EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 GROUP B D H J SPANISH TEAMS RESULTS

EUROPA LEAGUE action tonight with four Spanish Clubs participating in their Groups B, D, H & J respectively. Here is a quick summary & the results of a mixed night for the Spanish teams.

ATLETICO DE MADRID finished their Group B match against German team BAYERN LEVERKUSEN with a 1-1 draw result. Atletico de Madrid put in a great second half to come back & equalize but failed half a dozen chances that could have easily given them the game.

The first half saw a conservative Atletico which saw them later pay when DERDIYOK scored from a corner messed up clearance in the 39th min. The Germans were playing their best Football at this point which forced Atletico Coach Flores do a double substitution for the second half.

Diego Forlan & Raul Garcia came off for Thiago & Merida to help give more midfield creative play to the Spanish team & it paid off in the 51st min when Merida was fouled in the penalty area. SIMAO took the ball & equalized in an authoritative manner to push his team on. From here it was all Atletico & they missed lots of opportunities to win the match, especially a Reyes header chance that no one believed he missed. In the end the Germans held out, & at least managed a point away from home, while Atletico must win their next game at Rosenburg if they are to continue onward.

VILLAREAL hosted BRUJAS to win 2-1 in an entertaining Group D game that saw the Spaniards give their best version & keep out the Belguim team in the 2ºhalf of the game. ROSSI scored first for Villareal in the 40th min to see right at the end of the 1ºhalf DONK equalize for Brujas.

Villareal maintained their discipline & scored their second & the winner via GONZALO in the 51st min to maintain their authority, control & the 3ºpoints.

GETAFE lost away 2-0 to Swiss team YOUNG BOYS in their Group H match. The Swiss deserved the win with better & dominating play with their two goals coming from DEGEN in the 10th & 63rd min of the game.

Excellent victory 0-1 away to BORUSSIA DORTMUND by SEVILLA FC in their Group J clash. Sevilla with a new Coach Manzano went into a German ground which was always going to be a difficult affair as it was proved tonight. Under intense pressure & a somewhat "hostile" atmosphere CIGARINI managed to score at the end of the first half the Spanish winner. Sevilla then did a great job to find a few more chances but more importantly keep out a very determined & stubborn German team.

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LIONEL MESSI RECEIVES THE GOLDEN BOOT AWARD 2009 - 2010

FC BARCELONA star Argentine LIONEL MESSI received tonight the EUROPEAN GOLDEN BOOT AWARD for his 34 goals scored last season 2009-2010. The Argentine enjoyed a ceremony packed with media & guests to take the coverted "Highest European League Goalscorer" prize. He adds this to his "Golden Ball 2009" & "FIFA World Player 2009" prizes.

Here is the final Top 1o list. Take note the the first Nº are the goals scored season 2009 - 2010, the second figure is the given local League co-efficient & the third number is the final points:

1 Lionel Messi Barcelona (SP) 34 goals 2 co-efficient 68 points
2 Didier Drogba Chelsea (ENG) 29 2 58
Antonio Di Natale Udinese (ITA) 29 2 58
4 Gonzalo Higuaín Real Madrid (SP) 27 2 54
5 Luis Suárez Ajax (HOL) 35 1,5 52,5
6 Wayne Rooney Man United (ENG) 26 2 52
Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid (SP) 26 2 52
8 Darren Bent Sunderland (ENG) 24 2 48
9 Carlos Tévez Manchester City (ENG) 23 2 46
10 Seydou Doumbia Young Boys (SWI) 30 1,5 45

Here is a video from "YouTube" that highlights all the 34 goals scored by Lionel Messi:

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SPANISH NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM | LIST OF 20 PLAYERS ANNOUNCED FOR LITUANIA SCOTLAND

SPANISH NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM Selector & Coach Vicente Del Bosque has handed in his list of 20 Spanish players for the upcoming EURO 2012 Group qualifiers against Lituania & Scotland. Spain plays Lituania in the Spanish city of Salamanca on the 8th of October & then flys to Glasgow to play Scotland on the 12th of October.

The news is that FC Barcelona midfielder XAVI HERNANDEZ has been left out due to injury - tendinitis - along with Cesc Fabregas & Albiol. Here is the FULL LIST of Spanish players called up:

Goalkeepers
Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), José Manuel Reina (Liverpool) & Víctor Valdés (Barcelona)
Defenders:
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Álvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid), Gerard Piqué (Barcelona), Carles Puyol (Barcelona), Carlos Marchena (Villarreal), Joan Capdevila (Villarreal) & Nacho Monreal (Osasuna)
Midfielder:
Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona), Santiago Cazorla (Villarreal) & Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona)
Forwards:
David Silva (Manchester City), Jesús Navas (Sevilla), Fernando Llorente (Ath. Bilbao), Pedro Rodríguez (Barcelona), David Villa (Barcelona) & Fernando Torres (Liverpool) Tweet

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 -2011 GROUP C D RESULTS | RUBIN KAZAN 1 FC BARCELONA 1 | VALENCIA CF 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 1

Two Spanish Teams played their respective Group CHAMPIONS LEAGUE matches tonight with mixed results & a late sour surprise.

FC BARCELONA travelled to visit RUBIN KAZAN to end up drawing 1-1 in their Group D match. The Russians put in 5 defenders, 4 midfelders & 1 forward in a clear sign to build a wall & play counter-attack Football. This makes it difficult for any team to play well, yet alone Barça who hit the post early in the 12th min via Pedro. However, the game was messy, frustrating & difficult just the way Kazin wanted & they were rewarded when Barça defender Alves fouled Russian Kaleshin in the penalty area in the 30th min. It was NOBOA who took the ball, scored & gave the lead to the home side.

Barça continued attempting to pull one back & managed to do so when Iniesta was fouled in the penalty area, to see DAVID VILLA scored the penalty in the 60th min. Barça brought on Messi, but the Russian defended with tooth & nails to assure the draw which for them tasted like a victoty.

VALENCIA CF hosted MANCHESTER UNITED in their Group C match with victory going 0-1 to the English Club. The Spanish side had numerous chances to score goals but didn´t take advantage of the opportunities. Manchester United is not the fearful team of two years back & although equal in play were continuously overrun by Valencia, especially in the second half.

It was Manchester United substitute JAVIER HERNANDEZ who scored the winner in the 85th min when the Valencia CF defence lost concentration & the Mexican took his chance after warning earlier hitting the post. Smart striker play that deserved the reward!

Justice could have been better done with a draw, but Manchester has more Champions League experience to turn things around when the opposition thinks otherwise. Tweet

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REAL MADRID CF TEAM PHOTO | 2010 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE vs AUXERRE

Independently of the "bad" performance tonight by REAL MADRID in their 0-1 Champions League Group G victory over Auxerre , here is the REAL MADRID TEAM PHOTO starting 11 for the fans.

L to R Back: Khedira, Ramos, Pepe, Benzema, Xabi & Ronaldo

L to R Front: Casillas, Marcelo, Lass, Higuain, Arbeloa

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 | GROUP G RESULT | AUXERRE 0 REAL MADRID 1

Yes the three points are important & yes REAL MADRID won away 0 -1 AUXERRE in their Group G CHAMPIONS LEAGUE qualifier, but the image was sad. The Spanish team looked impotent most of the night & the French had their chances ( post included from a Pepe header in defence) of getting ahead.

The French team put up a very organized defence that waited for their chances to counter-attack, which they did on numerous ocassions & nearly surprised the visitors. The Spaniards have a real problem upfront even with 3 forwards ( Benzema, Higuain & Ronaldo)

that couldn't break through the French defence. In fact, the observer comes to the conclusion that there is no creative spark, a true play maker or simply someone that does something out of the ordinary to surprise the opposition.

Mid way through the second half Real Coach Mourinho had to pull something out of his bag of tricks to change things. He took off Benzema for Ozil & later Lass for Di Maria in order to mix things up & change the "boring" course of things. Then in the 78th min the ocassion came when Sergio Ramos ( suspected hand-ball) passed to DI MARIA who hammered the winner to give Madrid eventually the victory.

Yes, the 3º points are important, especially after the other Group teams Ajax - AC Milan finished their game in a 1-1 draw to give Real Madrid the top spot of the Group G ladder. But, oh my dear, the image was below the level of what one would expect from this Real Madrid team & they could have lost the game. Yes, the 3º points are certainly important!

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 | GROUP G PREVIEW |POSSIBLE REAL MADRID STARTING 11 AGAINST AUXERRE

REAL MADRID travel to France & visit AUXERRE in their Group G Champions League qualifier. The Spaniards arrive under lots of pressure for heir recent poor play, Coach Mourinho being as controversial as ever & a worrying dry spell in goals.

The other news is that Defender Carvalho has pains in his ankle that could leave him out tonight although the decision will be taken before kick-off. Therefore, the Spanish press are speculating with the following Real Madrid starting line-up 11 against Auxerre:

Casillas, Arbeloa, Pepe, Ramos, Marcelo, Xabi Alonso, Khedira, Ozil, Ronaldo, Higuain & Benzema.

The 100% novelty is Benzema who will return after conviencing Mourinho with his positive attitude, & the fact that with him will be Higuain & Ronaldo. This is a clear sign that Coach Mourinho desires to break the goal-dry spell that has been huanting the team & thus lift the teams image of play.

Surf into SFS late tonight around 23.00 Sp time for the result, images & summary.

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SOCCER - SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA 2010 - 2011 | MONDAY ROUND 5 RESULT

SPANISH FOOTBALL celebrated tonight its last match of Round 5 with the Spanish League - La Liga - clash between MALAGA - VILLAREAL.

Like the saying goes, they left the best until last with a 2-3 victory to Villareal that saw 90 mins of emotional & action packed excitment. The first 35 min of the match gave us all the goals, all 5 in a crazy game.

Malaga scored first early via ELISEU in the 4th min & gradually Villareal woke up in a fierce manner that saw them equalize via CAZORLA in the 21st min. Then ROSSI (above) scored Villareal second goal two minutes later & CAZORLA scored his second & the teams third in the 31st min. However, things were moving so fast that Malaga had equalized in the 29th min via RONDÓN just before Cazorla scored the winner.

The second half was as hectic as the first 45 mins with chances going to both sides, but the visitors managed to hold on , win & take the 3 points.

A great & entertaining match! Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SOCCER - SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA 2010 - 2011 | SUNDAY ROUND 5 RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL action with Round 5 of the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - with 6 matches down for this Sunday.

MALLORCA are making their home ground a difficult place to visit with todays 2-0 victory over REAL SOCIEDAD. Argentine CAVENAGHI scored both goals in the 5th min & later in the 62nd min to give his team the 3ºpoints.

RCD ESPANYOL did the job on OSASUNA winning 1-0 thanks to the goal scored by VAZQUEZ in the 24th min. This puts Osasuna Coach Camacho in a difficult situation as he is losing the patience of the fans & Club Directives. Osasuna will need to win soon if they are to avoid inhouse turmoil.

Totally different situation at ALMERIA with Coach Lillo given an ultimatum to win today or else. His team didn´t fail him win a 0-2 victory over DEPORTIVO away. The Almeria forward UCHE scored both goals in the 4th min & 18th min. Coach Lillo has another week to continue winning back the confidence of the fans & the Club.

RACING DE SANTANDER are also going through tough times with another loss today to visitors GETAFE 0 -1. A hard fought match with chances that was taken by VICTOR SANCHEZ (above) who scored the winner for Getafe early in the 16th min. From here the visitors worked hard to keep away the home side from scoring.

Speaking of turmoil & dark future, SEVILLA FC Coach Alvarez has virtually been sentenced after his team lost 2-0 to HERCULES. Frenchman TREZEGUET scored twice in the 21st min with a penalty & again in the 38th min to give Hercules the victory & put another "nail in the coffin" of Sevilla Coach Alvarez. Bad moments at Sevilla & news will not be good in coming hours or days.

ATLETICO DE MADRID managed to win 1-0 REAL ZARAGOZA in a game that complicated itself for them, & on top of this they lost Antonio Reyes to a red card leaving the team with 10 men the last half hour. The winning & only goal came after a brilliant play from Atletico defender Felipe Luis who found DIEGO COSTA who tapped in the goal in the 20th min.

From here onwards, for some unknown reason, it looked liked Atletico was actually losing & the team had a "terrible" 2ºhalf that - apart from the Reyes red card - saw defender Godin get a heavy knock that we hope is just only a scare.

A costly victory that illustrates weak points in the Atletico team that need to be solved.

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SOCCER - SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA 2010 - 2011 | SATURDAY ROUND 5 RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL celebrated three games tonight of the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - as part of Round 5.

The above picture tells the story. Newly promoted LEVANTE managed to keep out REAL MADRID without scoring & gain a valuable 0-0 draw. It was perhaps the worst performance from Real Madrid this season with no clear game plan, lack of creative ideas & more individual performances than a real team effort. Yes, Levante played ultra-defensive but the Real Madrid stars did not shine tonight, & when Di Maria at least attempted to do things right, he was substituted.

Disappointing for Real Madrid fans as the play tonight was shocking & worrying looking into the future.

VALENCIA CF retakes the Spanish League ladder top spot after wrapping things up early with two goals via Turkish signing M.TOPAL with a header in the 6th min & SOLDADO (above) in the 9th min. The visitors "killed off" REAL SPORTING DE GIJON in the 1ºst half & then controlled & dominated the 2ºhalf to assure the 3ºpoints. Final result 0 - 2

ATHLETIC DE BILBAO lost 1-3 under the rain against FC BARCELONA who pulled away in the 2ºhalf of the match. The Bilbao stadium with its home team is always a difficult affair & things were equal until Bilbao defender Amorebeita received a red card for a dangerous tackle on Iniesta.

With 10 men Bilbao was at a sever disadvantage as Barça dominated proceedings. The goals finally came in the 59th min with a great goal by KEITA & later a second via XAVI in the 73rd min. Then in a "stupid" tussle David Villa was sent off in the 86th min after mixing it up with a Bilbao defender. This equaled the numbers & Bilbao counter-attacked to score their only goal in the 89th min with GABILONDO. However, Barça meidfielder BUSQUETS shut the door of any hopes of a draw when he scored Barça´s third in the 92nd min. Tweet

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REAL MADRID FC BARCELONA | THE SPINAL COLUMN

Interesting article on Spanish Football magazine (online version) "Don Balon" comparing FC Barcelona & Real Madrid. The feature observes, compares & illustrates what Football Coaches call technically the "Spinal Column" of the team. That is Goalkeeper, Defender, Midfielder & Striker; the 4 important pieces of the team to which everything else is built around & the 4 "discs" that sustain the whole side.

For FC Barcelona the 4 main players that make up their "spinal column" are Valdes, Pique, Xavi & David Villa. While Real Madrid has Casillas, Pepe, Xabi & Higuain as the 4 main "discs" of their "column". Other teams also have their 4 players, for example At. Madrid De Gea, Dominguez, Raul Garcia & Diego Forlan.

Next time your watching your team figure out who are the 4 main players that sustain & "hold up" your team.
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REAL MADRID BASKETBALL TEAM 2010 - 2011 | SERGIO RODRIGUEZ

I don’t accustom myself to place ads on this blog, however once & a while…Sergio Rodriguez is the new signing for the REAL MADRID Basketball Team & has come straight from the USA NBA competition. Real Madrid has used Sergio as the TV ad image to boost Club members & introduce Real to the new 2010 – 2011 Spanish Basketball season.

I think it’s a nice ad that speaks of Sergio life changing by coming back to Spain, to the city of Madrid, to Real & to the new stadium that Real Madrid will play as the home side, plus great music.

Unfortunately Real Madrid was "ass-kicked" by FC Barcelona 89 - 55 in Friday nights Spanish SuperCup eliminations. Bad timing for this good ad :O) Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | CRACKOVIA - REAL MADRID HUMOUR

There is a hilarious daily TV programme called “Crackovia” on Catalan TV which does Football (Sports) sketches of FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, At Madrid & any other Spanish Football related issue of the week or day.

Found this on “Youtube” which takes the piss out of Mourinho, Ronaldo & Ozil. The sketch recreates in a humorous fashion the dressing moment straight after the Real Sociedad game. I remember you that in this match, Mourinho congratulated the referee straight after the match & Ronaldo scored a goal which came off the back of Pepe & thus did not break his dry goal spell. The forward was still "anxious".

It is in Spanish /Catalan & unfortunately translation is not available, but I think the visual is enough & you can pick things up easily. It’s a right laugh.

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MANCHESTER UNITED EYES ATLETICO DE MADRID GOALKEEPER DAVID DE GEA

It’s not the first time that this story has appeared in the Sporting papers. To add wood to the fire, yesterday MANCHESTER UNITED Manager Sir Alex Ferguson was in the crowd to watch the Valencia – At Madrid “Liga” Round 4 clash. One could think that the Scotsman was there to “spy” on Valencia, but what he saw was another brilliant performance from DAVID DE GEA the 19 year old ATLETICO DE MADRID goalkeeper.

The Spanish U 21 International goalie has caught the eye of Manchester United to replace Van Der Sar who is coming to the end of his career. Rumours have it that the English Club is preparing a + 15M€ offer to get De Gea over to Manchester. Who knows if it is true or if the price is too low, we will have to wait & see.

What I can guarantee is that we are all witnessing the beginning of an extraordinary career, Football player & Goalkeeper who is already spoken of to replace Iker Casillas when the time arrives. Stay tuned for news, we may be seeing a big offer next summer. Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SPANISH LEAGUE _ LA LIGA 2010 2011 | ROUND 4 WEDNESDAY NIGHT GAMES RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL continued with 4 games tonight of Round 4 as parte of the mid-week SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - schedule.

REAL SPORTING DE GIJON visited a FC BARCELONA team without Lionel Messi but the home side won 1- 0 with a goal from the ex-Sporting star DAVID VILLA now player of Barça. The Spanish International finally scored in the 49th min after Barça dominated with the ball most of the game until that moment. The 2º half goal woke up Sporting who gave some work to the home team who did a great job to keep out the enthusiastic visitors & take the 3 points.

VALENCIA CF played a 1-1 draw with ATLETICO DE MADRID with the 1ºst half going to the visitors with a goal from SIMAO in the 19th min, & the 2ºhalf was all Valencia CF with the equalizer coming from ADURIZ with a header in the 83rd min.

However, two points:
1. Diego Forlan missed two sitters that could have swang things Atletico de Madrid´s way
&
2. Atletico de Madrid 19 year old goalkeeper DAVID DE GEA once again saved his team with three outstanding stops that have "goal" written on the ball. The youngster is making a name for himself as goalie; the next big star that has half of Europe looking at him.

Conclusion, a just result!

REAL ZARAGOZA deserved more than the 0-0 draw against HERCULES. The home team is having a nightmare start to the new season. While Hercules aren´t able to find the form that gave them victory over FC Barcelona in Round 1.

The opposite happened with ALMERIA ( above a frustrated Piatti) who tried everything, dominated the match but failed to score. In fact LEVANTE won 0-1 thanks to a superb "blinder" from SERGIO in the 38th min. Here was the difference, the visitors only needed one chance to score, while Almeria had many chances & failed. That´s Football!
____________________
Round 4 continues tomorrow with another 3 ( & last ) games.

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REAL MADRID TEAM PHOTO SEASON 2010 - 2011 | THE VIDEO

Thanks to “Youtube” channel “LoveSergio4”, who uploaded the video I have put up here in this particular post. It is today’s VIDEO of the REAL MADRID official 2010-2011 season Team Photo session. You will notice that everyone smarted up for the occasion, even Marcelo who shaved!

Hope this gives the many Real Madrid readers a buzz…

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SPANISH LEAGUE _ LA LIGA 2010 2011 | ROUND 4 TUESDAY NIGHT GAMES RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL has mid week Round 4 action with the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - spread over three days with tonight giving us three top games to enjoy.

REAL MADRID defeated ESPANYOL 3-0 with most of the exciting action coming in the 2ºhalf. The first 45 mins were relatively boring except for the penalty given to Real Madrid when a Ronaldo free-kick was hand-balled. It was CRISTIANO RONALDO who scored the penalty in the 28th min & finally got a goal under his name in this seasons Liga, as last weeks goal was eventually given to Pepe.

The 2ºhalf saw Real Madrid defender Pepe leave his team with 10 men after a Red Card ( 2xyellow) in the 59th min & then 3 mins later a Red Card to Espanyol player Golan after a dangerous tackle on Ronaldo. This gave life to the a sleepy game as it created spaces & the ball moved around better to which Real Madrid created chances. Espanyol Goalkeeper Kameni stopped Ronaldo three times but HIGUAIN finally scored in the 78th min from a brilliant Ronaldo pass. The third goal came from BENZEMA who came on from a Lass Diarra pass were the French did his "tricks" in the square to score. Espanyol then lost Forlin to a Red Card (2xyellow) & it was all save home for Real Madrid from then on.

OSASUNA finally managed a good performance coming from behind after a REAL SOCIEDAD goal via RAUL TAMUDO in the 15th min, to then score three goals & take the match 3-1. The goals for Osasuna came from PANDIANI (37th min) , CAMUÑAS ( 42nd min) & ARANDA (74th min).This victory gives some breathing space to Osasuna Coach Camacho who was being questioned.

Mighty performance at home by ATHLETIC DE BILBAO who won 3-0 MALLORCA. The "Lions" dominated events with the first goal coming in the 44th min with DAVID LOPEZ. Later SAN JOSE in the 62nd & IÑIGO PEREZ in the 92nd min joined the party to give the local fans a grand night out of Football.
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SPANISH LEAGUE Round 4 Football continues tomorrow night! Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | UJFALUSI TACKLE ANKLE INJURY ON MESSI | AT MADRID FC BARCELONA

The front cover of Spanish Sports daily "Marca" says it all with the title "CHILLING". The tackle from Atletico de Madrid player UJFALUSI on FC Barcelona forward LIONEL MESSI could have cracked the ankle of the player. The Czech player was obviously sent off with a Red Card & later apologized to Messi, but the debate is out on the street that this type of play needs to be seriously punished.

The debate has been going on since Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo also received his share of tackles aimed at his ankle. The respective Coaches, Mourinho & Guardiola, have been solicitating that the star players be protected more from the deliberate exercise of "wiping them out".

Although it is hard to believe that players deliberately go out onto the field to do damage to other players, the above image of the tackle is frightening. The above picture shows how Messi ´s ankle immediately swells & was taken off. The Barça player will undergo exploratory analysis today, but it is speculated that Messi will be out for about 3 weeks. Good news if you consider that he could have been out for the rest of the season.

The media is pressuring that Ujfalusi be given an exemplary sanction. Stay tuned!

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SOCCER - SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA 2010 - 2011 | SUNDAY ROUND 3 RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL continued with the Sunday Round 3 matches scheduled as part of the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - competition. A total of 5 games with the last game of the Round down for tomorrow night with Deportivo - Getafe up for their clash.

ATLETICO DE MADRID , with Sergio Aguero in the starting 11, in the big match against FC BARCELONA lost 1-2 in a game that could have gone Barça´s way 1 - 5 have it not been for Atletico de Madrid 19 year old goalie DAVID DE GEA who stopped some amazing opportunities. In fact, the Atletico Goalkeeper was the "Man of The Match" which indicates that the visitors kept the player busy, especially in the 2ºhalf.

Atletico played its habitual counter-attacking Football & had chances throughout the game, but important players like Aguero (substituted early in the 2ºhalf with the knee still a problem) & Diego Forlan were not effective today & that lack of "fire-power" was missed up front. Barcelona caused danger all game & created multiple chances with only 2 goals because Atletico had an inspired De Gea.

The goals for Barça came via LEO MESSI in the 12th min & PIQUE in the 32nd, with the only home team goal coming via RAUL GARCIA with a header from a corner in the 25th min that equalized.

Lastly, Atletico defender Ujfalusi received a Red Card in the finals moments of the game for a foul on Messi that has switched the alarms at Barça when the Argentine was taken off with a swollen ankle. The star Barça player could be out of action weeks!

RACING DE SANTANDER won a struggling REAL ZARAGOZA with a 2-0 result. Both goals came in the 2º half when HENRIQUE scored in the 79th min & NAHUELPAN in the 90th min.

LEVANTE lost 1-2 to VILLAREAL who had an inspired NILMAR who scored his teams two goals both in the 15th min & the 42nd min. Levente fought all game to get close & was rewarded with a consolation goal via CAICEDO in the 90th min.

VALENCIA CF won a sticky & fighty HERCULES 1 - 2 away. JUAN MATA shocked early with a 1st min goal from a Hernandez assist that rocked the home team. Then Mata returned the assist to PABLO HERNANDEZ who scored the teams second in the 22nd min. Hercules then received a penalty in the 42nd min that TREZEGUET convert to give hope to the local side, but Valencia kept at bay Levante who had many chances to equalized but failed to materialize. Valencia CF are new leaders of the Spanish League

SEVILLA FC Coach Alvarez was under pressure with his job on the line tonight, but his team managed to shake off MALAGA to win 1 - 2. In fact Sevilla FC could have won by a bigger margen but Negredo hit the post in the 2ºhalf & the Sevilla FC missed chances.

The first goal was scored by RONDAN for Malaga, but ALFARO soon equalized in the 19th min. At the start of the 2º half Sevilla FC defender CACERES headed the second & finally the winner for the visitors. A deserved win for Sevilla FC. Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | SOCCER - SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA 2010 - 2011 | SATURDAY ROUND 3 RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL celebrated four games tonight of the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA - with Round 3 action.

REAL MADRID defeated REAL SOCIEDAD 1-2 in an intense & suffered match that was settled in Madrid´s favour by two individual plays. DI MARIA scored his first Liga goal in brilliant fashion in the 51st min & RONALDO scored a free-kick winner in the 74th min. The goal for Real Sociedad came via TAMUDO from a set play.

MALLORCA defeated OSASUNA 2-0 with goals from CASTRO in the 24th min & DE GUZMAN in the 93rd min.

ESPANYOL won 1-0 ALMERIA with the only goal coming from CALLEJON in the 47th min.

REAL SPORTING DE GIJON drew 2-2 with ATHLETIC DE BILBAO with the former making a comeback. Goals for Sporting came via DE LA CUEVAS & SANGOY & for Bilbao GURPEGUI & LLORENTE.

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FIFA WORLD RANKING | SEPT 2010 | SPAIN Nº1

FIFA has released the September 2010 Football Nations World Ranking with the SPANISH NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM repeating the Nº1 spot. The defeat of Spain against Argentina earlier in the month at Buenos Aires has taken points away from Spain, 1883 to 1824 pts, but there is still has a sufficient lead over second placed Holland. The notable changes are Slovakia & Norway with big gains in the ranking table…

Here is the Top 20 FIFA Ranking table:

.1. Spain 1824 pts
.2. Holland 1663
.3. Germany 1490
.4. Brazil 1480
.5. Argentina 1351
.6. England 1191
.7. Uruguay 1182
.8. Portugal 1049
.9. Eygpt 1034
10. Chile 1004
11. Croatia 998
12. Greece 973
13. Italy 965
14. Norway 958
15. Serbia 945
16. Slovakia 919
17. Paraguay 904
18. USA 899
19. Slovenia 897
20. Ghana 889 Tweet

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 | GROUP G RESULT | REAL MADRID 2 AJAX OF AMSTERDAM 0

REAL MADRID defeated AJAX OF AMSTERDAM 2 -0 in the first Group G match of the 2010 - 2011 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE competition. A scoreline that leaves a bitter taste in the fans mouth as it could have easyly been 6-0 or even more. The Dutch team are less effective without their Uruguayan forward Suarez but were very "weak" tonight except for a couple of chances that gave the home team a scare or two.

But it was all Real Madrid tonight who had an amazing 35 shots at goal & only managed to score two goals. Obviously the Ajax goalkeeper had something to say here, but Cristiano Ronaldo missed 8 to 10 chances that ended frustrating the player who must have thought he was cursed tonight. Said this Ronaldo must learn to be more patient & contribute more for the team as he cannot do it all himself, something that ends up causing the poor man to lament & lift his anxiety levels. But he wasn´t the only one, GONZALO HIGUAIN scored twice - the first off a Dutch defender from a corner in the 30th min & the second in the 73rd min - but he also missed half a dozen occasions that were very clear. The "goal missing virus" spread as Di Maria - very good performance tonight - also missed along with Ozil numerous chances.

However, it was OZIL who was magnificent tonight. This player - if he continues progressing - is star bound as his vision of play & quick thinking reactions makes the team play fluently & creates many goal scoring chances for his team-mates. It was he who gave the second goal to Higuain, & he was substituted late in the 2ºhalf to receive a roaring applause from the Real crowd who gave him a standing ovation.

More special mentions need to be made tonight especially for Khedira who was solid along with Xavi Alonso who was majestic in his defending & attacking play; both were excellent. Brazilian Marcelo also tantalized in the 1ºst half & the Real Madrid defence was solid, firm & vibrated confidence. Lastly, Casillas did very little except a miracle one handed reflex save mid 2ºhalf that stopped a certain goal from the Dutch.

In conclusion, a much better performance from Real Madrid who seem to be progressing. The objective tonight was to win & start Champions League well. However, the big guns are missing terribly upfront & Cristiano Ronaldo is going through a nightmare period were nothing will go into the back off the net. This is frustrating mentally Ronaldo, & we all hope he scores soon for the good of his mental health, & the team who suffers in their game because of it.

Good vibes overall, pity there wasn't more goals. Tweet

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OFFICIAL ATLETICO DE MADRID SEASON 2010 - 2011 TEAM PHOTO | VIDEO

This one goes out to all the ATLETICO DE MADRID fans. A video of the season 2010 - 2011 team photo season courtesy of the Club



Aupa Atleti! Tweet

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FC BARCELONA 2010 | LEO MESSI BECOMES CLUBS TOP EUROPEAN GOAL SCORER

Here is a curious piece of information for the FC BARCELONA fan & the Football _ Soccer lover in general. Argentine International & Barça forward LEO MESSI has become the Top Goal Scorer in the History of FC BARCELONA for the Champions League competition. His two goals yesterday against Greek Club Panathianiakos took him pass Brazilian Rivaldo to take his goal tally to 27 goals.

List of Top Goal scorers in Champions League for FC Barcelona:

1. Messi 27
2. Rivaldo 25
3. Kluivert 21
4. Luis Enrique 20
5. Eto'o 18
Leo Messi will go far beyond his current goal mark as the player has only 23 years of age. Here is a VIDEO of yesterdays 2º goal for Messi - a work of art.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2010 -2011 GROUP C D RESULTS | BURSASPOR 0 VALENCIA CF 4 | FC BARCELONA 5 - PANATHINAIKOS 1 | VIDEO TINO COSTA GOAL

SPANISH FOOTBALL got off to a great start in the 2010 - 2011 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Group qualifiers with its two representatives tonight winning their respective games & in magnificent fashion with plenty of goals.

VALENCIA CF travelled to Turkey for its Group C opener against Turkish Champs BURSASPOR & won 0 -4. Valencia started in spectacular fashion with his "cracker" from TINO COSTA who scored in the 15th min. Watch the VIDEO of the Tino Costa goal, pure magic:

From here, with some minor local resistence, Valencia lifted the gears & scored its second in the 40th min via ADURIZ with a header, another came in the 68th min thanks to PABLO HERNANDEZ & ROBERTO SOLDADO scored the fourth in the 76th min. Solid match by Valencia CF!

The other Spanish representative FC BARCELONA hosted Greeks PANATHINAIKOS in the Group D opener with a crushing 5-1 victory result to Barça. The Spanish Champions did not take any risks & put on the full team from the start with all its 8 Spanish World Champions along with LEO MESSI who was the "man of the match". The result could have been higher had Messi not missed a penalty in the 55th min & Pedro a sitter later on.

The Greeks managed to score first in the 19th min via GOVOU, but that served to wake the "Barça Beast" as the Football Touch Machine went into gear. The damage was all done the following 25 mins with Barça equalizing in the 21st min via MESSI.

DAVID VILLA got into the act with his first Champions League goal with Barça & the teams second in the 32nd min. Then soon after LEO MESSI scored a brilliant goal in the 44th min to have Barça 1- 3 up by half time.

The goals in the second half continued with PEDRO scoring the teams fourth after Messi practically did the business again in the 78th & Messi again helped with Barça´s fifth in the 93rd min when DANI ALVES scored.

Great performance by FC Barcelona who could have scored more, but didn´t due to a certain relaxation in their attitude, which the Greeks would have appreciated.

Tomorrow REAL MADRID plays AJAX OF AMSTERDAM in their Group match qualifier.

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