La Liga thread

[kingraf]

Well, with the league in Spain restarting soon, thought I'd put this up. Backed Atlético to repeat this year, and watching last nights game, think I could be right. Think Real will find that we've gone and bought more coats of paint on the Bentley, having sold the engine... Again. It's like history really is bound to repeat itself.

[Guest]

Real Madrid already a goal down within a minute

Hope they get hammered. May have a luxury of attacking options but they can't disregard there defence

[Ent]

Good game developed here.

Madrid banging at the door and atletico counter attacking.

Much higher tempo and commitment that our own charity shield.

[kingraf]

Yeah, di Maria was missed last night. Against a team like Atleti, his ability to take players on and create "broken" play", which Bale, Ronaldo and Benzema benefited from. Atleti are the best team in Spain, and one of the best in Europe, so I don't think we'll be too badly punished as a general rule, but yeah, we might get found out in the big games.

[Fernando]

The Bilbao keeper has been screwed. Epic header though   

[Fernando]

Diego Simeone gives a small slap on the referee's head. Get's 8 match ban.

Ronaldo punches Diego Godin in the face. Get's 0 match ban.

Go figure

#LaLigaBestInTheWorldForFixingOnly

[kingraf]

la liga very rarely ban players retrospectively. It's hardly a shocker... Don't see you demanding Godin get banned for putting Cristiano in a headlock.

[kingraf]

In any case, if Pardew got an eight match ban for touching a player, then Diego also gets a little lucky here, as touching an official is always looked at in a hasher manner

[The Special Juan]

And Mourinho only got 1 for poking Tito in the eye...

[kingraf]

The actual ban itself was only four matches... the rest was a snowball effect, will probably be overturned anyway.

[kingraf]

I've got money on Diego pulling the repeat, but I don't buy this victim storyline...what I mean the guy is now simultaneously serving three bans!

[kingraf]

James has incredibly dark hair.

[kingraf]

Anyway, thoughts on the performance.

Rodriguez- he'll come good, but it was an abject performance

Kroos- just the boss. Pretty much already owns every blade of grass at the Bernie. Remarkable control of a match.

Bale-he was there

Ronnie- Fantastic goal, but not quite no the board

The Di Maria factor. Well, yeah we missed him...

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Real given up a 2-0 lead to Sociedad 3-2 atm

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

I'll never get Real's transfer policy, why they didn't just keep the same side as last season and make a few additions I'll never know

[The Special Juan]

Real could do with bringing Di Maria off the bench. OH WAIT!! Nyahahahahaha.

[kingraf]

I'm not even gonna say anything.

[Ent]

Have Madrid made the galacticos mark 2 and made the same mistakes again?

[kingraf]

You couldn't make it up. I knew it would happen... so did everyone else. Kroos was a good signing, Rodríguez was excess, selling di Maria was as young Oliver would say "HeadsGone". We've Exacerbated the situation by selling Alonso, who would still have been a great squad player and offers greater defensive cover than Kroos or Modric.

[The Special Juan]

The main problem is that the defenders are crap. Marcelo is as good as Rafael (hell, I'd argue Rafael is better at defending), Pepe is average at best, Ramos is too inconsistent (like Luiz he's alright on his day but you can count on him doing something daft) and I don't know much about Carvajal so can't judge there. HOWEVER, there is a real lack of quality defenders these days but when Varane matures Real will have one.

[Crimey]

Yeah, just not sure who Real Madrid could have signed to improve the defence, the only players I can think of are the ones who are likely to be not for sale like Kompany or Thiago Silva.

[kingraf]

We're so fighting for fourth.

[Fernando]

Fredy Guarin heading to Real apparently

[nadeem2099]

The Madrid side is too attack heavy imo. Last season we had alonso and Di Maria in the centre of midfield. We replaced alonso with kroos, who was a bargain but Di Maria's defensive contribution was what made us win la decima. I don't think the 433 will work this season unless kroos ups his defensive work.

[The Special Juan]

There's something so satisfying about watching Real Madrid losing.

[Nakatomi Plaza]

Cracking win that for Atleti. Already two defeats for Real.

[nadeem2099]

The Madrid side is too attack heavy imo. Last season we had alonso and Di Maria in the centre of midfield.  We replaced alonso with kroos,  who was a bargain but Di Maria's defensive contribution was what made us win la decima. I don't think the 433 will work this season unless kroos ups his defensive work.

Looks like I was right about kroos. Atletico's second goal was because modric and kroos didn't track back. And ancelotti's sub straight after they scored, arbeloa for varane was even more mind boggling.

[kingraf]

Seriously lads, Atletico to win La Liga is the definition of a blue chip investment. I got 18/1, Cant be much worse now than then.

[The Special Juan]

Good PL players going to La Liga to play for either Real or Barca must be like setting the FIFA difficulty down a level or two. Hernandez has NEVER scored a goal like that volley against Deportivo before.

[Guest]

Ridiculous wasn't it. Deportivo were embarrassing at times, comical. No wonder CR7 bangs another hat-trick to add to his stats.

[kingraf]

Holy cow... Yeah Deportivo were poor... I think, only just got home and didn't catch the match. But you still have to put them away. I can't think they are much worse than Ludogroets, and I didn't see Liverpool putting eight past them...

[kingraf]

Slightly embarrassing to have conceded two against that lot though

[nadeem2099]

Slightly embarrassing to have conceded two against that lot though

I heard the commentators say 7 of depor"s starting 11 were making their debut yesterday. I remember a couple of years ago we could never get a win at their stadium but now I hope the bad start to the league is over.

[kingraf]

Slightly unrelated but Xabi Alonso made 175 passes for München today. Made 143 midweek. Ridiculous involvement. Taking orchestrating the game to unseen levels. The definition of an Indian summer.

Clean sheet for Real today, so that'll be welcome. Thought the RONALDO banner was pretty lame. Plus it's not gonna happen.

[Guest]

Munich were playing F.C Koln, what do you expect? Alonso in the WC against Chile was ageing & to me, looked very much half the player he once was. He's gone to an easier league in a dominating team, he'll dictate those games with ease.

Yeah, saw the 'come back to United' banner or whatever it said. I think the story has legs, not in the immediate future but maybe in a year or two. Madrid will want to bring in some cash for him & begin rebuilding after him.

[kingraf]

Not just Köln, though. He was head and shoulders above every single member of the City midfield as well. Led in touches, passes, distance covered... Was that a weaker side as well?

Don't see it personally. I doubt Ronaldo will finish at Real, but he'll be here for a ways yet. He's sold over six million shirts since he got here, which is more than most clubs have in the last five years. Also adding his image royalties, which we still own 50% I think, and he's simply the embodiment of a cash cow, and will be for at least two or three years. Plus he's scoring, and Utd are fighting mid table mediocrity, which always helps.

[Fernando]

Players from Real Zaragoza and Levante have been issued with a summons as part of an investigation into match-fixing.

The game under investigation took place at the end of the 2010-11 season, when Zaragoza won 2-1 at Levante.

Current Atletico Madrid captain Gabi Fernandez scored twice for Zaragoza in a victory that saved the club from relegation.
Both clubs deny any wrongdoing and say they will co-operate fully with the enquiry.
The state prosecutor's office in Madrid said in a statement that it had "started procedures to investigate match-fixing and has summoned players implicated for questioning on 2 October".

In June 2013, Spanish league president Javier Tebas included the Levante-Zaragoza match in a list of nine matches that the league was investigating for possible match-fixing.

If the state prosecutor finds evidence of a crime, the case will be brought to a judge. Match-fixing is a crime in Spain and can lead to prison sentences for individuals and a club being banned from competition.

Uefa president Michel Platini recently spoke about how match-fixing is the biggest threat to the future of football.

The match-fixing scandal engulfing Spanish football extended to La Liga champions Atletico Madrid's captain Gabriel Fernandez 'Gabi' on Thursday, when it was revealed the player told the state prosecutor: 'I did what the club told me to do'.

Gabi was captain of Zaragoza back in 2011. On the last day of the season they had to beat Levante to stand any chance of staying up. Gabi had been inspirational in the season's run-in captaining the side with form that would eventually win him a move to Atletico Madrid. He scored both goals in the 2-1 win that secured safety.

But investigators are investigating the suggestion around 12 Zaragoza players received a total of 120,000 euros in their bank accounts in the week leading up to the game and that they paid their Levante rivals in cash for throwing the match

[kingraf]

I do like our new defensive formation. Whoever is closest to the ball do something. Funny enough that is our offensive formation as well.

Ronaldo hat trick again.

[The Special Juan]

I'd love to see you play Chelsea in the CL. It might be the best two legged tie ever.

[Guest]

Ronaldo hat trick again.

is that 22 hat-tricks in spain, how many did he get in england, one or two? three hat-tricks in four games? the defending is just embarrassing, not to mention the refereeing, whereby ronaldo can just elbow in the third goal. astonishing player, outstanding stats but he's playing in a poor, poor league of defending.

[kingraf]

Well Suárez is coming over in a few months. Let's see how many hat tricks he gets then? I think the reality is quite simple mate. Spanish league is a technical league. Teams will try play ball, so unlike the EPL, where the weaker teams make up for their inferiority with hard yards, over in La liga it's a talent contest, and you just aren't gonna touch Madrid in that. La Liga isn't a weak league. If it was, your top clubs wouldn't be poaching mid table talent. Bilbao put a pretty nifty Napoli to the sword six weeks ago, so they aren't rubbish. They've obviously not had the best of times recently, but putting five last them is no mean feat. You really think your eighteenth best side, Burnley, could come over and have bigger ambitions than keeping it in single Figures? If Chelsea can put six past Everton, I'd back us to damage most EPL teams.
Also Real are just bloody good. We put five past Basel, and most of you lambasted Basel for being weak, and they just beat 'Pool.

Wouldn't be too afraid of a battle against Chelsea juan. only team in Europe I'd fear is Bayern. Just think they'd have too much of the ball to not expose our soft underbelly.

[monty junior]

Indeed you had the bottom team last season go out on away goals in the Europa League last 16, could hardly see Burnley or Cardiff doing that. Like you say the mentality is on technique and attack which to an extent is pretty stupid when you are completely outgunned but works well against teams from other league that lack the technical ability the higher teams in La Liga have.

[Fernando]

Real Madrid: Casillas; Carvajal, Pepe, Ramos, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric, Isco; Rodriguez, Ronaldo; Benzema.
Barcelona: Bravo; Mathieu, Pique, Mascherano, Alves; Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta; Neymar, Messi, Suarez.

[The Special Juan]

Real win I think. Surely Messi, Neymar and Suarez can't work?

[Gerry SA]

Barcelona have got this.

Neymar Jr, Suarez and Messi there's no front line better than that in football

[Fernando]

Real win I think.  Surely Messi, Neymar and Suarez can't work?

It's full of pace, dribbling and clinical finishing. Id be surprised if didn't work out for them that being said i think Madrid win comfortably 

[Gerry SA]

Gonna be comedy watching the two clowns, Pepe and Ramos, get exposed yet again

[The Special Juan]

Real win I think.  Surely Messi, Neymar and Suarez can't work?

It's full of pace, dribbling and clinical finishing. Id be surprised if didn't work out for them that being said i think Madrid win comfortably 

It depends if they're not greedy with the ball I suppose. If they do click then it might be the best forward line ever.

[kingraf]

Xavi is starting

[Guest]

1-0 Neymar but we can't see it until 5.15

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