La Liga Jornada 33

TM wrote:Goals:

http://www.rojadirecta.com/foros/viewtopic.php?t=39540

TM wrote:Valencia and Zaragoza getting relegated, now that would be something

TM wrote:He'll be sacked at the end IMO.

Calidad wrote:

TM wrote:He'll be sacked at the end IMO.

And he'll get a huge pay out for doing so. If he had any dignity he'd walk or waive the fee, but considering the manner in which he left PSV I can't see that happening.

TM wrote:

Calidad wrote:

TM wrote:He'll be sacked at the end IMO.

And he'll get a huge pay out for doing so. If he had any dignity he'd walk or waive the fee, but considering the manner in which he left PSV I can't see that happening.

Won't look good on his CV regardless of the $$$$$$$

Rosicky wrote:wow

5-1.

awful from valencia.

Barca - Tomato-Eating Surrender Monkeys
Posted 21/04/08 09:04
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"We're not in the ideal position to win the league", admitted Frank Rijkaard, on Saturday night, after the dourest of goalless draws against Espanyol, at Camp Nou.

As understatements go, it rivalled rogue trader, Jerome Kerviel, asking his SG bosses if his billion dollar blunder was "going to look bad" on his appraisal.

Yet again, Barcelona had served up a display limper than a handshake from Larry Grayson and had left Real Madrid eight points clear at the top of the table, with their match against Racing Santander still to play on Sunday night.

And yet again, Barcelona had failed to win a game against opposition who brought less to the party than a tight-fisted agoraphobic.

On Saturday night, Espanyol were so primed for a pummelling the players could have turned up with targets painted on their shirts.

Having spent a very merry Christmas in the Champions League places, the poor old Pericos have since had a dismal time in the Primera.

Ernesto Valverde's men had picked up just nine points from forty two before Saturday's derby - a lamentable record that would have seen the manager booted into touch, according Valverde himself, had it not been for a spectacular first round record.

But Barcelona have not been faring much better.

Allegations from a club official of injuries being faked and the likes of Deco, Ronaldinho and Rafael Marquez being sidelined ran in parallel with the poorest performances on the pitch, with the Catalan club only managing seven points from the previous twenty-four.

Before Saturday night's match, the admirably optimistic Rijkaard claimed that, "miracles happen, if you believe in them".

On Sunday morning, the Dutch coach would have been gloomily munching on his pan con tomate reading of rebellion in the Catalan-crazed press.

"It was more of the same," sighed world-weary Josep Maria Casanova in Sport. "Impotency, frustration and bad play" wrote the columnist on the derby.

And not on his post-partido marital machinations, as the Freud-obsessed Spanish Thing first assumed.

It was an opinion mirrored in a gleeful Marca who wrote that Barcelona 'have thrown in the towel' on domestic glory and are only focussed on the Champions League.

And that was clear with Rijkaard's starting line up on Saturday night.

Whilst the Catalan press noted that Manchester United chose to play a near full strength team against Blackburn, Barcelona left Eric Abidal, Andrés Iniesta, Deco, Leo Messi and Thierry Henry on the bench - the latter suffering from a fever, according to his manager.

But after a typically lacklustre first half which produced a paltry two shots on target for the home side, Rijkaard decided to chuck the ever impressive Iniesta onto the pitch after the break, along with his miracle-maker, Messi.

The results were almost immediate with the Argentine causing more chaos and carnage in the opening minute that the likes of Eidur Gudjohnsen and Giovani had managed over the previous forty-five.

'We need 11 Messis', yelled the headline in Sport, on Sunday, and they were quite right - although the midget-magician would need Hulk-like quantities of growth hormone to fill in at centre back.

The performance of Messi put some lead into the footballing pencil of the home side and confirmed Carlos Tevez's recent declaration that "Barcelona is one thing with Messi and another without him."

From the off, he was hounding the Espanyol rearguard and starting to make things happen. But his display merely showed how lopsided and one-dimensional the current Barcelona side is without Ronaldinho on the left.

With suggestions that his current six week lay injury off is hokum and reports that the Brazilian slept on the bus during a recent training away-day before joining the party for a bonding BBQ, d'inho is unlikely to appear in that place ever again.

Instead, its a role that Bojan Krkic had to fill on Saturday night, and it was a complete waste of the youngster's fox in the box prowess.

What is causing most frustration to the fans - who again waved handkerchieves, papers and plastic bags at the Barça board, despite Sport's ridiculous claims that the referee was the true target of their tears and jeers - is the meek manner of their players' performances.

The squad is still outrageously talented but barring a few honourable exceptions seems to posses stomachs for a finger buffet, but not for a fight.

Last season, a Capello-inspired Real Madrid won ten of their last twelve games to grab the title from Barcelona's clutches in an incredible title charge.

But with the roles reversed this year, the depressing defeatism at the Catalan club from is evident with Barça managing just one win in their last eight matches and losing more leads than a forgetful Barbara Woodhouse.

And it is a run that has allowed Real Madrid to limp towards the league title, almost challenged - a title they will win should they beat Athletic Bilbao next weekend, and Barça and Villarreal both lose.

With European football being the funny old beast that it is, Barcelona clearly cannot be discounted over their two testing ties with Manchester United.

Man for man, they are a more than a match for Sir Fergie's footballers. But unless the Catalan club adds some pace, power - but more importantly - pride to their performances over the two legs, they could be on the end of spanking so severe even Max Mosely would flinch.

With Samuel Eto'o admitting on Sunday that he would leave the club if it looked there were no more titles to be won and the protests from the Ultra groups becoming more fearsome by the day, defeat for Joan Laporta's players against Manchester United is simply not an option.

"I can still imagine us winning in Moscow" said the club president on Saturday night.

Looks like he's not the only one who believes in miracles.

Round 33 results

Racing Santander 0-2 Real Madrid
Athletic Bilbao 5-1 Valencia
Villarreal 2-0 Valladolid
Levante 3-1 Getafe
Osasuna 0-1 Deportivo
Murcia 1-4 Mallorca
Sevilla 1-4 Almería
Barcelona 0-0 Espanyol
Atlético Madrid 1-3 Real Betis
Zaragoza 3-0 Recreativo


Tim Stannard

Monday's Good Day, Bad Day - Round 33

Monday 21 April 2008 11:38

Good Day

Levante

Ah. It's been another vintage year for the goons nominally in charge of the game in Spain.

Changing kick off times and locations the day before matches. Doing diddly squat about the TV wars. Forgetting all about Betis' punishment. Tucking the Copa del Rey final away to a handy Thursday two in the morning slot...

But their biggest triumph must be having completely ignored the pecuniary plight of lowly Levante. Quite how the situation can arise when the players of a top flight club can go unpaid for over a year without either the league, FA or even unions dragging themselves away from their 10 course dinners to do anything about it is anyone's guess.

If the Levante players follow up on their threat to strike on Sunday then all power to their footballing elbows. Two wins on the trot have won the players a huge amount of respect and praise from the Spanish press. And all deserved.

As the t-shirts worn by the squad as they came out onto the pitch read - "Solutions Now!"

Espanyol

In the wonderful world of Espanyol not losing is considered a good day, so here's happy-chappy Paul from Barcelona.

"A thoroughly deserved point for Espanyol against the self-proclaimed biggest club in the world. We defended so well against a team who never seriously looked like scoring. Zabaleta was fantastic, Kameni made up for his howler last week.

Even with the introduction of Messi, Barça were still poor though not as poor as their supporters.

What a shower of ***** (answers on a postcard). At home, in a local derby and they get out-sung by around 800 Espanyol fans. Our worst turnout for years but a lot of people did boycott the match in protest against recent performances.

I met a group of lads from Swindon who said they were so shocked by how quiet it was. Rumour has it Barça will be sponsored by Kleenex next season judging by the amount of hankies being waved about. In fairness it wasn't a great match but a moral victory for Espanyol."

Paul, Barcelona

Real Madrid

The post match a'leaping and a'laughing celebrations from the Real Madrid players may have been a little on the premature side, but they are understandable considering that the Racing clash was a match that many - including this blog - expected Real Madrid to lose on Sunday.

Instead, it was the best away performance for some time with some swoon and swagger returning to their game. And maybe that was because Guti wasn't on the pitch to slow the game down to a snail's pace as he muses over which pass to pick.

A win on Sunday against Athletic and a defeat for both Villarreal and Barcelona means that it will be curtains on this year's title 'race' next weekend. And thank merciful Zeus for that, says La Liga Loca.

Villarreal

A victory at last after two disappointing defeats. "Our obligation is to finish second," says Manuel Pellegrini. Villarreal's obligation is to not roll over like fluffy, wuffy kittens when things start to get a little sweaty.

Dani Güiza

Has now broken the record for most goals scored by a Mallorca player in a season with a hat-trick on Sunday bringing the diamond Güiza up to 21 and hot on the heels of a failing Fabiano at Sevilla.

The Mallorcan magician should still be selected ahead of Raul for Euro 2008 no matter what a moaning Marca is saying, purely on the grounds that he scowls considerably less and his goal celebration is not as fingernail-tearingly annoying. Although not by much mind.

Deportivo

The side's six man defence serves them well yet again with a victory over Osasuna that even Miguel Angel Lotina says was a trifle undeserved - especially because of an iffy penalty.

Incredibly, Deportivo have had a second half of the season that would see them in the Champions League places if it had been repeated in the first. But, that's a big if.

Unai Emery

Perhaps the best sight of the weekend was the sight of a rain-soaked Unai Emery leaping around the touchline like a lagered-up loon as all four of his side's strikes against Sevilla slammed home.

Ricardo Oliveira

Finally the on-loan Brazilian striker remembered where the goal was after firing blanks for the past three games. His two goal haul was enough to keep Zaragoza out of some serious relegation do-do. At least for this week anyway.

Betis

Looks like Paco Chaparro managed to drag his players back from the mental tropical island they had all gone to.

33 points from 19 matches for potty Paco and Manuel Ruiz de Lopera is still contemplating whether to renew his manic manager's contract or not. It's not as if he will have alternative options queuing around the block to sign him up over the summer.

Bad Day

Barcelona

As La Liga Loca wrote elsewhere - Surrender Monkeys.

And it has nothing more to say on the subject.

Atlético Madrid

There were two very loud noises in Madrid this weekend. One was the calor gas van at seven in the frickin' morning with what sounded like a game of bowls with the canisters being played by the driver. The second was the boos and barracks floating up the hill from the mad-as-hell maniacs at the Vicente Calderón.

The rojiblancos are currently riding their luck in their Champions League chase. Despite letting a lead go in the last minute against Valladolid and crashing to a dreadful defeat against Betis on Saturday they are still in prime position to be knocked out by Viddvolvv Krz in the Champions League qualifiers thanks to the footballing failures of Racing and Sevilla this weekend.

"I'm just one more manager who had handkerchiefs being waved him," shrugged Javier Aguirre who must have a sneaky feeling that Atlético's traditional season-ending balls up is now well underway.

Getafe

Not quite in crisis mode, but a run of no wins in five and just one goal scored suggest that the season is turning as sour as La Liga Loca's last attempt to make risotto.

"The team is affected by the cup final and that's human," admitted Michael Laudrup after Sunday's 3-1 defeat to Levante.

Just one more victory should drag a clearly exhausted Getafe over the finishing line. And with pathetico Atlético as the next visitors to the Coliseum they may not have too long a wait to do it.

Sevilla

No idea what's going on down there at the Sánchez Pizjuán. And nor does Manolo Jiménez who looked like a man on the brink of blubbing on Saturday night.

Valencia

Pathetic. Rubbish. Shameless. Useless. Abject. But most of all, very, very funny.

Osasuna

La Liga Loca was watching the Real Madrid game with a couple of exiled Osasuna fans on Sunday night. And they told the blog two things.

No, Osasuna won't be going down. And no, the home fans will not be giving the Real Madrid players a warm hand on their entrance if they turn up to their formidable fortress as champions. They may have some commemorative cigarette lighters to take home with them though.

Marca says that Osasuna are going through Groundhog Day. But without the ice-sculpting. Instead, the side are dominating games but missing chances and coming away with nothing to show for their work.