoehorning Nihat in there instead, is paying off with both goals coming from a Jose Mari pass finished by Forlan. Granted, the first came from a comical error by the Mallorca defence, which Forlan seized on to blast the ball into the net, but that's what a number 9 type striker is supposed to be like. (Forlan, ironically enough, is number 5 for his side. WTF?) The second was a nice header off yet another Jose Mari cross, without the comedy defending this time.
Mallorca's goal was quite a good one, Villarreal's inability to clear corners notwithstanding. The 'clearance' went straight to Jankovic outside the box, and he made no mistake with a first-time shot into the back of the net. Still, the Submarines have the victory to build on, which moves them up to 10th on the table. Mallorca are only 2 points off them at 13th place, but they'll want to actually win again soon.
Zaragoza 2 - 2 Levante
Zaragoza are still flattering to deceive. Having bought in almost as many good players over the off-season as Atletico Madrid, expectations were high for this season. This was supposed to be the year in which they journeyed out of mid-table mediocrity, but if they keep doing what they did against Levante it ain't gonna happen. They'll have expected to win this game against the newly promoted team from Valencia, not to be two goals behind at half-time. The first was a shot from distance off a botched clearance, but the second was pure lax defending. Granted, they had some bad luck in front of goal, but playing at home this shouldn't be happening at all.
Zaragoza's first goal came courtesy of an Aimar assist, which makes me happy. The second was even higher in Argentine-content, D'Alessandro's shot only needing the slightest of pokes from Diego Milito on the goal-line after taking a deflection off a defender and then the post for the easiest goal he'll ever score. It's a good sign that they can pull back like that, but really, it cannot be seen as a good result. Levante on the other hand now lie in 12th place, which isn't a bad place to be after the way they started the season. They have some hope of staying up this season.
Depor 2 - 0 Real Sociedad
Two late goals saved Deportivo from yet another draw with below-par opposition. Young Antonio Barragan (on loan from Liverpool) opened the scoring with a shot that came off the crossbar. The second came from a quick counter, Riki breaking into the box from the right to score from what looked an impossibly tight angle. The win leaves Depor sitting pretty in 6th equal place, while poor Sociedad look like relegation fodder with only 1 point so far out of a possible 15.
Recreativo 2 - 0 Betis
New boys Recreativo are surprising many people so far this season with credible performances against supposedly stronger oppositon. This win over Betis is a case in point. They're a strange club, Betis. Just a few weeks ago they looked pretty good with great new signings in Rafael Sobis and David Odonkor, but results haven't really been that good. Maybe they'll come good with time. In any case, it was a harsh loss for them going down to two late goals, but both were the result of bad defending and they can only blame themselves.
Recreativo are up where they'd probably never expected to be - 6th place, just behind the 5 big guns. If they can keep this going then there should be no worries at all about relegation. Betis on the other hand really shouldn't be the sort of club who have to worry about going down, having defeated Chelsea in the Champions League just last season, but they were nearly relegated and are just 1 point clear of the relegation places right now. Not a good place to be.
Real Madrid 1 - 1 Atlético
Ahh, the Madrid derby. Atletico dominated the first half-hour, and their opening goal was excellent. A Torres pass headed down brilliantly by Maxi and finished well by Mista. Only some really poor finishing prevented them from being further ahead. Real levelled the score with their first shot against the run of play, but give credit where it's due - it was an excellent goal by Raul off a great pass by Guti. He got between the two defenders perfectly and fired home. I found the whole pointing at the name on the back of his shirt celebration slightly unsavoury, but I'm not the greatest striker out of Spain in the last 20 years.
The big talking point in this match was a clear exaggeration of contact by Fernando Torres when Sergio Ramos put an arm across his chest. He went down clutching his face in a re-enactment of the World Cup incident between Thierry Henry and Carles Puyol, except Henry didn't get Puyol sent off. Don't get me wrong, I'm no Real supporter, but it's pretty clear from the footage what happened. You couldn't really say it was a dive, but there was definitely acting involved. That coupled with Torres' inability to score against the club he hates yet again perfectly sums up my frustration with him.
Anyway, that aside Atletico can only blame themselves for not taking all 3 points, with almost everyone taking their turn to miss a clear chance to put them ahead. Real can't be pleased with the result, but they should be at least satisfied that they salvaged a draw after being down to 10 men for so long, and after being somewhat outplayed. They sit in 4th place having drawn two games, which isn't a bad place to be considering the leaders play the 3rd placed side in the next round. Atletico will be cursing this draw for a while to come, since it could have seen them overtake Real in the table. Still, 5th place is a very good start to the season considering the teams they've had to play. Maybe this will finally be their year after so many years of underachievement. We'll see.
Racing 1 - 1 Celta
Celta were unlucky to be denied an opener by the post and would live to regret it. Racing's shiny new giant striker Zigic opened the scoring from a corner. It was a header from the Serbian Peter Crouch, of course. Celta then proceeded to waste more chances but eventually pulled one back through a pass by Gustavo Lopez finished by Iriney. They had the post to thank for that goal, and for its eventual penalty 'save' after Lopez had bought Zigic down.
Both teams needed to win this game, and will be unhappy with a draw, Celta more so I'd imagine given their loftier aspirations. Racing need points more badly though, since they have only 2 and sit deep in the relegation places, only cushioned by the awfulness of Sociedad. From what I've seen this season, Racing aren't that terrible and really should be winning at least some games against weak opponents. Celta aren't weak, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the table. They're 14th, which is a long way down from the UEFA Cup place finish of last season.
Espanyol 0 - 0 Osasuna
Bore draw for Espanyol, who've been continuing their glorious tradition of inconsistency. If I sound happy about it, I'm not. Espanyol have one of my favourite young Argentinean players - former U20 World Cup-winning captain Pablo Zabaleta, and I don't want him mired in a club forever in relegation trouble, or God forbid, actually relegated. They're in 15th place, which is fairly dire, but will probably stay up if the current trends continue simply because there are 3 clubs worse than they are (Sociedad, for example). Osasuna looked like they were recovering from the poor run of results at the beginning of the season, but I guess they shouldn't be too concerned about this result since they're usually very strong at home. An away draw is somewhat acceptable, even against teams like Espanyol. They're 11th, which reflects their poor start to the season, and getting back to the giddy heights of 4th that they achieved last season will be very difficult.
Valencia 4 - 0 Nastic
Poor Nastic were thrashed by Valencia despite putting up a good fight in the first half. Fernando Morientes is an amazing finisher, and I say this about the man whose striking partner is the best Spanish goalscorer right now. I don't know what they did to him at Liverpool, but Spain evidently suits him a lot more. His goal off Villa's cross in the first half was a perfect predator's finish. There was a whiff of offside about the ball to Villa, but Nastic were never going to get the call playing in the Mestella. Oh yeah, their coach got sent off for yelling at the assistant ref soon after. Oops. Inevitably Villa opened his account in the second half by putting the ball in the net off a clever low free-kick by Gavilan. It looked a fine goal since virtually both teams were massed inside the box, and the ball somehow found its way in between everyone. Valencia's third was again from Villa, but most of the hard work was done by Gavilan who rounded the keeper and sent a pass towards goal, Villa finishin at point-blank range. The fourth goal was scored by Angulo off a rebound of a shot by Edu.
The scoreline is very harsh on Nastic, who while inferior to Valencia in skill and organisation were not horrible enough for such a drubbing. But the reality is they let in 4 goals against a strong Valencia side who are very good at taking all their chances. The victory means that Valencia are now second in the table just behind Barca on a goal difference of 1. They look like serious challengers this time around. Nastic look the shakiest of the newcomers right now, although being 16th isn't disastrous just yet. Like I said about Espanyol, there are worse sides at the moment.
A proper preview of Spain-Argentina to come, when I have all the up-to-date information on who'll be playing and what formation.
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