LA LIGA 2017-2018 | BEST GOALSCORER AND GOALKEEPER

The Spanish Football season - LA LIGA - 2017 - 2018 has ended & the final results for Top Goalscorer & Best Goalkeeper goes to Lionel Messi & Oblak respectively. The FC Barcelona player Lionel Messi scored 34 goals this season & also takes the "European Golden Boot Award", while Atletico de Madrid goalie Oblak only had 22 goals scored & wins his 3rd straight "El Zamora" Award.

Here are the final Top 10 List for both categories:

LA LIGA season 2017-2018 TOP GOALSCORERS - "El Pichichi"

NAME   GOALS SCORED

Messi (FC Barcelona) 34 goals
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) 26
Luis Suarez (FC Barcelona) 25
Iago Aspas (Celta de Vigo) 22
Stuani (Girona) 21
Griezmann (Atletico de Madrid) 19
Maxi Gomez (Celta de Vigo) 17
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) 15
Rodrigo (Valencia) 16
Gerard (Espanyol) 16

LA LIGA season 2017-2018 BEST GOALKEEPERS - "El Zamora"

NAME   GOALS GAMES/PLAYED

Oblak (Atletico de Madrid)  22 goals 36 games played
Ter Stegen (FC Barcelona) 28 36
Guaita (Getafe) 26 32
Neto (Valencia CF)   33 33
Pau López (Espanyol) 31 28
Navas (Real Madrid) 31 27
Cuéllar (Leganes) 43 35
Dmitrovic (Eibar) 49 35
Fernando Pacheco (Alaves) 50 36
Kepa (Athletic Bilbao) 43 29

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | CURRENT LEADING GOALSCORER & GOALKEEPER | ROUND 21

Good moment to see how the classification tables stand for the leading goalscorer (El Pichichi) & goalkeeper (El Zamora) in LaLiga after 21 Rounds. 

FC Barcelona player LIONEL MESSI currently leads the goalscorers with 20 goals, while Atletico de Madrid goalie OBLAK leads his section with the minimum goals against his name, 9 goals.

In the goalscoring ranks odd not to see Cristiano Ronaldo, nor any Real Madrid players. This clearly highlights one of the big problems of Real Madrid this season: lack of GOAL.

Spanish Liga leading goalscorers after 21 Rounds 

1. Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona) 20 goals
2. Luis Suarez (FC Barcelona) 16
3. Iago Aspas (Celta de Vigo) 14
4. Stuani (Girona) 10
5. Zaza (Valencia CF) 10

Spanish Liga leading goalkeepers after 21 Rounds 

1. Oblak (Atletico de Madrid) 9 goals 
2. Ter Stegen (FC Barcelona) 10
3. Fernando Pacheco (Alaves) 31
4. Dmitrovic (Eibar) 33
5. Cuellar (Leganes)        21 (20 games coefficient 1,05)

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REAL MADRID - FC BARCELONA | POSSIBLE STARTING 11 TEAMS LINE-UPS

Spanish Liga Round 17 gives us the "Clasico", REAL MADRID vs FC BARCELONA. The game is down for Saturday 23rd of December at 13:00 hours local Sp time. Barça has an 11 point gap advantage over Real Madrid in the classification table & its a must win deal for Real Madrid if they are to keep their Liga title aspirations alive. A victory by Barça would be an almost "mortal" knock-out for their principal rival.

Already the atmosphere is being heated up locally with news & speculation on the possible starting teams line-ups.

Possible starting 11 teams speculations:

REAL MADRID: Kaylor Navas, Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo, Casemiro, Modric, Kroos, Isco, Benzema & Cristiano Ronaldo.

There is talk that Zidane may surprise with Gareth Bale over Isco, but its more likely that Bale will come on late in the 2º half to speed up things while Barça is tired.

FC BARCELONA: Stegan,  Semeda, Pique, Vermaelen, Alba, Busquets, Rakitic, Paulinho, Iniesta, Messi & Suarez. 

These are speculated line ups & things can change from here until Saturday. 

Top match , not to be missed!

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | REAL MADRID | SEVILLA FC | RESULTS

UEFA Champions League continued tonight with Real Madrid & Sevilla FC in Group matches. Here is a brief summary of events, goalscorers & final results.

REAL MADRID was already through to the next stage of the competition, while BORUSSIA DORTMUND already "out" wanted to pull from pride & give an good image. In the end the Germans left with an excellent impression nearly surprising the locals in the result. Although Real Madrid won Borussia Dortmund 3 - 2 the Germans had chances to draw in the end. 

Good match with Real Madrid resting Marcelo, Modric, Kross & Benzema, while Borussia grew from a bad start as the match went on. Real Madrid was 2 - 0 up by the 12th min, but Dortmund had already equalized by the 48th min. Real Madrid managed to shake off the Germans who were persistent when Lucas Vazquez scored the winner late in the match. 

Observations, Cristiano Ronaldo scored making him the only player in Champions to score a goal in each of the Group games, while on the negative side Varane injuried himself. 

Goalscorers:

• Borja Mayoral 8th min, 1 - 0
• Cristiano Ronaldo 12th min, 2 - 0
• Aubameyang 43rd min , 2 - 1
• Aubameyang 48th min, 2 - 2
• Lucas Vazquez 81st min, 3 - 2

Germans were very close to equalizing & demonstrated that their a good team which will be competitive in the Europa League competition.  

SEVILLA FC travelled to MARIBOR looking for a win or a draw. They managed a 1 - 1 draw result which gives the Spanish Club the second spot in their Group & the ticket onto the next phase of Champions League. 

Cold start for the Spaniards which began lifting their play in the second half. Perhaps the nerves or the solid local tactical set up was the cause. Sevilla FC managed to turn around the scoreline & grabbed the needed point.

Goalscorers:

• Tavares 10th min, 1 - 0
• Ganso 75th min, 1 - 1

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | ATLETICO MADRID SAYS GOODBYE | FC BARCELONA WINS

UEFA Champions League Group games tonight with two of the four Spanish Clubs down for action. Here is a brief summary of events, final results & goalscorers.

A "miracle" was needed if Atletico de Madrid was to qualify for the next phase of Champions League. One, the Spanish Club needed a victory against Chelsea FC, & two a draw or a loss by AC Roma against Qarabag. Neither occured. 

The final result of a 1 - 1 draw knocked out Atletico from Champions League & put them into the Europa League. As mentioned,  a "miracle" was needed. 

The Spanish Club tried their best to find the victory with a SAUL goal header in the 56th min & multiple goal savers from Atletico goalkeeper Oblak, who was outstanding. However, Chelsea drew in the 75th with a Hazard play that Atletico defender Savic made into an own goal. 

AC Roma won their match 1 - 0 against Qarabag

Bye Atletico!

FC Barcelona had their participation in the next stage of Champions League assured & left Messi on the bench. In the end FC Barcelona 2 - Sporting Portugal 2. With the "two goals" from PACO ALCACER in the 59th min & in the 90+ min of the match (own goal Mathieu).

Relatively comfortable match for Barça at "half pace" with moments going to Sporting with some chances that were solved by the local defence & Barça goalie Cillessen.

Tomorrow Spanish Football Clubs Real Madrid & Sevilla FC are scheduled for their Group matches

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LA LIGA MATCH OF THE DAY RESULT | VALENCIA 1 FC BARCELONA 1

The big Round 13 Spanish Liga game between second placed VALENCIA CF & current leaders FC BARCELONA finished with a 1 - 1 final result. A match that had intensity & some very controversial moments & decisions, the main one being a disallowed goal (as in the image below) to Barça that was legal.

Just to remind readers LaLiga has´nt VAR & will introduce next season, but the image illustrates the need to introduce the technology as quackly as possible. This erroneous decision cost FC Barcelona a victory & another 2 points.  

The game was very serious & tactical as one can expect from the two currently most inform teams. Valencia CF had the advantage of the home support that stirred them on. Even in their most complex moments, when tiredness came into the teams equation, the local crowd gave Valencia wings. It was evident in the last 5 mins of the match when Valencia looked for the victory & had the victory in their grasp had Zaza not missed an obvious opportunity in front of goal.

Although Valencia played well, in my opinion, Barça was better in general managing the more complicated moments of the match. Lionel Messi was determinate again & from his boot came the pass that found Jordi Alba to score the equalizer. 

Goalscorers tonight:

• Rodrigo 60th min, 1- 0 
• Jordi Alba 82nd min, 1 - 1

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | ATLETICO MADRID WINS FC BARCELONA DRAWS

UEFA Champions League continued tonight with the last two Spanish Football Clubs scheduled for their Group matches. Here are brief summaries of the main events, goalscorers & final results.

ATLETICO DE MADRID hosted AC ROMA in a must win game. The Spaniards are on the edge of not qualifying & a loss tonight would have assured AC Roma the second group place & qualification along with Chelsea FC. The end & final result of 2 - 0 in favour of Atletico de Madrid keeps their hopes alive however slim. For Atletico to qualify for the next rounds of Champions, they need to win Chelsea FC & Qarabag defeat Roma in the next Group matches. This last option is very difficult & everything points that Roma will win Qarabag. Lets see, there is still "hope".

Tonight however, Atletico managed to get the victory after a very nervous start, full of unforced errores & lack of patience in their Football. The Italians created dangerous situations in the 1º st half & Atletico got more desperate placing long balls instead of creating patiently their opportunities. 

The second half saw Atletico calm themselves & begin playing better Football while the Italians tired from the first half physical effort. Atletico Coach Simeone went for the match replacing midfielder Augusto for Correa which lead to the overhead goal from Griezmann. 

AC Roma then lost defender Peres to a red card, a harsh decision which was exaggerated, that contributed to another sibstitute forward Gameiro score the second from a great Griezmann pass.

Goalscorers:

• Griezmann 69th min , 1 - 0
• Gameiro 86th min, 2 - 0

Atletico are still alive, for now.

JUVENTUS FC & FC BARCELONA played out a 0 - 0 draw which gives & assures Barça the top Group spot & pass onto the next stage of the competition. Practical effort all round by Barcelona which was helped by their in form goalkeeper Ter Stegen which secured that Juventus did not get the victory. 

While Barça controlled relatively comfortably the encounter, Dybala was foiled towards the end by Barça goalie Stegen which would have been a surprise result watched events tonight. In the end a draw.
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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | REAL MADRID WINS SEVILLA FC DRAWS

UEFA Champions League Group matches tonight with two of the fours Spanish Football teams scheduled. Here is a brief summary of events, along with goalscorers & final results.

REAL MADRID travelled to APOEL NICOSIA (Cyprus) looking for a win to assure their place in the next phase of the competition. The objective was reached after a final result of Apoel 0 - Real Madrid 6.

A therapeutic win for Real Madrid with Benzema & Roanldo getting two goals each & along with this relief, some breathing space from the hard criticisms locally due to their Liga performances. Coach Zidane left on the bench to rest Casemiro & Isco, giving Lucas Vazquez & Asensio a start. Later Ceballos, Theo & Mayoral got a run as well.

Match dominated by Real Madrid which was superior all game with Apoel giving little "trouble". Hats off to the local fans who were impressive cheering on their team under the adverse scoreline.

Here are the goalscorers:

• Modric 23rd min, 0 - 1
• Benzema 39th min, 0 - 2
• Nacho 41st min, 0 - 3
• Benzema 45th min, 0 - 4
• Cristiano Ronaldo 49th min, 0 - 5
• Cristiano Ronaldo 54th min, 0 - 6 

Real Madrid has its last Group match against Borussia next & independently of result has assure their pass onto the next stage.

SEVILLA FC host LIVERPOOL FC & a win for the locals would have assured their pass onto the next stage. However, the match turned out to be more complicated than anticipated, with a cliff-hanger comeback included. The final result was a 3 - 3 draw after Sevilla was down 0 - 3 at half time. This results allows Sevilla to control their future as they need a win or draw in their next game to stay in Champions.

Liverpool literally "steamrolled" Sevilla FC in the first 45 mins, with goals from:

• Firmino 2nd m , 0 - 1
• Mane 22nd  m , 0 - 2
• Firmino 30th m, 0 - 3

It looked at half time that Sevilla was in authentic dire-straits. However the saviour, Sevilla forward BEN YEDDER came on in the second half & his two goals gave wings to the Spaniards. In fact, Sevilla FC was a different team & pulled from deep inside to find pride to eventually draw in the last moment by Pizarro. A real cliff hanger that made this match one of the most entertaining tonight of Champions. Heroic stuff from Sevilla. Goalscorers:

• Ben Yedder 51st min, 1 - 3
• Ben Yedder 60th min (penalty) , 2 - 3
• Pizarro 90th min, 3 - 3

Tomorrow FC Barcelona & Atletico de Madrid are scheduled for their Champions League Group matches.

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | ATLETICO DE MADRID 0 REAL MADRID 0

Big city of Madrid derby tonight as part of La Liga Round 12 schedule with Atletico de Madrid hosting Real Madrid. Both needed a victory to stay in touch with classification leaders FC Barcelona (which won today) & Valencia CF currently second & plays tomorrow.

End result a disappointing 0 - 0 draw which puts both Clubs together with 24 points, but puts Real Madrid 10 points behind Barcelona. 

These were the staring line-ups:
ATLETICO DE MADRID: Oblak; Juanfran, Godín, Savic, Lucas; Gabi, Koke, Saúl, Thomas; Correa & Griezmann. (substitutions: Carrasco, Torres & Gamiero)

REAL MADRID: Casilla; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Casemiro, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Isco; Karim Benzema & Cristiano Ronaldo. (substitutions Nacho & Asensio).

Match dominated tactically by At Madrid in the first half, while Real Madrid bettered in the second half of the match. Few relative goal opportunities to both sides as the "battle" was fierce in the midfield. A physical game as habitual ( few Atletico players saw yellow cards) & controversial encounter as usual historically between both teams. Penalties were claimed by both teams, like a kick in the face of Ramos ( which caused his substitution in the 2º half) by Atletico defender Lucas Hernandez that was not seen along with a "clear" Godin handball late second half. At. Madrid claimed a handball by Ronaldo in the latter part of the second half in the box.

Overall an entertaining 90 minute match which only missed goals. Here is the debate, goals are not coming to both teams. Griezmann & company are in drought, while Cristiano Ronaldo creates opportunities that do not materialize. Real Madrid forward Benzema again will be questioned as his contribution should give rise to more goals, something that is not happening at all. The continuing goal drought will keep the debate heated theses days in Sports media while both teams watch rivals open important point gaps on the classification table.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | REAL MADRID | SEVILLA FC

Champions League matches continued tonight with the two remaining Spanish Football Clubs scheduled for their Group matches. Here are the final results & goalscorers from both matches.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS defeated REAL MADRID 3 - 1 in Wembley to virtually assure their place in the next stage of the Champions League grabbing top Group spot & opening a 3 point gap with Real Madrid. Real Madrid´s participation in Champions League is not in danger but the Spanish team has entered into a "spiral" of bad play that continues from Liga. The Spaniards may be unhappy with the first Tottenham goal which was offside but the English team was tactically superior & when given space was more efficient with their opportunities at goal.

Real Madrid made plenty of mistakes & looked at times lacking ideas to break a well positioned & more fresh Tottenham. The name tonight that shined was Tottenham youngster DELE ALLI who was quick both with feet & mind & gave the Real Madrid defenders problems, along with some late rough play on Ramos which should have seen a red card. 

Goalscorers:

• Dele Alli 27th min , 1 - 0
• Dele Alli 56th min, 2 - 0
• Erikson 65th min, 3 - 0
• Cristiano Ronaldo 80th min, 3 - 1

Congratulations to Tottenham well played & won, while Real Madrid enters a "down period" which are not unusual for big teams during the season. Sure Real Madrid will get back soon. 

Prediction: When Zidane´s time as Coach finishes ( this will come at some stage ) his replacement at Real Madrid will be current Tottenham Coach Mauricio Pochettino...

SEVILLA FC defeated SPARTAK MOSCOW 2 - 1 in their Group match to keep the Spanish Football flag flying positively compared to the other Spanish Club representatives. Sevilla controlled the match relatively well during the entire game with the Russian being compensated for their efforts with a late goal after putting pressure on Sevilla in the later part. 

Goalscorers:

• Lenglet 30th min, 1 - 0
• Benega 60th min, 2 - 0
• Ze Luis 77th min, 3 - 0

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | FC BARCELONA | AT MADRID

Champions League Football tonight with two Spanish Football Clubs down for Group games. Here are brief round-ups of the matches, along with final results & goalscorers.

FC BARCELONA travelled to Athens to play OLYMPIAKOS. The final result was a 0 - 0 draw. Excellent game from the Greeks which put Barça on the back foot with inteligente defending & dangerous counter-attacks. 

Perhaps Barça did not put the intensity needed as they have the Group covered & next stage qualification assured. Said this Barça did attempt to score & they came close on various occasions hit the post & shaving the goal. However, the Greeks held firm & will be proud with the performance. 

Disaster for ATLETICO DE MADRID which could not find the needed victory against QARABAG. The final result of a 1 - 1 draw puts the future of Atletico de Madrid continuing in Champions League very dark & bleak. So bad was the night for the Spaniards that they finished with 10 men after defender Savic was sent off in the second half.

It´s obvious, as seen also in La Liga, that Atletico is going through a terrible patch in form & with their Football. There is a lack of goal finishing & some would add that Coach Simeone is too conservative in his tactics: more defensive than attacking.

Either way, this result is the nightmare the Club wanted to avoid as not being able to progress in Champions League means the loss of millions & millions of euros & prestige. Now Atletico has to defeat, & well, their following opponents which are Chelsea FC & AC Roma. No easy feat at all.

Goalscorers:
Michel 40th min , 0 - 1
Tomas 56th min, 1 - 1

Tomorrow Champions League continues with Real Madrid & Sevilla FC down for Group games.

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | AT MADRID | FC BARCELONA

UEFA Champions League Group matches continued tonight with Atletico de Madrid & FC Barcelona down for their corresponding encounters. Here are a brief summary of events, results & goalscorers.

Spanish Football Club Atletico de Madrid travelled to the city of Baku (Azerbaijan) to play FK Qarabag. The end result a surprising 0 - 0 draw against a team which is considered the least competitive of the Group. In fact, even with Qarabag down to 10 men, Atletico could not find the goal needed to win. Atletico Coach Simeone made late changes (in Torres, Correa & Tomas) in the match to find the needed goal but hit the local wall.

Terribly disappointing as this result complicates At. Madrid in their Group in their quest to advance further in the Champions League competition. Remember in the Group there is also Chelsea FC & AC Roma looking for the top 2 spots.

The locals even troubled Atletico de Madrid goalkeeper Oblak which indicates how things went tonight overall. The Spanish side gave striker Gamairo a start with Griezmann upfront for new ideas, however creative midfielder Koke was out which may have hampered some of the play making. But the performance overall from the Spanish side was disastrous.  

You have to congratulate Qarabag which put in their game & made the better Football, at least from their perspective. 

FC Barcelona hosted Greek Club Olympiakos & won 3 - 1 down with 10 men after Pique was sent off in the 43rd min (second yellow). Comfortable encounter with clear Barcelona domination that was not highlighted on the scoreboard until the 2º half when Barça fired on all cylinders. Once up with 3 goals FC Barcelona began thinking on their upcoming Liga match & rested players, while taking a more "reflective attitude" on the field. This "relaxing feel" from Barça allowed Olympiakos player Nikolauo to header his team only goal in the 90th min from a corner & make up for his own goal earlier.

Messi scored & notched up his 100th goal in Champions League.

Goalscorers:

• Nikolauo (own goal) 18th min, 1 - 0
• Messi 61st min , 2 - 0
• Digne 64th min , 3 - 0
• Nikolauo 90th min, 3 - 1

FC Barcelona are comfortable Top of the Group & are looking good to advance easily in the next stage of the tournament. 

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS | REAL MADRID | SEVILLA FC

UEFA Champions League Group action tonight with two Spanish Football representatives with final mixed results. Here is a brief summary of events, results & goalscorers.

REAL MADRID hosted London Club TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS with the Group Top spot up for grabs. The end result was a very entertaining match which finished in a 1 - 1 draw. The match could have gone to either team both tonight the main protagonists were the goalkeepers of both Clubs. Tottenham goalie Lloris made some unbelievable saves during crucial moments to save his team from defeat. Two notable occasions in the second half was a "point blank" header from Benzema saved & another miraculous hand that stopped a Cristiano Ronaldo missile. Real Madrid goalie Navas was his teams hero assuring Real Madrid the draw with "unexplainable" finger tips saves from Erikson, Kane & company.

Said this Tottenham was very solid tonight, organized & put in a serious match which put Real Madrid on the back foot on numerous occasions. Harry Kane was dangerous as expected & Spaniard Fernando Llorente played well & was a menace all night associating well with team-mates Eriksen, Winks ...etc. Real Madrid had numerosos goal opportunities to have shut the game, hitting the post & finding Lloris saving most attempts.

Goalscorers:

• Varane ( own goal) 28th min , 0 - 1
• Cristiano Ronaldo  (penalty), 1 - 1

Both teams will now have to settle the top Group spot when they again meet in London.

Disaster for SEVILLA FC which travelled to Russia to play SPARTAK MOSCOW & lost 5 - 1. The last 30 minutes of the match was a nightmare for Sevilla which was not coordinated, tactically lost & slow, very slow in defence. The unforced errors "killed them" in tonight's game. The Russians overran them Sevilla with Promes leading the charge.

The result complicates things for Sevilla as their future is uncertain in this Group. They will need to win their next games & play much better than tonight.

Goalscorers:

• Promes(18'm), 1 - 0
• Kjaer(29'), 1 - 1
• Melgarejo(58'm), 2- 1
• Glushakov(67'm), 3 - 1
• Luis Adriano(74'm), 4 - 1
• Promes(90'm), 5 - 1

Tomorrow more Champions League action with FC Barcelona & Atletico de Madrid scheduled for their Group matches.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | ATLETICO MADRID LOSE, BARÇA WINS

UEFA Champions League continued tonight with Atletico de Madrid & FC Barcelona down for their Group games. Mix results as we will see in the following quick round up. 

Atletico de Madrid lost 1 - 2 to Chelsea FC after basically giving away their advantage in the second half which eventually lead to a draw & a 94th min goal by Chelsea FC for the English team to take the three points. 

The first half saw a good Atletico de Madrid team dominating the ball & creating chances. They were rewarded with a penalty in the 40th min which Griezmann converted. However, the second half was totally different.

Chelsea FC dominated the second half as Atletico "switched" to a defensive mentality. The Spaniards lost (or gave) control to Chelsea FC which soon took advantage. Alvaro Morata had been warning earlier, eventually drew for Chelsea in the 59th min with a header. The English team continued with their attacking game, while Atletico looked for a counter which never came. In the 94th min Batshuayi scored the winner & gave Chelsea the 3 points. 

Well deserved win for Chelsea which looked for & found reward. Very disappointing for At. Madrid which essentially fizzed out of the game with a more conservative mentality.

FC Barcelona travelled to Sporting Portugal & won 0 - 1. Not the best performance from the Spaniards which had to work harder than usual for the three points. The winner came from an own goal from Coates which Luis Suarez claimed in the 48th min.

Barça held out until the whistle to grab the three points. 

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | REAL MADRID - SEVILLA FC WIN

UEFA Champions League Group games tonight with Real Madrid & Sevilla FC in action. Both Spanish Football Clubs have finished with positive results in entertaining European Football matches.

Borussia Dortmund hosted Real Madrid & lost 1 - 3 in a highly entertaining match. Both teams created numerous goal scoring occasions in end to end palys, but Real Madrid was more effective in converting their opportunities. Plus the Real Madrid defence with a brilliant Varane & solid Nacho & Ramos held out the German attacks which were constant & dangerous in the second half. 

Borussia has plenty of upfront fire power with an active & dangerous Aubameyang who scored their only goal in the 54th min. But their weakness is their defensive line which is relatively slow & Real Madrid exploited with counter-attacks the open spaces. Plus Real Madrid dominated the midfield most of the match with 4 players vs 3 of the Germans.

There were controversial moments, like a possible hand-ball by Ramos on the goal line early in the match or a possible penalty on Bale in the second half. Said this Real Madrid rightly deserved & earned the victory on a ground they have never won on until tonight.

Gareth Bale shook off criticism & won some confidence with a spectacular 18th min volley goal from a Carvajal pass. The Welshman then gave a deadly pass in the 50th min that Cristiano Ronaldo converted into goal breaking his "dry spell". The Portuguese player later scored his second in the 79th min from a Modric pass & counter-attack that was riffled home. 

Great match from Casemiro a lifesaver, Kroos with his vision & Modric who was outstanding. 

Sevilla FC hosted Maribor & won 3 - 0. Sevilla striker BEN YEDDER got a HAT-TRICK scoring in the 27th, 38th & 83rd min to give his team the three points tonight. Relative "easy" night for Sevilla with great performances from Correa & Franco Vazquez.

Tomorrow night Champions League continues with FC Barcelona & Atletico de Madrid in action in their respective Group encounters. 

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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | SPANISH FOOTBALL CLUB RESULTS

UEFA Champions League 2017-2018 kicked off tonight with Group matches that had two of the four Spanish Football Clubs represented. 

FC Barcelona hosted Juventus FC in their Group D game & Barça won 3 - 0 comfortably. The Italians have reinforced their team with Costa & Matuidi but were disappointing overall tonight. Dybala failed to break lines & did not impress, Higuain was neutralizad & ineffective, while the only bright light was Pjanic in the 1ºst half & the Frenchman Matuidi who is definitely a powerhouse player.

The protagonist & the game breaker was Lionel Messi who was again superb. The Argentine took the team on his shoulders & scored two goals & was involved directly in the third. Apart he hit the woodwork during the match which could have added to his goal tally.

Goals:

• Messi 45th min, 1 - 0
• Rakitic 56th min, 2 - 0
• Messi 69th min, 3 - 0

Excellent start for Barça in the competition who look favourite to finish top of the Group, while Juventus has to show more than what was offered tonight.

Atletico de Madrid travelled to AC Roma for their Group C game which finished in a 0 - 0 draw result. Entertaining match which only lacked goals.

In fact Atletico put on show a marvellous performance the whole 90 mins & deserved a victory result. However, the lack of goal, or better said some incredible missed goal opportunities "robbed" the Spanish Club of a positive result. Said this, the best player for AC Roma was their goalkeeper Alisson who made some outstanding match saving stops!

AC Roma also had their great moments during the 1ºst half but Atletico managed the situation well during the Italian storm.

Great performance from Atletico midfielder Saul, who missed a golden goal opportunity that blemished a brilliant night. Vietto & Correa also missed chances which was the "tonic" of the night for At.Madrid.

Tomorrow, Champions League continues with Real Madrid & Sevilla FC in action.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2017-18 | MOST VALUABLE CLUBS & PLAYERS

Champions League 2017-2018 kicks off tonight & Spanish Sports paper "Marca" highlights the fact with this spectacular front cover today (below). Four Spanish Football Clubs are represented: Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atletico de Madrid & Sevilla FC, with Barça playing Juventus FC & At.Madrid playing AC Roma tonight. Real Madrid & Sevilla FC have their Group games scheduled tomorrow.

However, website "Transfermarket" publish on their site the "Economic value" of the Clubs & Players that will participate in this seasons Champions League. Economic figures given by the website that you can agree with or not. Real Madrid & FC Barcelona are the most valuable Clubs, first & second respectively, with At.Madrid in 9th position & Sevilla FC in 16th.

Economic Value of Football Clubs in Champions League : Top 32

In terms of players Lionel Messi is Nº1 with 120M€ followed by Cristiano Ronaldo & Neymar at 100M€...

Economic "market" value of Top Football Players in Champions League according to "transfermarket"

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUPS 2017-2018

UEFA has just announced the draw of the composition of the Groups that will begin this the CHAMPIONS LEAGUE season 2017-2018. Below is an image of the Groups from A to H with all the Clubs & their rivales. The first Champions League matches kick-off the 12th of September.

The four Spanish Football Clubs ( Real Madrid CF, FC Barcelona, At. Madrid & Sevilla FC) have been relatively "lucky" with the draw. Although all the Clubs are dangerous the Spanish Clubs all have accesible rivals beforehand & are favourites (barring surprises) in reaching the post-Group stage of the competition.

REAL MADRID CF: B. Dortmund, Tottenham Hotspurs & Apoel Nicossa (Group H)
FC BARCELONA: Juventus FC, Olympiakos & Sporting Lisboa (Group D)
ATLETICO DE MADRID: Chelsea FC, Roma AC & Qarabaq (Group C)
SEVILLA FC: Spartak Moscow, Liverpool FC & Maribor (Group E)

Good luck to all Clubs!

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