FERNANDO TORRES 58M€ TRANSFER TO CHELSEA FC A RECORD FOR A SPANISH PLAYER - RECORD BETWEEN ENGLISH CLUBS

According to the LIVERPOOL FC Web news the English Club has agreed to the CHELSEA FC transfer price & offer of 58M€ for Spanish International Football player FERNANDO TORRES. This makes Fernando Torres the highest ever transfered player in monetary terms in the history for a Spanish born Football player & between two English Clubs. Overall, Fernando Torres is now the 6th highest ever transfer in Football History:

1. Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd - Real Madrid) = 94M€
2. Zinedine Zidane (Juventus - Real Madrid ) = 73M€
3. Zlatan Ibrahimovic ( Inter M - FC Barcelona ) = 66M€
4. Kaka (AC Milan - Real Madrid) = 65M€
5. Luis Figo (FC Barcelona - Real Madrid) = 60M€
6. Fernando Torres (Liverpool - Chelsea ) = 58 M€


Fernando Torres is currently undergoing the obligatory medical exams which he should pass & receive the OK before signing with "the Blues" in coming hours.

Liverpool has used 40M€ from their soon to recieve 58M€ from Chelsea FC to sign Newcastle forward Andrew Carroll & thus join their other new signing Luis Suarez to form their "new look" future attacking line-up.

Fernando Torres

The Liverpool fans have not taken too well the news of the Fernando Torres transfer & have gone out to the streets to burn the Number Nine shirt of the player. An act that is more emotional than anything else because Torres was a real idiol for many Liverpool FC fans & for the young lads. The Spaniard scored 72 goals during his 150 matches with "the Reds" & one would expect that when the emotions subside that some "common sense" will prevail. The replacements for Torres - Suarez & Carroll - are top class.

Liverpool fans burn Torres shirts

Some may ask if Torres is worth 58M€? Was Cristiano Ronaldo worth 94M€? Think about the external marketing - merchandising - TV rights...etc. Fernando Torres is a "semi-God" for fans in China, Japan, Indonesia, Sth Korea, Thailand, USA, Australia.... big markets to open up for Chelsea FC. I think they will get back their investment in a few years.

To finish off, no doubt more news & details of the Fernando Torres operation will be coming out in the next hours from all sorts of web sources that will keep you updated if you desire to learn more about the move. Tweet

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REAL MADRID | MOURINHO - VALDANO - DARK HUMOUR

Football is unpredictable, so much so that one has to be very careful on what they say & how they act because the future & the results are totally unknown. With this Soccer philosophical note Barcelona paper "Sport" via its cartoon section "Futbolitis" has captured well the REAL MADRID situation after losing yesterday in La Liga & falling behind 7 points in the Spanish  League in reference to FC Barcelona.

The "Special One", Real Madrid Coach Jose Mourinho has entered the Real Madrid "glass store" as a raging Bull - no punt intended - & smashed - ruffed up many persons including Club Director General Jorge Valdano who has withdrawn to the wings to "strategically" observe.

There is a saying that "Revenge is better served on a cold plate" & if the results & titles do not come José Mourinho will evolve from "The Special One" to "The Ordinary One" & there is a long line of persons waiting to see that transformation & with a cold plate in their hand.


Here the "Sport" comic sum things; allow me to translate:

Valdano to Mourinho ..."You now have your Nº9 & now a 7 (7 points behind Barça). Do you want more?"

Futbolitis - Sport.es

Spanish Cup 2º leg semi final this Wednesday against Sevilla FC . Real Madrid have a 0 - 1 advantage, a knock out result here will ... lets wait & see the result. Tweet

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SPANISH LEAGUE - LIGA RESULTS | 2010 - 2011 | SHOCK AS REAL MADRID LOSE

Big SPANISH FOOTBALL surprises in today's three Round 21 Spanish League - La Liga scheduled games. Both Madrid teams lost & Real Madrid now follows behind Spanish League Table leaders FC Barcelona by 7 points. Here is a summary of events, results & the scorers.

Toquero scores for At. Bilbao

ATLETICO DE MADRID has entered into a free fall downward turn after today's 0 - 2 defeat to ATHLETIC DE BILBAO. The match ended with a severe fan back-lash as the team showed a poor image even though one can easily argue that Atletico was badly done by a very controversial referee decision.

The turning point of the whole game came in the 38th min when Atletico defender PEREA was given a direct red card due to an "apparent tackle" on Bilbao forward Fernando Llorente in the penalty area. The replay showed that there was no foul on Fernando Llorente & that Perea was unfairly given a red card which left Atletico with only 10 men for the rest of the match. Justice was handed by the "Football Gods" when Llorente missed the penalty , however by then the damage to Atletico was already done as the team collapsed mentally & nerves set in.

Atletico de Madrid missed their chances & Diego Forlan is passing a dry spell that makes one wonder if its natural or artifical. Atletico de Bilbao took full advantage of the man advantage & the Atletico chaos & scored twice via TOQUERO in the 46th min & in the 64th min to drive the final nail into the Atletico coffin.

Nerves must have set into Atletico Coach Quique Sanchez Flores as well as some of the field placements left many bewildered & also opened up the rumour mill that his days at the Club may be counted.

Big earthquake today at Atletico that will have after tremours all next week. 

Osasuna defeated Real Madrid 1 - 0

Another earthquake at OSASUNA with their hard fought victory over REAL MADRID 1 - 0. This loss by Real Madrid opens up a 7 point gap between themselves in second place & FC Barcelona who currently lead the Spanish League classification table. 

There was a strange "vibe" in the air before the match that something was about to occur when the Real Madrid starting 11 did not have Marcelo (flu) & Xabi Alonso ( fever). The Madrid team was without course & a without a player like Xabi to steer things as they looked very keen but without steady midfield guidance. This, the fierce defensive & aggressive attitude from Osasuna shook the visitors & frustrated them all the game. Suffice to say the following just to give you an idea of how things were on the field overall & for Real Madrid : 11 yellow cards & Carvalho perhaps the best player for Real Madrid.

Real Madrid had their chances but Osasuna defended like their lives depended on it. The home team played counter-attacking Football that finally paid dividends in the 62nd min when CAMUÑAS scored for Osasuna from an Aranda flick.


Real Coach Mourinho reacted with three changes : Adebayor, Kaka & the fever striken Xabi Alonso all of which bettered the image but were not able to get through the Osasuna defence. In the end the nerves, the frustrations & the need to rush things only made things worst for Real Madrid & they were defeated.

Great win for Osasuna who deserve it & should be congratulated. Big loss for Real Madrid who can practically say "good-bye" to the Spanish League Title for this season. Nothing is impossible, but the way Barça is playing, it looks difficult that the latter will lose 2 games & Real win all their remaining games until the end of the season.

Villareal scores the only goal via Rossi

ESPANYOL went down 0 - 1 to VILLAREAL in a fabulous game of Football with two side very equal & at the very top of the Spanish League classification table. The "breaker" was the solitary goal by that man again ROSSI for Villareal in the 44th min.

Tomorrow - Round 21 - Spanish Soccer Monday Night match: Racing - Valencia CF Tweet

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SPAIN BRONZE MEDAL HANDBALL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Proud day for SPANISH SPORT & SPANISH HANDBALL with SPAIN winning the home team Sweden 23 - 24 in the Handball World Championships 3rd place game to take the Bronze Medal.

Spain have had a wonderful tournament only being defeated by the mighty Danish team by 4 points in their semi - final clash. An excellent match with an extraordinary defensive effort that kept out Sweden & allowed the Spanish victory. Congratulations guys, everyone here is very proud.

Spanish Handball Team celebrate third place
in World Handball Championships

Match details:

23 - SWEDEN:
Sjostrand; Ekberg (1), Carlen (4), Karlsson (1), Jernemyr (-), Kallman (6) y Doder (2) -intial line-up- Andersson (ps), Gustafsson (-), Lennartsson (-), Arrhenius (-), Larholm (5), Jakobsson (1), Larsson (), Petersen (-) & Ekdahl du Rietz (3)
24 - SPAIN:
Sterbik; Rocas (-), Maqueda (1), Raúl Entrerríos (2), Cañellas (2), Ugalde (1) y Aguinagalde (4) -intial line-up- Hombrados (ps), Roberto García (2), Gurbindo (4), Chema Rodríguez (-), Alberto Entrerríos (3), Romero (4, 1p), Morros (-), Juanín García (1p) & Garabaya (-) Tweet

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CRISTIANO RONALDO ON RECORD BREAKING NUMBERS COURSE AT REAL MADRID

REAL MADRID player CRISTIANO RONALDO will play his 50th game with the Club in the Spanish League tonight against Osasuna. Apart from the congratulations the Portuguese is racing onwards towards record breaking numbers. Cristiano Ronaldo has 49 goals from 49 games ( some sources put 48 goals because a goal that hit Pepe on the back is doubtful) that calculates into a 100% average that not even legends like Di Stefano, Puskas, Pahiño, Hugo Sanchez, Ronaldo, nor Van Nistelrooy have managed with 50 games. 

Cristiano Ronaldo with Real Madrid : Ap

The player is currently the leading goal scorer of the Spanish League with 22 goals & with just 21 Rounds of La Liga being celebrated. His objective is to break the Spanish Football goal scoring Record of 38 goals in one season currently held by Spanish Soccer legend Zarra & ex Real Madrid number nine Hugo Sanchez.

If we were to include ALL COMPETITIONS ( Champions, Spanish Cup...), Cristiano Ronaldo has played 66 games & scored 66 goals, that is , an incredible percentage of 100!.

Will he score tonight against Osasuna? The statistics favour the player.  Tweet

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SPANISH LEAGUE - LIGA | 2010 - 2011 | ROUND 21 SATURDAY MATCH RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL celebrated six matches today of the SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA as part of Round 21 that has given the following results & scorers.

Sporting Gijon player Novo (right) scores

REAL SPORTING DE GIJON notched up its third straight victory with a 0 -  4 result over REAL MALLORCA who are going through a difficult moment. The home side was furious with some referee decisions but clearly they were well beaten tonight by Sporting. The scorers for the visitors were DIEGO CASTRO in the 3rd min, own goal by Mallorca defender KEVIN in the 60th min, ANDRE CASTRO in the 63rd min & NACHO NOVO in the 86th min.

Caciedo scores for Levante

LEVANTE won 2 - 0 GETAFE & the latter must be wondering what is going wrong. The home team isn´t exactly going well & the three points really helps them in their attempts to stay out of relegation danger, as difficult that may be for the Club. The scorers were VALDO in the 47th min & CAICEDO in the 54th min.

Alarm bells at Getafe.

Ansotiega for Real Sociedad

REAL SOCIEDAD took advantage of a low spirited ALMERIA who lost in the Spanish Cup semi against Barça 0 - 5 to win tonight with a good 2 - 0 result. The action really happened in the middle part of the match for the home team when ANSOTIEGA scored in the 45th min followed by RAUL TAMUDO in the 79th min. 

Malaga FC - Real Zaragoza

MALAGA lost again 1 - 2 to REAL ZARAGOZA which lifts eyebrows as Malaga has really invested considerably in the "Winter Transfer Market" to get new players & the results are not accompanying the team at all. It was Malaga that scored first via DUDA in the 15th min but the period of grace ended as the game went onwards. BERTOLO equalized for Zaragoza in the 39th min & SINAMA got the winner in the 86th min. 

FC Barcelona player Pedro scores against Hercules

HERCULES FC finally succumb to FC BARCELONA to lose 0 - 3 & dissipate any idea of repeating a victory over Barça as occurred last time they played. The home team sure gave it a good try & had Barça wondering & doubting about their Football. Barça player BUSQUETS played a great match & held out the enthusiastic Hercules attack specially in the early stages of the match. However, even when playing "badly"  FC Barcelona can turn things around at a flick of an eye & inform youngster PEDRO again scored from a Xavi pass in the 43rd min.


The 2º half saw Barça turn the balance to their favour as the Hercules effort caused them tiredness & opened up spaces. LIONEL MESSI then came into his own & scored in the 86th min & in the 89th min to put things into their "natural place".


Barça keeps winning & transfers the pressure onto Real Madrid who play tomorrow.

Deportivo Lassad scored twice

DEPORTIVO A CORUÑA was living with some "bad vibes" as Coach Lotina publicly criticised this week his players for lack of commitment which inflamed the dressing room. Apart from upsetting players it must have motivated them as they nearly won & drew 3 - 3 with SEVILLA FC in a nail-biter with comeback efforts from both sides included.

Deportivo was surprisingly in control from the first minute & LASSAD scored a blinder in the 15th min. The Deportivo control & dominance continued & Sevilla went down to 10 men in the 56th min when goalie Palop handled the ball outside of his area. Deportivo took advantage immediately & LASSAD scored his teams second in the 62nd min. But it all radically changed...

With only 10 men Sevilla FC commenced a fabulous comeback that started with a goal by NEGREDO in the 63rd min, followed by a second from ESCUDE in the 74th min & the third via NEGREDO in the 79th min with a great goal.

Negredo scores for Sevilla FC

But Deportivo were not dead yet, & in the 88th min LAURE scored the equalizer for Deportivo that brought immediate protests from Sevilla claiming off-side. The goal stood & the result finished in a draw. Deportivo would be upset to have allowed Sevilla back in the game with 10 men & vice-versa for Sevilla as they lose 3 valuable points that takes them away further from  Euro places.  Tweet

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REAL MADRID | LOAN - TRANSFER - SIGNING RUMOURS

Woke up this morning & found some interesting news & specualtion concerning possible loans, transfers & signings coming out of Spanish Sports daily "AS" in reference to REAL MADRID CF. The "Winter Transfer Market" ends the 31st of January & Clubs are making their last minute moves & deals.

Apart from this, the mentioned Sports daily speculates on the future set up of the Real Madrid squad for season 2011 - 2012 which is interesting & will be better explained in point form below.

Chess: A game of strategy.

At REAL MADRID Coach José Mourinho seems to have won his personal "arm fight" with Club Director General Jorge Valdano & has greater influence & power in the Football - Sporting area. Thus his decisions will be important & decisive. With this in mind here are all the "juicy" speculations being written on the future of the Spanish Football Club:

1. CHELSEA FC has asked for the LOAN ( with an option of a buy ) of Real Madrid midfielder PEDRO LEON & the solicitation comes specifically from Carlo Ancelotti. It is expected that Real Madrid will give the English Club an answer during the course of the day. Lastly, staying with loans Greek Club AEK ATHENS has solicitated the loan of young promise & defender MATEOS


2. Cocah Mourinho has already planned to take up the option of the 17.5M€ buy of newly loaned player EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR. Barring unplanned circumstances ( Mourinho leaves, Adebayor drastically fails in coming months etc), the striker is here to stay & wil be the Clubs Number Nine. 


3. KARIM BENZEMA will be sold at the end of the season & thus raise money for a BIG "star" signing.

4. Atletico de Madrid Argentine forward SERGIO AGUERO will be that star & Real will pay his 45M€ contract release clause.


5. With Adebayor & Aguero at the Club , Real Madrid will not - obviously - sign Athletic de Bilbao forward FERNANDO LLORENTE

All these points have been published by the Spanish Football paper & at this point are PURE SPECULATION. Hundreds of unforseen variables may occur from here to the 30th of June that could throw all of the above into the rubbish bin. I insist,  this is one local media source looking into the future solely based on "insider" information that could be credible or could be just plain bullshit.

Therefore, stay tuned for further moves as this "CHESS GAME" continues in coming months.   Tweet

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DIEGO FORLAN CLAIMS REAL MADRID MADE AN OFFER | I DON´T BELIEVE IT

ATLETICO DE MADRID Uruguayan forward DIEGO FORLAN has said to Spanish media today that REAL MADRID contacted his Club early in the week - concretely Director General ( in fact the real owner of Atletico de Madrid) Angel Gil Marin - to make an offer & attempt to sign the player. Forlan added that Atletico refused the offer & said that he was not for sale.  


BULLSHIT . This is my personal statement & the rest that follows is solely my personal opinion.

Diego Forlan

As mentioned here on Spanish Football Sports Blog , as a footnote & a last minute news flash in a post that highlighted that Real Madrid was about to sign Manchester City forward Abebayor, it was DIEGO FORLAN who offered himself to REAL MADRID & not how he has expressed today. The news flash came out of Spanish TV channel "Intereconomia" via its late night Football show were journalists claim that sources very close to the player & inside Real Madrid confirm that Forlan offered himself unilaterally.

However, lets go a few steps back to see how credibility is very short at Atletico de Madrid. Club Director Angel Gil claimed that Real Madrid made a 45M€ offer for SERGIO AGUERO that he refused, that was latter put in doubt when Atletico President Cerezo said he knew nothing about it & was backed by a statement from Real Madrid that they did not make the said offer for Aguero. If Mr Gil Marin is correct he must have received TWO offers, right? Why did he only mention Kun Aguero?

It is not the first time or the last time that Gil Marin "distorts" things in order to calm the fan & membership base. He "sold" the idea that he saved the Club not allowing Aguero to go to the rival camp. While Forlan today attempts to "save his skin" from the fans anger in discovering that he offered himself to Real Madrid when in fact it was the other way around.

A lot of Atletico de Madrid fans - myself included - are getting tired of the moaning & whining of Diego Forlan who has wished & desired to leave Atletico Madrid since last season. No one doubts that next season the player will be sold & that possibly Aguero will in fact go to Real Madrid, but what you cannot do is to think ( Forlan ) that Atletico fans & members are stupid.

Atletico de Madrid is being run by people who don't know how to manage the Club.  Firstly they sell Jurado to Schalke 04 leaving the Club deficit in midfield, then the Club mysteriously sells Simao ( President Cerezo said he did not know why) to Besiktas without negotiating a contract renewal & the Club then signs defensive midfielders when they need creative attacking midfielders. Coach Quique Sanchez Flores is  not being listened to & no one takes his views into consideration.

What the Club does not need now are "doubtful stories" to win over the fans & members & create a smoke-screen to hide incompetent Club management, the disloyalty of an important player to the Club & poor onfield performances.  Tweet

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VALENCIA CF SIGNS JONAS FROM GREMIO

Another new incorporation to Spanish Football this time via VALENCIA CF with their "Winter Market" signing of Brazilian "Golden Boot" JONAS GONCALVEZ from GREMIO

Jonas in action 

The 26 year old forward comes at a relative economical price of 1.2M€ & signs until 2015. The new player complements the Valencia CF forward line along with Aduriz & Soldado.

Welcome & good luck in the Spanish League! Tweet

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SEVILLA FC SIGNS MEDEL - RAKITIC

Spanish Football has two new incorporations & specifically with SEVILLA FC who signed two new players just before the close of the "2011 Winter Transfer Market". They are defensive Chilean midfielder & now ex-Boca Junior player GARY MEDEL, & young 22 year old Croatian forward RAKITIC from German Club Schelke 04

Medel  - Rakitic 

The Chilean Medal comes for 3M€ approx & signs for 4 seasons, while Rakitic costs 1.5M€ & signs until 2014.  Both good signings for Sevilla FC which will no doubt give them plenty of added value.

Welcome to the Spanish League! Tweet

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SPANISH CUP SEMI FINAL 2010 - 2011 1st LEG RESULTS | SEVILLA FC 0 REAL MADRID 1 | FC BARCELONA 5 ALMERIA 0

SPANISH CUP 1º leg semi - final games played tonight with goals & plenty of controversy that will fill tomorrows Spanish Sports papers. Here is a summary of events with scorers & the results. 

Benzema celebrates with Mourinho his goal

SEVILLA FC lost 0 - 1 to REAL MADRID tonight in their 1st leg Spanish Cup clash in controversial fashion for the Sevilla fans & not so controversial for the Real Madrid fans - but more on this later. Real Madrid started with a conservative line-up  with three defensive midfielders ( Lass, Khedira & Xabi) to halt the expected initial onslaught from Sevilla who had been heating up the match days before & were charged. The atmosphere was full of tension as Sevilla FC had encouraged their fans to back them with some aggressive marketing the included videos & pre-match statements that lead authorities to call this a "maximum tension level" Football match. That encouraged supporter with over enthusiasm which spilt onto the ground with strong , near unlawful tackles & a end of match incident that may cost Sevilla FC dearly in coming days - but more on this later.

As expected Sevilla started the match attacking fiercely while Real Madrid defended & did all it could to halt the waves of Sevilla players with Jesus Navas very dangerous. However, in a surprise counter-attack KARIM BENZEMA finally showed everyone that he does have some class & ran 25 mts taking out of action two Sevilla defenders to score the Real Madrid goal in the 16th min. This goal took out all the fright & steam from Sevilla & Real Madrid slowly took control.

Then in the 46th min of the 1st half Sevilla forward LUIS FABIANO shot at goal & Real defender RAUL ALBIOL "stopped" the ball on the goal-line to avoid the equalizer. Sevilla claimed ( & still claimed post-match) that it was a goal, while Real Madrid claims that the WHOLE Ball did not go over the line. 

Albiol stops a certain goal? Image:Canal +

Here are some images from Canal + TV ( thanks guys) that seem to give the reason to Real Madrid, but from another angle (below) it rises doubts, thus this "Phantom Goal" is now the talk of the town & will be in tomorrows papers. The referee considered that the ball did not go fully over & thus there was no goal. Leave you to decide for yourself.

Albiol stops goal in 46th min? Image Canal +

The 2nd half saw Real Madrid take further control while Sevilla felt the tiredness of their 1st half efforts & plenty of their players had gained yellow cards which stopped them from over exerting. Real Coach Mourinho saw this as an opportunity to change from a "conservative" field set up to a more "attacking" system ( Di Maria, Granero, Marcelo) which nearly paid off had Cristiano Ronaldo & Ozil put in an almost goal that for some unexplainable reason they both missed. They had the semi - final right there but failed which allowed Sevilla of the hook. Real Madrid tried up till the end while Sevilla did everything to keep them out with some chances also included. The end result 0 - 1.

Iker Casillas hit on the head with a plastic bottle at the
end of the match 

But the game was destined to finish on a terrible note as Real Madrid goalkeeper IKER CASILLAS received a plastic bottle to his head straight after the final whistle take brought him down on the turf. The match was too over heated thanks to Sevilla FC aggressive pre-match messages & were warned that something terrible may occur. The above incident will certainly cost the Club a sanction when the "Spanish Football Anti-Violence Comission" looks at it for study & will almost certainly give a punishment.

Thus, the stage is definitely set for the 2º leg semi-final clash at Madrid were Real takes a handy away goal. A match not to be missed!

Messi scores against Almeria : Spanish Cup 2011

FC BARCELONA won 5 - 0 ALMERIA comfortably with the their 1º leg Spanish Cup semi final with fabulous Football & plenty of goals. No pre-match aggressive marketing or comments from both teams that concentrated on Football & nothing but Football.

The damage on Almeria was all done in the 1st half thanks to brilliant play from Iniesta & company plus some woeful Almeria defending. MESSI scored first in the 10th min followed by DAVID VILLA in the 11th min, MESSI again in the 15th min & PEDRO in the 30th min.

The second half Barça relaxed & gave players a rest (eg Xavi) & basically controlled the match with Barça defender & 2º half sub Maxwell hitting the post. It was smooth "riding" for Barça right till the end with another sub KEITH scoring the fifth in the 89th min.

This victory virtually gives Barça a Spanish Cup Final ticket. A miracle will have to occur in the 2º leg semi-final not to think that FC Barcelona will be a finalist.  Tweet

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REAL MADRID - ADEBAYOR | IT IS OFFICIAL

REAL MADRID has announced that it is official. MANCHESTER CITY forward EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR has been "signed" until the end of this season. The player comes without a transfer fee & will be on loan until the end of the season, Real Madrid has an option of a buy (14M€) if the Club decides to take it up. Real Madrid does pay however the high salary that Adebayor has in his contract of around 2M€

Adebayor with Manchester City : Reuters

Real Madrid Coach José Mourinho has won his particular "battle" with Club Directives & the player will be presented in two days at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. The first choice Ruud Van Nistelrooy was discarded totally last night when his Club Hamburg said catagorically NO to transfering the player to Madrid.  Tweet

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REAL MADRID RECONSIDER EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR OF MANCHESTER CITY

News being published on the mayor Spanish Sports online channels tonight indicate that REAL MADRID will now attempt to get over to Madrid MANCHESTER CITY 26 year old forward EMMANUEL ABEBAYOR. The negative posture from German Club Hamburg in accepting the 2M€ ( + a friendly match) offer for Ruud Van Nistelrooy has forced the Spanish Club to go back on its tracks & consider again the Togo player.

Emmanuel Adebayor

Manchester City are apparently receptive to offers & will consider a loan as they have recently signed forward DZEKO & thus Adebayor hasn´t a place in their team. Real Madrid have been hesitant to incorporate Abebayor due to his "conflictive" character, but with Van Nistelrooy almost discarded & Manchester City willing to negotiate a loan for a player who can play Champions League,  the window of opportunity again has opened for the Manchester City player. Real Madrid Coach Mourinho insists in a forward urgently & has even made threats to the Club with leaving if he does not get support for his demands.

Lastly, the same news sources comment that if the Abebayor option fails REAL MADRID will then go for Bayern Munich 32 year old forward KLOSE. In this last case, the German would not be able to play in Champions League thus the Abebayor alternative gains in strength & attractiveness.

Stay tuned for further developments in coming days. I would not discard any option at this stage.

LATEST: According to news tonight from Spanish TV channel "Intereconomia", ATLETICO DE MADRID forward DIEGO FORLAN has offered himself personally to REAL MADRID as an alternative. 
As said, stay tuned because we have plenty of miles left to travel with this story. Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL 2010 - 2011 ROUND 20 MONDAY NIGHT GAME RESULT

SPANISH FOOTBALL action tonight with the last match - Monday Night Soccer - corresponding to Round 20 of the Spanish League - La Liga. Here is the result & the scorers.

Javi Martinez scores for At Bilbao

ATHLETIC DE BILBAO defeated HERCULES 3 - 0 in a hard fought out game that saw 7 yellow cards. The win gives Bilbao the 6th place in the Spanish League classification ladder ( a Euro place) at the expense of Atletico de Madrid.

The goals came via JAVI MARTINEZ in the 5th min which was latter followed by a FERNANDO LLORENTE goal in the 59th min with a great header & youngster MUNIAIN managed the third goal in the 64th min.

Spanish Football will have Spanish Cup 1º leg semi final action mid-week. Tweet

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REAL MADRID | SERGIO AGUERO THE CHOSEN ONE ?

REAL MADRID has put its eye firmly on ATLETICO DE MADRID star forward SERGIO "KUN" AGUERO? The rumours are building & getting more viral as Spanish Sports media have increased their publishing space with more & more articles dedicated to this idea. 

Sergio Aguero

The first hint was when Aguero renewed his contract with Atletico de Madrid until 2014 BUT with a reduction in his contract release clause from 60M€ to 45M€. This only means that Aguero wished to have a "back-door" & to make his possible transfer to another Club more feasible & economically viable.

Second arguement is Atletico de Madrid. The Club is not able to satisfy or guarantee its star players the ability to "strut their stuff" on the World Football stage. The Club cannot regularly get into the big European competitions & does not make the grade in the local competition. Sadly, if you want to make it as a World Star an Atletico player must leave the Club, e.g Fernando Torres.

Lastly, the rumours coming out of Real Madrid is that they have already planned a BIG star signing for the end of the season. This is why Real Madrid does not wish to invest heavily in the "Winter Market" however insistent Mourinho is being with the need now of a Number Nine.  Real Madrid knows that a 40M+€ investment will be needed if they are to sign a World Class forward & both Athletic de Bilbao FERNANDO LLORENTE & SERGIO AGUERO are the prime targets. In the last couple of weeks the name of Aguero has taken strenght & one could speculate that depending on how the mentioned players perform the rest of the season will decide who is finally chosen.

Stay tuned! Tweet

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REAL MADRID | THE VALDANO - MOURINHO RIFF VERY PUBLIC

If you had doubts that the relationship between REAL MADRID Director General Jorge Valdano & Coach José Mourinho are not going through a "rosy" moment, take a look at this gem dropped by Mourinho in yesterdays post - Real Mallorca press conference. A journalist asked how the situation was going with the prospects of signing a Number Nine forward:

Real Madrid President Perez & Mourinho

"No hablo con Valdano, lo hago con el presidente y José Ángel Sánchez"
Translated:
"I don´t talk to Valdano, I talk with the President and Jose Angel Sanchez" Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | 2010 - 2011 SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA | ROUND 20 | SUNDAY NIGHT RESULTS

SPANISH FOOTBALL & Round 20 of the Spanish League - La Liga continued tonight with six matches. Here is a brief summary of events with results & scorers.

Sporting de Gijon winner by Barral

REAL SPORTING DE GIJON won 1 - 0 ATLETICO DE MADRID. The visitors put in a terrible performance & are undergoing some unexplained difficulties in this part of the season. Real Sporting managed the winner after some horrible defending between Atletico defender Perea & midfielder Garcia that allowed BARRAL to score the winning goal in the 50th min. Atletico did not react at all & left a pitiful image that left fans bewildered by their pathetic performance & play. Sporting Gijon will be happy as the three points gives them more oxygen as they too are going through a rough patch.

Sergio Garcia scores for Espanyol

GETAFE lost at home to RCD ESPANYOL 1 - 3 with the latter making a great comeback. Getafe got ahead first via MIKU in the 13th min but gradually lost control of the game to see LUIS GARCIA equalize in the 52nd min & Espanyol go further ahead with goals by CALLEJON in the 59th min & SERGIO GARCIA in the 63rd min.

Ulloa scored twice today

ALMERIA defeated comfortably OSASUNA 3 - 1 & keep up their marked improvement & string of wins. Goals for Almeria came from C. GARCIA in the 8th min & ULLOA who scored twice (10th & 54th min). The only goal for Osasuna came from ARANDA with his 23rd min contribution.

Zaragoza - Deportivo

REAL ZARAGOZA need all the points they can muster up to keep out of relegation problems & they managed three tonight with a 1  - 0 win over DEPORTIVO. The winner came thanks to BOUTAHAR in the 38th min. 

Karim Benzema 

REAL MADRID Coach Jose Miurinho chose today to make experiments? First half Xabi Alonso & Ozil were left on the bench for Gago & Kaká, then both the latter were taken off for the former for the start of the second half. Why? Perhaps Mourinho was thinking in this mid week Spanish Cup semi final 1º leg against Sevilla FC?  KARIM BENZEMA started & was very average except for his 60th min effort that turned out to be the winning goal against REAL MALLORCA ending that match with a 1 - 0 result.

It was a strange match all round with a disciplined & well placed Real Mallorca suffocating Real Madrid in the midfield & practicing some very dangerous counter-attacking Football. In fact, Mallorca hit the post via Nsue in the 13th min & Real Madrid keepr IKER CASILLAS made two vital saves (one in the last minute from Mallorca forward Webo) to help out his team in tonights victory. Looking at the match overall a draw would have made it more justly as Real Madrid did not convince & they looked out off place & out of timing.

Said  all this, three points are three points & how they are gained at this stage make little difference as Real Madrid mantain the 4 point difference with Liga Leaders FC Barcelona.

Rossi scores twice for Villareal

REAL SOCIEDAD visited VILLAREAL & played well up to the moment they scored their only goal via ARANBURU in the 29th min. From that moment Villareal took control & "fixed" things with two great goals from ROSSI ( 40th & 47th min) with Cazorla proving the passes. Final result 2 - 1 to Villareal who continue showing that they are an alternative to the two Spanish Football giants: FC Barcelona & Real Madrid. Tweet

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | 2010 - 2011 SPANISH LEAGUE - LA LIGA | ROUND 20 | SATURDAY NIGHT RESULTS

Three games celebrated Saturday in SPANISH FOOTBALL as Round 20 of the Spanish League - La Liga. Here is a brief summary with results & scorers.

Andres Iniesta with Xavi

FC BARCELONA won 3 - 0 RACING DE SANTANDER in another exhibition with Andres Iniesta standing out. The goals came via PEDRO in the 2nd min, MESSI (penalty) in the 33rd min & INIESTA in the 56th min. The win puts more pressure on Real Madrid to their game tonight.

Luis Fabiano

SEVILLA FC defeated LEVANTE 4-1 with LUIS FABIANO back in form with a HAT-TRICK. With the return of Jesus Navas Sevilla look more dangerous & combined well with all forwards especially with Fabiano. The goals for Luis fabiano came in the 27th, 42nd & 68th min along with ESCUDE who scored in the 38th min. Levante managed a consolation goal via XISCO MUÑOZ in the 57th min

Mata scores for Valencia CF 

VALENCIA CF won in the very last minute 4 - 3 a MALAGA side down to nine men & Coach Pellegrini sent off ( red cards to Demichellis, Rosario, Pellegrini) in a rough & tough match full of controversial referee decisions. Malaga scored first via RONDON in the 10th min & MATA equalized in the 17th min via a penalty to Valencia. RONDON again put Malaga again in the 35th min & SOLDADO equalized in the 53rd min. Malaga was playing well with 9 men until BENEGAS put Valencia CF ahead in the 67th min to see BAPTISTA equalize for Malaga. See-saw stuff until in the very last moment ADURIZ scored the winner in the 90th min for Valencia. Tweet

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REAL MADRID | JOSE MOURINHO THINKING IN LEAVING & DEMANDS PLAYER LOYALTY

News has filtered out that José Mourinho indeed has his mind leaving REAL MADRID at the end of this season. The “confirmation” comes out of the pre-match Atletico de Madrid Spanish Cup players meeting held at the “concentration” hotel were Mourinho gave a 40 minute speech to his players.

Jose Mourinho

Insiders who have leaked to press the content of the meeting say that the players were surprised by the intensity of the José Mourinho talk, claiming undisputed loyalty from his players & that if anyone present  was not 100% behind him to stand up & be noted (there are some players not 100% behind him, although they did not stand up). Mourinho commented that they were now alone in “the battle” & that they as a team would have to pull things together as the Club "suits" have n´t what it takes to go all the way. He also told his players what some media insiders had been suspecting, that he wishes to leave the Club at the end of the season if things do not work out &/or his intense “power battle” with Director General Jorge Valdano does not find a solution.


Some veteran players believe that José Mourinho is bluffing & is pressuring the Club to get his way. However, this is “dangerous” & it will best for these players to follow their Coaches policy.


As I see things, the only calming force to all this in-house fighting & power struggles are victories on the field. If José Mourinho can manage a title this year things will be less stormy than are at this moment. Having said this there is the other possibility, a title (e.g. Champions League/League) will be the motive enough to leave on a winning note & thus strengthen his reputation & prestige.


Stay tuned for developments. The next few months will be interesting & will give plenty of front page news.


Now some HUMOUR:
Spanish Football Sports Blog special uncover reporters managed to filter a hidden camera into one of the REAL MADRID Top level weekly Directives meetings. All the Big players were present – President, Director General, Football Director, Coach & Team Captain. This is what our “uncover” camera managed to film:



NOTE: Any similarity with reality is purely due to unknown & unpredicted coincidence ;O) Tweet

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REAL MADRID OFFERS 2M€ TO HAMBURG FOR VAN NISTELROOY ?

According to news coming in & being picked up by the mayor Spanish Sports online media, REAL MADRID has offered GERMAN Club HAMBURG a speculated 2M€ for forward RUUD VAN NISTELROOY. The player went free to Hamburg with the best wishes of the Spanish Club & now the latter finds itself being “forced” to fork out money to get him back; a bit like a "Marx Brothers movie". Leaving my opinion aside, there is rumour in the air that the agreement is close & that Hamburg will have to only decide if they take the money & run: I believe that was their original strategy from the start.


Stay tuned, there may be an official announcement in the coming hours or days…

Ruud Van Nistelroy

LATEST (22 Jan 2011): According to "Marca" Hamburg has rejected the offer from Real Madrid...the negotiations are in stalemate ...for now! Tweet

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SPANISH CUP 2010 - 2011 2nd LEG QUATER FINAL THURSDAY NIGHT RESULT | ATLETICO DE MADRID 0 REAL MADRID 1 | REAL MADRID TO THE SEMIS

ATLETICO DE MADRID has lost tonights 2º leg SPANISH CUP QUARTER FINAL match against REAL MADRID 0 - 1 ( 1- 4 final aggregate). Real Madrid will now go onto the semi-finals to play Sevilla FC who are the current Spanish Cup title holders.

Cristiano Ronaldo scores for Real Madrid

Nervous start from both sides that saw Real Madrid slowly take control & dominate the ball even without a "Numbre Nine" again from the starting line-up ( Benzema did not play tonight). The winning goal came from a Sergio Ramos pass that found CRISTIANO RONALDO in the  23rd min to score. If Atletico were handicapped without Aguero, they lost Antonio Reyes in the 26th min to an ankle injury that left their midfield orphen from then onwards.

Atletico played their best Football the first 15 mins of the 2nd half but were lacking in ideas & finishing power. Real Madrid took back control of the game & shut out Atletico from the match as their "flame" slowly died out. Disappointing to see Atletico go out in this fashion but they lack midfield "creative playmakers" & things may get worst as rumours are that DIEGO FORLAN may end up in Italy ( Inter Milan or Juventus ) before the end of the month.

Therefore the SPANISH CUP semi-finals look the following way:
Almeria - FC Barcelona
Sevilla FC - Real Madrid  Tweet

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THE SIMPSON VERSION OF THE SPAIN FOOTBALL TEAM

THE SIMPSONS - Matt Groening - paid tribute to the SPANISH NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM for their FIFA WORLD CUP Title with a cartoon version of the squad. Here are the names the make up the "cartoon" line-up:


Casillas, Torres, Puyol, Villa, Sergio Ramos, Piqué, Xavi Hernández, Iniesta, Silva, Xabi Alonso & Cesc

Simpson Spain Football Team 

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MOURINHO - VALDANO | REAL MADRID TIME BOMB AWAITING TO EXPLODE

REAL MADRID is in turmoil,   & using a Spanish saying,  the Club is washing their dirty laundry in public. The very latest is the public “tennis match” of bickering & sly undertone comments being flung via the Spanish Media between Club Director General Jorge Valdano & Coach José Mourinho. 


I posted my views last Sunday here “REAL MADRID - RUUD VAN NISTELROOY | SIGNS OF BAD PLANNING BAD MANAGEMENT BAD ORGANIZATION” that gives a birds eye view of things that may be worth a read to put you into context; but yesterday Coach Mourinho ended his “heated” Press Conference answering a question to “Why are you so heated today” with …“…because I wish to leave”.

Mourinho - Valdano

The immediate reaction from those present & watching the TV was that Mourinho wanted to leave the Press Conference, however some press journalists ( Spanish TV Intereconomia, AS…etc) did some investigative calls to “close insiders” & then ran the news that Mourinho is in fact thinking in LEAVING REAL MADRID at the end of the 30th of June . In fact his contract has a release clause that would allow him to do this but at a cost of between 15-20M€ that he would have to pay Real Madrid.


Apparently the relationship between himself & Director General Jorge Valdano is at its limit & some interpret yesterdays comments as a “threat” &/or “me or Valdano” message to Real Madrid President Florentino Perez. According to the Spanish journalists in the “Mourinho wishes to leave Camp” the Portuguese Coach feels the Club is not backing him 100% & that Jorge Valdano has not the “stuff” to convince the Club President: the latter being a barrier & an obstacle instead of a contributor of value.


What is obvious to the "layman" - myself included - is that there is a clear power struggle & that two “continental plates” are moving to find their places & are causing tremendous “tremors & quakes” within the Club. I doubt that Mourinho really desires to leave the Club at the end of the season & has thrown a “threat” to win over the social – fans base against Valdano to put on more pressure. I will not be surprised if on the weekend certain sectors of the crowd at “Santiago Bernabeu” start shouting “anti-Valdano” chants & lifting opposition signs.


Real Madrid knew before signing José Mourinho what he was all about & knew the dangers inherent in his hiring as Coach. The Clubs needs to win titles at all costs & quickly - away from FC Barcelona - was the trade-off as Real Madrid "sold their soul" to the “Devil”. But what has not been said too much is that the FC BARECLONA 5 – 0 demolition of REAL MADRID in November 2010 has shook the foundations at the Madrid Club & has affected the “Real Madrid psyche” with doubts & with future uncertainty that has infected every level from the "Top Offices", Staff, Coach & the players.


What solutions are there? I see two:
1. Positive results & victories that will lead to some title this year. If the results are bad & no titles come, we will witness an “explosion” at the Club.
2. That Mourinho will take his “poker threat” to the limit & actually leave the Club at the end of the season …if Valdano does not depart earlier.

But this is pure speculation as there is "centuries" between now & the end of the season & things may well be solved positively.


Stay tuned as things are going to get exciting in coming weeks & months. Tonight we have the first test with the 2º leg of the Spanish Cup Quarter-Final against Atletico de Madrid. Real Madrid is expected to capitalise on its 3 – 1 1ºst leg advantage, but if Atletico win & knock out Real Madrid ? Tweet

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