Valencia reclaimed fourth place with a convincing 3-1 away victory at nine-man Osasuna on Sunday and are now just four points behind league leaders Real Madrid. Valencia recorded their fourth successive league win largely thanks to two goals in the first 20 minutes from David Villa and David Albelda, before Carlos Marchena wrapped up the points with a third. Villa opened the scoring after just six minutes using an outstretched boot to flick in a lofted pass for his ninth goal of the season... Read Full Story
Spanish action for you live on Sky Sports tonight with Real Madrid in action in what should be a cracking Saturday night game. Real Madrid vs Real Zaragoza - 21:00 live on Sky Sports Xtra
Real ( 1/5 ) used a 4-3-1-2 formation against Valencia and it worked well. I expected Los Che to get at least a point, but Real's team work and the sharpshooting of Gonzalo Higuain gave Los Blancos all three points in an engaging match. Key to the defensive aspect of team work was centre back Pepe , who... Read Full Story
Ahead of Barcelona's 'El Clasico' showdown with title rivals Real Madrid, Barca defender Dani Alves told reporters Friday he preferred to be part of a team unit, rather than the Real model of recruiting top star names. Alluding to the megabucks signing of Cristiano Ronaldo, just one top new name brought in along with the likes of Brazilian Kaka, Alves said: "He is a great and very important player ... but in a team there are 20 to 22 players - not just one." Ronaldo, back in action after... Read Full Story
Mexican international defender Rafa Marquez on Monday extended his contract with Barcelona until 2012, becoming the eighth player to renew with the European champions so far this season. "I?m very happy to renew with a club where I?ve felt very wanted, where I?ve enjoyed myself and where I?ve suffered. I have to enjoy these moments, they pass very quickly," he said after signing his new contract. "Now I need to recover full match fitness to try and win back a place in the starting eleven... Read Full Story
Barcelona's Argentine striker Lionel Messi faces missing his club's crucial Champions League meeting with Inter Milan after picking up a thigh injury in Saturday's draw with Athletic Bilbao, the club said on Sunday. "First impressions with Messi are not good," was how coach Josep Guardiola had reacted to the news overnight after his star man went off at the San Mames stadium with 15 minutes remaining, giving way to Bojan Krkic. For Tuesday's match with Inter at the Nou Camp Barca are already... Read Full Story
Defending champions Barcelona play "a thousand times better" than Real Madrid, former Holland and Barcelona star Johan Cruyff said Thursday ahead of the sides much-anticipated weekend clash. "This is not a revelation. The whole world is captivated by this way of playing, this quality, this technique," the 62-year-old said. But he said Barcelona had to "respect" Real, who are heading into Sunday's "El Classico" with a one-point advantage over the Catalan side following their best league start... Read Full Story
By Stephen Lars Barcelona asserted its leadership with a 1-0 triumph against Espanyol in the fourteenth round of the Spanish League. The defending Spanish Champions now have 39 points so far into the season. Barça was in control of the ball most of the time but the team did not show its full potential. The meeting began with the Azulgranas trying to pressure their rivals, who were a little frightened but still knew how to stay aware of Barcelona’s offensive plays. Barcelona played without... Read Full Story
Barcelona offensive midfielder Andres Iniesta on Friday extended his current contract with the Spanish champions by one year to 2015, according to the club. According to reports Iniesta, one of the most influential forward players in the Spanish league side, will now earn a reported seven million euros per year before taxes. Barcelona emphasised their attachment to the 25-year-old by increasing the buy-out clause in his new contract to 200 million euros. Iniesta's previous contract was due... Read Full Story
Real Madrid played one of their best games of the season and beat Valencia 3-2 in an intense match this past Saturday at Mestalla. This was the 14th date of La Liga and after this win, the Whites remain a close second behind Barcelona, who are in first place with 39 points. The Meringues kept second place with 34 points with one game less than the leaders, while Sevilla is in third place with 30 points. The duel was a magnificent, tactical, and close, especially in the first half during... Read Full Story
The players of Real Madrid, ridiculed by the press after their elimination from the Spanish Cup by a third division club, accepted the blame for the defeat and defended under-fire coach Manuel Pellegrini. "It was a hard blow, the team didn't put on the display that we hoped for," said Real's iconic striker Raul. Big-spending Real crashed out of the Spanish Cup on Tuesday night when they could only manage a 1-0 home victory over minnows Alcorcon, a team from the Madrid suburbs, who went... Read Full Story
