SPANISH FOOTBALL - LIGA ROUND 23 | FC BARCELONA 6 GETAFE 1

SPANISH FOOTBALL action midday with a Round 23 LIGA scheduled match between FC BARCELONA &  Madrid Club GETAFE. Unusual time for Barça but economically beneficial as it coincides with prime-time TV in Asia, especially China. It is one of the reasons that the Spanish League noon games were introduced to penetrate the lucrative Asian markets.

The Asian Barça supporters would have been happy with FC Barcelona winning 6 - 1 in a one side game that disappointed - my view - along with the Getafe fans as the latter really did not put up a good showing or fight. Understand that against Barcelona at home it is always a difficult endeavour but as a spectator one always looks for a more even encounter between two teams. Not the case today.

ALEXIS SANCHEZ ended his goal drought opening in the 6th min for Barça, this was to signal how things were to turn out.

LIONEL MESSI was very active the whole game & scored in the 13th min the second for Barcelona. The Argentine was involved in nearly all of the Barça goals by either taking defenders out of their positions or giving the final pass. Another exhibition from Messi.

His team-mate ANDRES INIESTA was on another level. Vision , control & passing, 95% accuracy. Simply amazing.

DAVID VILLA started & took his opportunity by scoring a goal in the 58th min. The Spanish International finally managed to get a full match & that will be appreciated by him.

The Barça machine continued its demolition job as Getafe basically lowered their heads & accepted their obvious inferiority. TELLO who came on for Alexis scored the fourth in the 78 th min from a Messi pass, INIESTA scored the fifth after a Messi play in the 89th & defender PIQUE got the sixth in the 91st min.

Getafe managed a consolation goal when Barcelona dozed off momentarily in the 82 nd min thanks to ALVARO. This was the only moment of Barça slackness & Getafe good play. 

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | REAL MADRID 4 - GETAFE 0 | ROUND 21 RESULT

Round 21 of the Spanish Football League - La Liga - continued today with a mid-day match between REAL MADRID & GETAFE. A good hour for the family & kids & for the lucrative Asian market in terms of TV broadcasting.

Real Madrid was thinking ahead towards next Wednesday´s Spanish Cup 1º leg semi-final clash against FC Barcelona & left on the bench Xabi Alonso, Khedira ( came on in the second half ) , Arbeloa & Benzema ( also had a run late ).

The game in the first half was tense & full of anxiety from Madrid as Getafe planted themselves well in the midfield to counter the Madrid efforts. This & an excellent Getafe goalie Moya kept things 0 - 0 the first 45 mins.

The second half was a different story all together. Khedira came on to make flow the midfield & Ozil began to churn & create chances. The can opener came in the 53 rd min from a corner which Getafe goalie Moya fumbled & SERGIO RAMOS tapped in the goal. Getafe argued the goal with the referee but it stood.

With a goal up Real Madrid relaxed & began practising their dangerous rapid & clinical precision counter-attacks. The spear-head was CRISTIANO RONALDO who culminated the attacks with goals. The Portuguese scored a HAT- TRICK with goals in the 61st , 64th & 71 st min , the last converting a penalty when Modric was fouled in the penalty area.

With the job done, Coach Mourinho took off Ronaldo to a standing ovation from the "Santiago Bernabeu" crowd & to give the "crack" some rest for the upcoming Spanish Cup semi-final scheduled mid week. 

Rest of the games this afternoon of Round 21 of La Liga.

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SPANISH FOOTBALL | LIGA | ROUND 19 MONDAY NIGHT GAME RESULT

Round 19 of the SPANISH FOOTBALL LEAGUE came to a close tonight with the last match scheduled between Madrid Club GETAFE & GRANADA. A game that ended in a 2 - 2 draw after Granada clinched the equalizer in the very last moment.

The fact is Getafe lost the match to two undisciplined acts in the penalty area. Both of the goals scored by Granada were penalties & both from SIQUIERA in the 27th min & the saver for his team in the 94th min after a hand-ball by a Getafe player.

Frustrating stuff indeed for Getafe which scored first via JUAN RODRIGUEZ in the 18th min & another put themselves ahead in the 41st min via ALCACER. Getafe had the game in hand & the three points in the pocket but lost it.

Lets not take any credit away from Granada which looked for the equalizer.

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REAL MADRID | DANI PAREJO TO RETURN NEXT SEASON

DANI PAREJO was literally born, raised & educated at REAL MADRID. A young promise that has risen through all the junior sides of the Spanish National Team the player simply had too many "A" Internationals ahead of him at Madrid. The solution was to transfer the young man to GETAFE with a first buy-back option, to allow their promise to continue playing & gaining experience in the Spanish League. The player has evolved & matured as expected & is a key player at Getafe. 

Parejo at Getafe

Thus I was glad to read today in Spanish Sports daily "AS" that REAL MADRID has decided that it is time to bring back the "prodigal" son & will exercise the buy-back option of 2M€+extras. Coach Mourinho wishes Parejo to be the "back-up" player for Xabi Alonso for the players attacking  touch Football, were as Khedira & Lass are more defensively orientated.

The player will incorporate himself to Real Madrid at the end of the season, according to the Spanish paper.  Tweet

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EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 GROUP H RESULT | GETAFE 1 YOUNG BOYS 0

SPANISH FOOTBALL Team GETAFE had already said goodbye to the EUROPA LEAGUE before tonights Group H match against YOUNG BOYS. The Madrid Club utilized the game to give a run to four youngsters from the B team & the result was impressive with a 1 - 0 victory. The goal came in the 14th min via ADRIAN SARDINERO & the win at least smooth somewhat the disappointing exit from Europe for Getafe.

Getafe join Spanish city colleagues Atletico de Madrid who also said goodbye to European competition tonight.

Getafe regain some pride with victory

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EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 GROUP B H MATCHES | RESULTS | ATLETICO DE MADRID 2 ARIS SALONIKA 3 OB ODENSE 1 GETAFE 1

Not a good night for SPANISH FOOTBALL in the two games played of the EUROPA LEAGUE Group matches. Here are the results & the scorers from the already mentioned games.

Short lived joy for Aguero who scored.

ATLETICO DE MADRID hosted Greek side ARIS SALONIKA & needed a win to secure the second Group B spot to move on in the competition. Instead they lost 2 - 3 & have complicated seriously things as they need to win Germans Werder Bremen in their last Group game & Aris draw against Rosenberg. Nothing worst than leaving your fate in the hands of the "Football Gods".

The signs came early as "Spanish" - Greek player KOKE scored in the 1st min from a defensive mistake that would repeat itself later again. DIEGO FORLAN equalized quickly in the 11th min & SERGIO AGUERO put Atletico ahead in the 15th min. Looking good up to here but the Spaniards missed their many chances & in the 51st min Aris was awarded a penalty which KOKE scored. Then the "heavy blow" for Atletico came when LAZARIDIS put in the winner in the 80th min after a series of defensive fumbles beforehand.

The Greeks played their game & congratulations , but Atletico lost it tonight all by themselves.

Stiff night for Getafe - in orange.

GETAFE needed to win their Group H game against OB ODENSE to stay alive, but it finished in a 1 - 1 draw & they say goodbye to Europe. Getafe started well with a 16th min goal from PEDRO RIOS & were going fine. However, they went from more to less as the game went on & missed numerous occasions while the home team grew in confidence & play. The Danes were dangerous in the corners & free-kicks & while Getafe stood firm the "knock-out" punch came in the 92nd min with the equalizer by ANDERASEN.

Football can & is cruel. Tweet

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2010 - 2011 EUROPA LEAGUE GROUP MATCH RESULTS | SPANISH TEAMS

Four Spanish teams played their respective 2010 - 2011 EUROPA LEAGUE Group matches tonight with more pluses than minuses. Here is a brief summary of results & scorers.

Tiago scores the winner for At.Madrid

ATLETICO DE MADRID managed a giant step forward after defeating ROSENBORG 1-2. However, the Spaniards were lucky & the Nordic Club deserved much more for their great effort. The first goal came in the 4th min when Atletico forward SERGIO AGUERO scored from a Simao pass that was in fact offside (not called). Rosenborg them lifted gears & equalized in the 52nd min via HENRIKSEN. But in the 83rd min Atletico midfielder TIAGO cracked a screamer from outside the box for the winner. In the end, a win is a win however lucky & Atletico consolidates itself in Group B.

Greek side PAOK SALONICA defeated VILLAREAL 1- 0 in their Group D game. The winner & only goal came in the 70th min via VIEIRINHA

Marica scores for Stuttgart

GETAFE basically say goodbye to the Europa League after STUTTGART won 0 - 3 in their Group H clash. The goals came from MARICA (25th min), GEBHART (64th min) & HARNIK ( 76th min)

Sevilla FC score Europa League

SEVILLA FC steam-rolled KARPATY LVOV 4 - 0 & it could have been more in their Group J "whitewash". The goals came from ALFARO ( x 2 ) , CIGARINI & NEGREDO.  Tweet

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EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 - 2011 GROUP MATCHES | RELATIVELY GOOD NIGHT FOR SPANISH TEAMS

Busy night for all four SPANISH FOOTBALL TEAMS as they played their EUROPA LEAGUE Group qualifying matches with overall general joy for the Spanish fans. I personally wasn´t able to witness all four matches but managed to keep the pulse of most via TV, radio & a Twitter account, therefore excuse me if some summaries are brief & to the main detail.

Sergio Aguero scores the 2º goal for Atletico

ATLECTICO DE MADRID needed to win their Group B match against ROSENBERG if they were to keep alive hopes of passing onto the next level. They did this with a confident & well earned 3-0 victory that also included the "comeback" from injury from Sergio Aguero.

The first goal came via Atletico defender GODIN who headed in the ball in the 16th min. From here it was fairly even with chances occuring at both ends. However, the magic & the calmness came in the 2ºhalf when SERGIO AGUERO came on after 3 weeks of injury. He scored the second in the 66th min & then played the part in the third which DIEGO COSTA scored in the 75th min.

Happy Atletico fans tonight!

Marco Ruben scores the Villareal winner

VILLAREAL won 1- 0 Geek team PAOK Salonica to take top spot of Group D. It wasn´t easy as the Greeks turned out to be very tough to crack outfit with their defensive set up & didn´t allow many chances to appear. However, it was Villareal player MARCO RUBEN who took his chance in the 37th min & scored what would later turn out to be the winner.

Getafe player Marcano tussles with Camoranesi 

GETAFE travelled to Germany & lost 0 - 1 to STUTTGART in their Group H match to virtually say goodbye to the Europa League for this season. The German goal came in the 29th min when MARICA converted a goalkeeper fumble into a goal. The Spaniards were rowing upstream for the rest of the match.

Kanoute scores Sevilla FC only goal

Ukrainian team KARPATY LUIV are difficult to play at home just as SEVILLA FC found out tonight in their Group J clash. The Spaniards needed to win to stay alive in the competition & managed to do just that with a "true grit" win thanks to the solitary goal scored by KANOUTE with a header in the 34th min. Final result 0 -1. Tweet

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LIONEL MESSI GOAL AGAINST GETAFE IN SPANISH CUP | THE TYPOGRAPHY VERSION

Remember this immense goal by LIONEL MESSI against Getafe in the Spanish Cup a few years back? Yes, the one that looked like the  Maradona goal in the 1986 World Cup match against England…

A friend has emailed me the below video that he found on the web of the Messi goal in typed form & following the comments of the Catalan commentator. I think its cool, & very different which makes it worth a watch; although I prefer the above video…:O)

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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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EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 PRELIMANARY GAMES | VILLAREAL GETAFE GO THROUGH TO QUALIFY

Spanish Football Teams VILLAREAL & GETAFE join Atletico de Madrid & Sevilla FC in the draw tomorrow for the 2010 - 2011 EUROPA LEAGUE Group match ups.

VILLAREAL went into their 2ºleg match with a 5 goal advantage with a B - side which managed to win 1-2 DNEPR MOGILEV. The home team scored first via YURCHENKO, but Villareal cancelled any "hopes" of a comeback with two goals from NILMAR & M.RUBEN.

Totally diffrent affair for GETAFE who took a 1-0 1ºleg advantage to Cyprus & nearly lost. APOEL allowed Getafe to win with missed chances & a missed penalty. Although ALMEIDA scored for Apoel in the 41st min their lack of finishing allowed the Spaniards off the hook to go into extra-time. Here a goal area scrumble that put the ball into the Apoel net via an own goal by SOLOMOU in the 98th min finally pulled the game out of the Cyprus teams grasp. Getafe took control & shut out any chance to protect their 2 goal advantage for the rest of extra-time. Final score a 1 - 1 draw ( 1-2 agg to Getafe) Tweet

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EUROPA LEAGUE 2010 PRELIMANARY GAMES | GETAFE 1 APOEL 0 VILLAREAL 5 DNEPR MOGILER 0

Two Spanish Football teams were involved tonight in the 1ºst leg of the preliminary games for the upcoming 2010 - 2011 EUROPA LEAGUE competition.

Madrid Club GETAFE managed a slim 1-0 victory over the competitive APOEL NICOSIA team from Cyprus. Getafe midfielder PAREJO (above) managed the only goal & the winner in the 42th min. Entertaining match which saw chances at both ends, but was unfortunate for the Spanish team that they could not seal it tonight as now they have to play the result away at Cyprus next week.

The other match saw a 5-0 whitewash by VILLAREAL over the Belarus Club DNEPR MOGLILEV. The goals came via new signing MARCHENA (10th min), CAZORLA (17th min), VALERO (35th min), CANI ( 45th min) & NILMAR (74th min). This result practically assures the Spanish team a place in the Europa League competition independently of the 2ºleg match.

While Villareal was playing, the Spanish Club made official the signing of 22 year old defender from English Club Tottenham of DORIAN DERVITE. Tweet

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REAL MADRID AGREES WITH GETAFE THE SIGNING OF PEDRO LEON

REAL MADRID started its pre-season today with new Coach José Mourinho hard at work & already exercising his influence with signing decisions. According to local daily “AS”, Spanish Liga team GETAFE President Angel Torres has come to an agreement with REAL MADRID to transfer 23 year old Spanish midfielder PEDRO LEON after Mourinho gave his Ok to the operation.

Real Madrid will now pay Getafe 10M€ for the signing which is exactly the contract release clause amount & offers a 6 year contract. What is now needed is that both Clubs make a public announcement to make it all official. Tweet

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REAL MADRID | GETAFE PLAYER PEDRO LEON NEXT 2010-2011 SIGNING?

He was one of the revelation players of the SPANISH LEAGUE last season. The Spanish & GETAFE player PEDRO LEON of 23 years of age (below) has been followed by REAL MADRID for the last 6 months. The rumours have been ripe ever since that Pedro Leon was destined to play at Real Madrid next season, but the negotiations were halted with the arrival of new Coach José Mourinho.

The latest news from Spanish Sports daily “Marca” is that REAL MADRID & GETAFE met yesterday (Friday) to come to an agreement for the transfer of the attacking midfielder. The only “obstacle” for now is Coach José Mourinho who is studying the videos of the player while on holiday to decide if the Getafe player can be of value to Real Madrid. Many insiders at the Madrid Club think marvels about Leon & see him as a future prospect to grab now while his contract release clause is 10M€ , which could be less if negotiated as it seems by the reports already published. The media source even goes on further to say that Mourinho is almost convinced & the announcement of the transfer could come within the next days.
Stay tuned for developments as this is still speculation & it isn’t over until the fat lady sings or until the Clubs - & not Spanish press – officially announce the operation. Tweet

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VALENCIA CF SIGN GETAFE FORWARD ROBERTO SOLDADO

VALENCIA CF has found a substitute for departed forward David Villa in GETAFE striker & ex-Real Madrid player ROBERTO SOLDADO. The 25 year old player signs for the next 4 years & Valencia pays the Madrid (Getafe) Club a cool 10M€ over the next coming years in various instalments as part of the contract release clause obligation.

A good signing as Soldado has had a great 2009-2010 season & now with this jump in “catagory” has a chance to show his Football style on the European stage.

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PEDRO LEON | REAL MADRID, SEVILLA FC ATLETICO DE MADRID OR AC MILAN ?

Source: Spanish Football Sports Blog /
Real Madrid, Sevilla Fc & Atletico de Madrid are thinking about it, especially the first mentioned. The contract release clause is “only” 10M€ & in today’s market prices the price / quality ratio is high. Who am I taking about?

The player is PEDRO LEON midfielder for Spanish team GETAFE who exploded onto the Spanish Football scene the past season & was extremely unlucky not to have made the Spanish Football World Cup squad, in my humble opinion. While these big Spanish Clubs decide Italian giant AC MILAN may come along a take the player from their grasp.

According to local paper “AS” this is what is brewing in the Italian Clubs plans. The player is awaiting Real Madrid to pay the contract release clause but the Spanish Club has not made the expected move. This is making Leon anxious & could lead him to decide to take up the AC Milan offer & proposal.

Stay tuned. Which ever Club decides to take the player, they will have a great midfielder in their squad as Pedro Leon has made the quality jump & will continue getting better as time goes on. Tweet

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AMAZING ROBERTO SOLDADO GOAL | GETAFE - SPORTING | SPANISH LEAGUE - LIGA

Source SFS /
Check out this overhead goal by Getafe forward ROBERTO SOLDADO in yesterdays Spanish Legaue - Liga - Round 36 mid week match against Sporting de Gijón. This amazing effort served as the equalizer for his team in the final 1-1 result.

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ARSENAL & AC MILAN GO AFTER ANDER HERRERA & PEDRO LEON RESPECTIVELY

Source: Spanish Football Sports Blog /
Two Spanish Football players are attracting attention outside of Spain & have received offers to continue with their profession at Arsenal & Milan respectively according to Spanish daily “AS”.

The first is 20 year old Spanish International ANDER HERRERA of REAL ZARAGOZA whom Arsenal has offered 10M€ which the Spanish Club has refused. Negotiations are still open as the contract release clause is 24M€, but an offer closer to 15-18M€ may convince the Spaniards. The young player is said to be seen as a possible substitute for Cesc Fabragas who points towards Spanish Football next season if all the rumours are correct.


The other player is PEDRO LEON from Madrid Club GETAFE who has AC MILAN seriously studying the option of paying directly his contract release clause of 10M€. In fact reports go further & have said that the Italian Club has even offered directly the player a 5 year contract. The Spanish player, who prefers to continue in Spain, is tempted & will be making a decision in the coming weeks. Tweet

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS GOALS (CRISTIANO RONALDO HIGUAIN): GETAFE 2 REAL MADRID 4

Source: Spanish Football Sports Blog /
Due to popular request from the SFS Blog Asian readers, in the mayority, here is the full VIDEO summary of all the goals in yesterdays 2-4 REAL MADRID victory over GETAFE. Check out the CRISTIANO RONALDO free-kick goal:

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VIDEO: DAVID VILLA GOAL AGAINST GETAFE - PURE CLASS

VALENCIA CF & Spanish International forward DAVID VILLA has
gone into the lead in the Spanish League goal scoring tally with
17 goals so far, ahead FC Barcelona player Messi (16 goals) & Real
Madrid player Higuaín (14 goals). The race will be definately on
until the end of the season between these 3, with the possiblity of
Cristiano Ronaldo joining them, for the prestigious "Pichichi Award".

Until then enjoy this gem of a goal scored yesterday by Villa against
Getafe. Watch the "cool as a cucumber" attitude with an exquisite
touch tecnique, poetry in motion:

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