Info: la liga

Showing posts with label la liga. Show all posts

Old boy Sanchez aims to dent Real title bid

MADRID (AFP) – Hugo Sanchez became a legend at Real Madrid in seven trophy-laden seasons but on Sunday the Mexican will put sentiment aside as his Almeria side look for a first ever win at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Legendary striker Sanchez starred for Real between 1985 and 1992, winning five league titles and four ‘Pichichi’ (top goalscorer) crowns, but now he wants to get one over on his old club.

"It will be emotional to return to Real Madrid but I have to put my job first and we will go for the three points," said Sanchez.

"I would like to make Almeria history by winning at the Bernabeu for the first time."

The only problem for Sanchez, and Almeria, is that Real can afford no slip-ups as they look to close the six-point gap to frontrunners Barcelona.

Juande Ramos’s side may have crashed out of Europe but they have won 11 of their last 12 games to stay on Barca’s heels and French midfielder Lass Diarra believes they are capable of winning all their remaining fixtures to snatch the league title.

"There is a positive atmosphere in the squad," said Diarra.

"Our goal is to win the title by winning every game. We are very much alive and I think we can catch up with Barcelona. I am convinced we are capable of winning all our matches."

Having halved a one-time 12-point gap to Barca, Real have just the league on which to focus while their arch-rivals must also focus on the Kings Cup final and the Champions League.

Barca manager Pep Guardiola rested Samuel Eto’o and Thierry Henry last weekend in the 2-0 win over Almeria as he tries to keep his stars fresh for the key final few months of the season.

Bojan Krkic, 18, scored both goals against Almeria but admits it is difficult to force his way into Barca’s star-studded line-up.

"It is not easy to get a game when you have Eto’o, (Lionel) Messi and Henry in front of you. They are three of the best players in the world," said Bojan.

Malaga are the visitors at Camp Nou on Sunday, and are looking to claim another big scalp. The promoted side have surprised everyone this season and are only two points off the Champions League spots.

Atletico Madrid are level on points with Malaga after a morale-boosting 3-2 win over Villarreal last time out and aim to build on that success at strugglers Real Mallorca on Sunday.

Uruguayan international Diego Forlan has scored more than any other player in 2009 with nine league goals taking his tally to 19 – just four behind the league’s top-scorer Samuel Eto’o.

"I didn’t expect to score so many goals in Spain because it is a tough league," confessed Forlan. "I am quite far away (from Eto’o) and I don’t really set targets. I just keep on working hard."

Villarreal need to make amends for the defeat to Atletico and they host Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.

Sevilla are well positioned in third six points ahead of Villarreal and want to consolidate their lead at home to Valladolid on Saturday.

For Valencia the Champions League dream is rapidly disappearing with the 2004 champions falling five points off the top four after one win in their last eight league matches.

Unai Emery’s side travel to an improving Racing Santander outfit on Sunday needing a win to take the spotlight off their well-publicised financial problems.

Osasuna and Espanyol have other troubles as they fight to stay in the league and the two bottom sides meet on Sunday in a crucial relegation showdown. Espanyol prop up the table four points behind second from bottom Osasuna.

Fixtures

Saturday

Villarreal v Athletic Bilbao, Sevilla v Valladolid

Sunday

Real Madrid v Almeria, Racing Santander v Valencia, Getafe v Recreativo Huelva, Osasuna v Espanyol, Deportivo La Coruna v Real Betis, Numancia v Sporting Gijon, Barcelona v Malaga, Real Mallorca v Atletico Madrid

Written by: AFP

Source: http://www.footballcupleague.com

Ronaldo is the best but not for long says Scolari

COBHAM, England (AFP) – Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari admits Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to be crowned the world’s best player but he has warned the Manchester United winger he could lose the title in 2009.

Ronaldo is favourite to collect the FIFA World Player of the Year award for 2008 when it is presented in Zurich on Monday.

The Portugal star, who is nominated alongside Liverpool striker Fernando Torres, AC Milan playmaker Kaka and Barcelona duo Lionel Messi and Xavi, has already won the European honour and Scolari is convinced his superb form for United last season deserves another reward.

But the Brazilian knows Ronaldo better than most after coaching him with the Portugal national team for five years and he hinted that the United idol has been below par so far this season.

"In the last season, for me, he was the best in the world. If he doesn’t receive the award it will be wrong," Scolari said.

"He is a very intelligent player that changes games. When you expect him to be on the left, he turns up on the right. When you expect him to shoot with his left, he shoots with his right.

"But this season maybe some other players are in a good position to discuss it."

Ronaldo scored 42 goals to help United win the Premier League and Champions League last season, but he spent most of the close season unsuccessfully trying to enginner a move to Real Madrid and has cut a forlorn figure at times since then.

The 23-year-old has scored just nine times and has failed to hit the net in his last eight appearances, yet he could easily prove Scolari wrong by helping United to a crucial win over Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday.

He only made a cameo appearance as a subtitute in the 1-1 draw between the teams at Stamford Bridge earlier this season. Now the stage is set for a more significant contribution.

Scolari knows none of his Chelsea players have Ronaldo’s flamboyant skills but he belivies the likes of Deco, Frank Lampard, Michael Ballack and Joe Cole are just as capable of winning a match on their own.

"I have some players who don’t have his characteristics but I have others who have fantasy," he said. "They cross very well and pass very well.

"This is different player with a different style. Maybe we have here with a different style but who are as good as Ronaldo.

"For sure, one player from Chelsea will be in the best five players in the world this year."

Source: http://www.footballcupleague.com

Kaka expects a nice welcome at the San Siro

Real Madrid ace Kaka returns to the San Siro tonight to play against his former club, AC Milan. The Brazilian star is looking forward to his return to the stadium that was his stage for six seasons.

Real Madrid will be eyeing a win tonight, looking for revenge for the previous match between the two European giants (2-3 win for Milan at the Bernabeu). Kaka will be giving his best tonight even though he won’t celebrate if he scores a goal against the Rossoneri.

“For all that has been in the past years between me and the fans I expect a nice welcome,” he explained.

It will be a difficult game – I know my former teammates very well.”

During the week Milan striker Marco Borriello noted that Kaka hasn’t been as good in the past few seasons but the Brazilian has no hard feelings.

“I didn’t read what he had to say but I am sure he didn’t mean it that way.

“He is a friend and knows me very well.” (Paul Haring)

Source: http://www.footballcupleague.com

Ronaldo confident of appeal success

Cristiano Ronaldo does everything he can to be able to play against Deportivo la Coruna on Saturday. The Real Madrid forward received a two-match suspension for a red card he picked up at the weekend.

Ronaldo thinks the suspension is ‘excessive’.

On Tuesday, the disciplinary committee of the Spanish football league said the world’s most expensive player had been punished “for resorting to dangerous play that caused an injury” to an opponent.

It also fined Real 180 euros and Ronaldo 600 euros.

The former Manchester United player disagrees with this punishment and he’s confident that Real Madrid’s appeal will succeed.

“I wasn’t impressed about the suspension, of course,” Ronaldo was quoted as saying by AS newspaper on Wednesday.

“I sincerely believe the punishment is excessive,” he added. “I am confident in the appeal the club is going to lodge and that the punishment will be reduced.”

The Spanish Football Federation added that if Real’s attempts to get the ban reversed are unsuccessful he will miss Saturday’s trip to Deportivo Coruna and the home game against Espanyol the following weekend.

Source: http://www.footballnewsblog.co.uk

Madrid slips back of Barcelona with Athletic loss

Athletic Bilbao's 1-0 victory over eal Madrid caused the latter to slip five points adrift of Spanish league leader Barcelona, which beat Sevilla 4-0 thanks to Lionel Messi's pair on Saturday.

Athletic striker Fernando Llorente was free in the box in the third minute to head in a corner that was flicked on by Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra.

Athletic goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz made key saves on Madrid's big three offseason signings - Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Kaka - including a diving stop on Ronaldo's injury-time shot.

Iraizoz made 12 saves in all as Athletic beat Madrid at San Mames Stadium for the first time since 2004.

Barcelona's win at the Camp Nou meant the Spanish champions had 46 points to Madrid's 41 after extending their unbeaten start.

"There's a lot of league left, only one half is (nearly) done," Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini said. "We won't lack spirit or motivation in our title chase."

Also on Saturday, two early goals gave Osasuna a 2-0 victory over Espanyol to snap a five-game league winless streak.

Following a lackluster first half, Barcelona got on the board in the 49th when Sevilla defender Julien Escude redirected Gerard Pique's shot into his own goal.

Pedro Rodriguez doubled the advantage in the 70th, chipping over oncoming goalkeeper Andres Palop after being played into the area by Xavi Hernandez.

Messi collected Daniel Alves' cross inside the area before slotting a low shot into goal in the 85th.

The world player of the year completed the rout with his league-leading 14th goal in injury time, the Argentina winger breaking into the area alone before tucking back to beat Palop.

Barcelona, which was knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Sevilla on Wednesday, was stronger in the two teams' third meeting in 11 days as the visitors created little offensively to see their league chances likely end following a fourth straight loss.

Sevilla shares 30 points with Mallorca and Athletic. Valencia (35) and Deportivo La Coruna (31) are ahead of them, then Barcelona and Madrid.

At Bilbao, Llorente's header made up for two Athletic misses in the opening moments. Carlos Gurpegui beat goalkeeper Iker Casillas but his low shot hit a post, and Gaizka Toquero then hit the other post from the rebound.

Iraizoz tipped Benzema's swerving shot wide in the 11th as Madrid pressed.

Ronaldo nodded a crossed-in ball high in the air in the 24th and then collided with Iraizoz but the goalkeeper still swiped the looping ball away before it crossed the line.

Benzema, who replaced injured striker Gonzalo Higuain, beat Iraizoz in the 34th but the striker's shot found the far post.

Madrid seemed poised to equalize as Athletic relied on Iraizoz, who stopped long shots from Marcelo and Xabi Alonso before the break.

Benzema unleashed a fierce shot inside the area only to be denied by Iraizoz, who soon after stopped substitute Jose Maria "Guti" Gutierrez's low free kick through the defensive wall.

Iraizoz blocked Kaka's volley in the 69th and the midfielder then half-volleyed a shot from inside the area into the side-netting in the 83rd.

Athletic, which had a penalty appeal waived away during injury time, finished with 10 men when Gurpegui was sent off for a trip on Ramos in the closing stages. Ronaldo sent a free kick over goal in Madrid's final chance.

"There was practically only one team on the field," Pellegrini said. "But you have to have some luck and better precision to convert those occasions. It's clear that when you lose, something's not working."

At Pamplona, Juanfran Torres beat goalkeeper Cristian Alvarez, who was filling in for Carlos Kameni away on African Cup duty, with a low shot in the fifth minute before Walter Pandiani headed home a cross three minutes later.

Osasuna was reduced to 10 men with Roberto "Ruper" Lopez's sending off in the 41st. Facundo Roncaglia wrongly joined Lopez in the stands eight minutes later after the referee showed the Espanyol defender a second yellow even though teammate David Garcia was the one who fouled Carlos Aranda.

Osasuna improved to 20 points while Espanyol had 19.

In Sunday's games, it's: Malaga vs. Getafe; Racing Santander vs. Valladolid; Almeria vs. Tenerife; Zaragoza vs. Xerez; Mallorca vs. Deportivo; Atletico Madrid vs. Sporting Gijon; and Valencia vs. Villarreal.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com

Barcelona Battles Mexican Atlante in Club World Cup

Abu Dhabi, December 16 (QNA) - The Spanish Barcelona football team emption to get the sixth title in 2009 begins Wednesday when they take on Mexican football team Atlante in the semi-finals of the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi.

Last season Barcelona became the first La Liga team to win the treble of league, cup and European Cup, and Pep Guardiola's team added two further trophies at the start of this campaign, winning the European and Spanish Super Cups.

Two more victories in the United Arab Emirates this week would give the Catalan club the set, with the Mexican side providing the first hurdle today, and then their opponents in the final will be the Copa Libertadores champions Estudiantes who beat AFC Champions League winners Pohang Steelers 2-1 on Monday.

Both the goals for Estudiantes were scored by Leandro Benitez while Pohang's Brazilian star Denilson reduced the deficit for the Korean side. Three Pohang players - Hwang Jae-won, Kim Jae-sung and Shin Hwa-yong - received red cards

"I m proud of my players," said Pohang coach Sergio Farias. "We showed that we could match the South American champions, and we were extremely unlucky to lose.

"We had three players sent off. It could have been a different story."

After surviving an early attempt on goal, Pohang could have taken the lead when Shin Hyung-min s cross was almost met by No Byung-jun with the Estudiantes goalkeeper goalkeeper completely out of position. But in the end the ball flew over the post.

Pohang had two more quick chances denied - Denilson s sharp, cutting cross and Kim Jung-kyum's 20-yard strike that was collected by the goalie.

In first-half injury time, Benitez fired a free kick that took excessive curl and zoomed into the Pohang net.

The start of the final half saw an Estudiantes defender stretching his left leg to clear a Denilson shot. Benitez then doubled the Argentinean side's lead in the 53rd minute after beating Shin Hwa-yong to the ball.

Minutes later, Pohang lost captain Hwang Jae-won for a second bookable offence.

Denilson reduced the deficit against the run of play in the 71st minute with a left-footed shot.

The Korean club saw their strength further reduced a minute later when Kim Jae-sung received his marching orders before Shin Hwa-yong joined him for an early shower. Pohang were forced to assign goalkeeping duties to Denilson and the battle was well and truly lost.

Estudiantes coach Alejandro Sabella said: "We re very pleased to have reached the final. Credit to Pohang, they did well. The last 20 minutes of the first half was very even, and so was the start of the second half.

"But our second goal gave us the psychological advantage and Pohang became frustrated after that."(QNA)

Source: http://www.qnaol.net

Mallorca and Manzano Finally Getting Some Attention

By: Jeremy

Yet another week and yet another home win for Mallorca as they disposed of Racing Santander 1-0 at the Ono Estadi on Sunday. Nothing Fancy. Just hard work and team play leading to a well earned victory on Webos first half goal. Other chances certainly were created and the score could have been less threatening, but a well deserved win. With Deportivos stumble we now move into 5th place with 17 points sniffing the heals of Sevilla and Valencia, two of Spains more established teams and big names to casual observers of La Liga.

Prior to this win, the team was getting some attention as there is a nice article that sums up the recent fortunes of the club. While it does not mention all the key losses and turnover of players, it is a good look from an outsider. Please have a look at the following article…

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=690942&sec=europe&root=europe&cc=5901

The bottom line is this team is doing what most small clubs hope to do which is find players under the radar and have them mesh as a team while under the guidance of a top notch manager.

We have that and the only bad thing about a good start and solid finish is that if we finish again just outside of the European spots, because of the early strong start, Manzano will get some offers for big clubs that he might take. Lets hope he sticks around for now but we can worry about that later. If we can finish in a European spot, he might stay.

All fans should be proud of not only the extended run in La Liga for 13 years, but the strong teams and players that have come through and moved on to bigger clubs. The list is quite impressive and no other small club with our budget has seen the players wear their shirt like we have the past few years.

Who are this years surprises? How about Felipe Mattioni, the young defender from Brazil. Check him out and he showed in the Racing match that he is one for the future. Lets see if we can find a way to keep him past this year.

With the history of strong finishes, this team is not out of the question for a European spot. Lets keep enjoying the run and continue to be proud of whatever it is that ties us to the club and causes us to root for them week in and week out.

Source: http://mallorca.theoffside.com

Puyol to extend contract

Madrid - Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has agreed a contract extension until 2013, the European champions said on their website (www.fcbarcelona.com) on Friday.

The 31-year-old Spanish international, whose current deal was due to expire next June, will sign the new agreement in the coming days, the club said.

'Carles has been here for many years and is the heart and soul of the dressing room. For this reason, it is fantastic news,' team mate Xavi told a news conference.

Puyol joined the club's youth system in 1995 and made his first team debut on Oct 2, 1999 against Real Valladolid.

The shaggy-haired defender has gone on to make 451 official appearances for Barca, the fourth highest for the club, helping them to win three La Liga titles, two European Cups and a King's Cup.

Barca, top of La Liga on 19 points from seven matches, visit Real Zaragoza on Sunday. -- REUTERS

Source: http://www.straitstimes.com

Inter’s Obinna Loaned To Real Betis

It has been well reported in recent times that the La Liga outfit Real Betis are keen to boost their attacking ranks ahead of the second half of the season.

One of their primary targets has been Victor Obinna of Inter Milan, a player that certainly would add a lot of creativity and spark to the Betis attack.

According to Sportsmediaset, both Inter and Betis have reached an agreement for Obinna, with it being decided that he will join the Spanish club for a six month loan period.

The move will see him stay in Spain for the remainder of the season, allowing the Nerazzurri to trim their squad down in the process.

It has also been reported that if both the player and the Spanish club are content at the conclusion of the season, then he can be purchased outright for a fee of €6 million.

Obinna has made eight appearances for the Nerazzurri, since joining the club from Chievo in 2008, where he excelled at from the 2005-06 season.

Adrian Del Monte

Source:
http://www.goal.com

Maradona: Messi Must Be Argentina’s Leader

Lucas Brown, Goal.com

Diego Maradona has told Lionel Messi that he expects him to give everything for his country and become the leader of the national team by living up to all the expectations that surround him.

The Albicelestes coach believes that the Barcelona star must show the utmost dedication at international level, citing himself as an example to follow.

Messi is currently rated as one of the world’s best players, but Maradona wants him to ensure that he steps up yet another level when playing for Argentina and leads the side forward.

“I gave everything for my country as I played when I had to have injections or I was injured,” the trainer told reporters.

“I hope to see Leo doing this and a lot more besides for the good of Argentina because we have great expectations of what he can do for the national team.

“It cost me a lot to keep playing. It is a unique opportunity because the players need a leader and I want him to be it. I am proud of the squad that I have.”

Maradona feels that some of the desire to play for Argentina has been lacking and is keen to remind the squad what he feels it means to wear the Albicelestes’ colours.

“I want to bring back the old mystique of the shirt, to instil into the players what wearing it really means,” he added

Source:
http://sports.yahoo.com

Eto'o expects Barca upturn

Samuel Eto'o believes Barcelona have put their disappointing start to the new season behind them following their Champions League victory over Sporting Lisbon.

The Blaugrana ended their two-game domestic winless streak with a 3-1 group stage victory over the Portuguese side at the Camp Nou and afterwards Eto'o predicted an immediate upturn in fortunes.

"We knew that our bad luck would not continue, especially since we have been playing so well," said the Cameroon striker.

"But I am only worried if we do not create goalscoring chances.

"As long as we have chances, we only need to sharpen our finishing and the goals will come."

Source:
http://www.football.co.uk

Info