| 2010/2011 Spanish Primera División Fixtures | |||||||
Aug. '10 | |||||||
| Sun. 29 | 11:00 AM ET | Mallorca | v | Real Madrid | ONO Estadi | ||
Sep. '10 | |||||||
| Sun. 12 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Osasuna | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 19 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Sociedad | v | Real Madrid | Anoeta | ||
| Wed. 22 | 2:00 PM ET | Real Madrid | v | Espanyol | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 26 | 11:00 AM ET | Levante | v | Real Madrid | Ciutat de Valencia | ||
Oct. '10 | |||||||
| Sun. 3 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Deportivo La Coruña | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 17 | 11:00 AM ET | Málaga | v | Real Madrid | La Rosaleda | ||
| Sun. 24 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Racing Santander | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 31 | 12:00 PM ET | Hercules | v | Real Madrid | José Rico Pérez | ||
Nov. '10 | |||||||
| Sun. 7 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Atlético Madrid | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 14 | 11:00 AM ET | Sporting Gijon | v | Real Madrid | El Molinón | ||
| Sun. 21 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Athletic Bilbao | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 28 | 11:00 AM ET | Barcelona | v | Real Madrid | Camp Nou | ||
Dec. '10 | |||||||
| Sun. 5 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Valencia | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 12 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Zaragoza | v | Real Madrid | La Romareda | ||
| Sun. 19 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Sevilla FC | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
Jan. '11 | |||||||
| Sun. 2 | 11:00 AM ET | Getafe | v | Real Madrid | Coliseum Alfonso Pérez | ||
| Sun. 9 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Villarreal | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 16 | 11:00 AM ET | Almeria | v | Real Madrid | Juegos Mediterráneos | ||
| Sun. 23 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Mallorca | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 30 | 11:00 AM ET | Osasuna | v | Real Madrid | Reyno de Navarra | ||
Feb. '11 | |||||||
| Sun. 6 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Real Sociedad | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 13 | 11:00 AM ET | Espanyol | v | Real Madrid | Cornellá - El Prat | ||
| Sun. 20 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Levante | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 27 | 11:00 AM ET | Deportivo La Coruña | v | Real Madrid | Municipal de Riazor | ||
Mar. '11 | |||||||
| Wed. 2 | 2:00 PM ET | Real Madrid | v | Málaga | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 6 | 11:00 AM ET | Racing Santander | v | Real Madrid | El Sardinero | ||
| Sun. 13 | 12:00 PM ET | Real Madrid | v | Hercules | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 20 | 12:00 PM ET | Atlético Madrid | v | Real Madrid | Vicente Calderón | ||
Apr. '11 | |||||||
| Sun. 3 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Sporting Gijon | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 10 | 11:00 AM ET | Athletic Bilbao | v | Real Madrid | San Mamés | ||
| Sun. 17 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Barcelona | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 24 | 11:00 AM ET | Valencia | v | Real Madrid | Mestalla | ||
May. '11 | |||||||
| Sun. 1 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Real Zaragoza | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 8 | 11:00 AM ET | Sevilla FC | v | Real Madrid | Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán | ||
| Wed. 11 | 2:00 PM ET | Real Madrid | v | Getafe | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
| Sun. 15 | 11:00 AM ET | Villarreal | v | Real Madrid | El Madrigal | ||
| Sun. 22 | 11:00 AM ET | Real Madrid | v | Almeria | Santiago Bernabéu | ||
Por tu gol del Aguanís en Tokio, por el de tu primer derbi ante el Atleti en el Bernabéu, por el de Barcelona en el que silenciaste el Camp Nou, por el de París burlando a Cañizares y Djukic, por tu golazo en el Calderón partiendo la cintura a Superlópez, por el que clavaste a Bonano desde fuera del área en la semifinal de Champions ante el Barça, por tu hat-trick al Ferencvaros en tu arranque europeo a lo grande, por tu gol de pícaro al Bayer Leverkusen que abrió la lata de la Novena, por tu doblete en Old Trafford en la noche mágica de tu 'hermano' Redondo, por tus tres chicharritos en el Pizjuán cuando ya te daban por acabado, por aquel 4-2 a los culés en el que jugaste con la ceja partida y la sangre brotando mientras te partías el alma por cada balón...
En suma, te doy las gracias en nombre de una legión irreductible de madridistas que no nos resignamos a perderte para siempre. De hecho, has logrado que Digital+ dispare su bolsa de abonados porque esta temporada todos vamos a ser infieles durante dos horas a nuestro verdadero amor, que es el tuyo: el Madrid. En esas dos horas libertinas nos enchufaremos al televisor para ponernos la camiseta del Schalke 07, como bien lo rebautizó mi colega Elías Israel. Tus fallos nos quitarán el apetito, tus goles nos pondrán como una moto. Te has ido pero sigues aquí, a nuestro lado. Te sentimos cerca, con esa mirada de león enjaulado que te ha convertido en uno de los grandes de la historia. Raúl, te llevas parte de nuestro corazón. Siempre fieles, capitán.
Sergio Ramos: "Se va del Madrid uno de los grandes del fútbol"
Sergio Ramos, defensa internacional del Real Madrid, dedicó unas palabras de elogio a su amigo José María Gutiérrez "Guti" el día que anunció su marcha del Real Madrid tras quince años en la primera plantilla, y aseguró que "se va uno de los grandes del fútbol".
Ramos conversó desde Zahara de los Atunes, donde descansa tras el homenaje que le hicieron en Camas después de proclamarse campeón del Mundial 2010 con España.
RAMOS"Lo voy a echar mucho de menos porque además de ser un compañero es un gran amigo que se va. Es una persona muy grande por dentro"
"Es un día triste por el adiós de Guti. Se va uno de los grandes del fútbol y sin duda uno de los jugadores más grandes de la historia del Real Madrid", manifestó.
"Lo voy a echar mucho de menos porque además de ser un compañero es un gran amigo que se va. Es una persona muy grande por dentro, con un corazón que muchos desconocen. Siempre le he sentido cerca desde que llegué al Real Madrid, como buen compañero que es y en el campo sobra hablar de la calidad que tiene. Deja al madridismo grandes jugadas para el recuerdo. Le echaremos mucho de menos. Espero que sea feliz en Turquía", añadió.
ARBELOA"Todo el mundo habla siempre de la calidad de Guti, pero lo que no se sabe es cómo es su forma de ser y eso es lo que más vamos a echar de menos."
Álvaro Arbeloa también elogió al '14'
"Como canterano del Real Madrid que soy, Guti como Raúl, han sido los dos grandes referentes para nosotros. Los ejemplos a seguir para todos. Y los jugadores con los que hemos aprendido los valores del club", admitió Arbeloa.
"Todo el mundo habla siempre de la calidad de Guti, es lo que se ha visto en el campo siempre porque es uno de los mejores jugadores con los que compartido equipos, pero lo que no se sabe es cómo es su forma de ser y eso precisamente es lo que más vamos a echar de menos. Se va una gran persona y un referente", agregó.
For the Spanish version in it's original from Diario AS read here
My translation into English:
The infallible octopus Paul and his successful World Cup match predictions violate the "halacha" or Jewish religious law, as has sentenced a rabbi in Israel.
David Stav, Rabbi and Chairman of the board of Shoham, a city east of Tel Aviv, said in an interview that the use of an octopus to predict the outcome of the games is "an expression of bankruptcy (moral) that plague the Western world ", reported the Israeli newspaper" Maariv ".
"These types of predictions are contrary to Jewish law," declared the devout.
According to him, "Jewish society has been able to cultivate the mind in the fields of science and medicine and made great achievements," something praiseworthy and totally contrary to what it represents by the use of a cephalopod to predict the victory of La Roja.
The rabbi does not seem impressed by Paul's achievements and believes that the faithful Jews should not applaud the fortune telling skills of the animal revered by the Spanish fans, who requested his transfer to the Madrid Zoo Aquarium.
"It seems that the mind is not sufficient to meet the needs of men," says Stav, who warns that "to seek something beyond the mind can lead to the absurd" like having faith in an octopus to determine the outcome of a sporting event .
Stav is co-founder of the Rabbinical Organization Tzohar and the Yeshiva (Talmudic school) of Petach Tikva and gives classes in the school of Metivta, a women's seminary of the University of Bar Ilan.
He's been one of the world's hottest topics this past month and has even "spoken" to TIME's World Cup blog. But now Paul the psychic octopus is the subject of an international transfer request. Hold onto your tentacles.
Paul is an understandable hero to the Spanish, after he bravely predicted the eventual World Cup winners would defeat Germany in the semi-final. He then went with them again in the final, with Spain's victory meaning the octopus went eight for eight. To show how serious they were about taking care of him, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero offered to send a security team to protect Paul from hungary -- and angry -- German soccer fans. But now a northwestern Spanish town has gone one step further: they want to bring him over.Officials in O Caraballino (population 14,000) have labeled Paul their "honorary friend" and would like him to promote a seafood festival. And a local businessman apparently offered $40,000 to buy him, but the Oberhausen's Sea Life aquarium has turned down the offers. And you thought the trade deadline in baseball could be exciting.
This is but the latest attempt from Spain, where there have been hundreds of requests to bring Paul to the land of the paella. The highest profile of which probably came from the Madrid Zoo earlier this week, who want him as a tribute to the country lifting the World Cup for the first time. Germany has so far not succumbed but it's clear that this story still has legs (yes, eight of them in this case.)
Reuters
This has been a FIFA World Cup™ of firsts: the first on African soil, the first won by Spain and also the first to be assessed second-by-second using the Castrol Index. This innovative system has utilised advanced technology to objectively analyse and evaluate every single player movement, and tonight it crowned its very own FIFA World Cup king.
Its verdict? That Sergio Ramos, Spain’s daring and energetic right-back, has been the most influential and effective player on show over the past month. The Real Madrid star, an ever-present in the top 20 since the second round of group matches, went into the Final in pole position and retained his place in style. Indeed, Ramos emerged as the Castrol Performance Analysts’ man of the match, pipping team-mates Joan Capdevila, Iker Casillas and Andres Iniesta with a score of 9.64 that reflected his efforts at both ends of the field.
A couple of efforts on Maarten Stekelenburg’s goal reminded everyone of his attacking capabilities, but it is at the back – where the world and European champions restricted the Netherlands to precious few opportunities – that the Spain No15 and his team-mates once again excelled. Indeed, with Vicente Del Bosque’s side having conquered the world on the back of four straight clean sheets during the knockout stage, and just two goals conceded overall, it is no wonder that Ramos’s main challenge for the Index title came from his own defensive colleagues.
Sneijder the midfield master
La Roja, who scored just eight goals en route to the title – the fewest of any world champions in history – were heavily indebted to a back four in which Joan Capdevila, Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique also excelled. In fact, only Philipp Lahm prevented this Spanish quartet taking places one, two, three and four in the Index, with Pique the man to drop into fifth due to his comparative lack of attacking involvement.
With David Villa – who leaves South Africa ranked by Castrol as the tournament’s leading striker - also recognised for his early heroics, Spain had kicked off at Soccer City with five players in the Castrol Index top ten to the Netherlands’ one. However, that sole Dutch representative, Wesley Sneijder, cemented his position with another stylish showing in the Final. Once again, the Inter Milan star was adjudged to be the Oranje’s top performer, and heads for home with the consolation of knowing that Castrol’s analysis has deemed him to be the tournament’s top midfielder.
Of course, the Final wasn’t the only match to influence the concluding Castrol Index of South Africa 2010. There was, after all, the small matter of that thrilling play-off for third place between Germany and Uruguay, a match that involved a clutch of potential contenders. Conspicuous by their absence, however, were two of the Index’s erstwhile leading lights: Philipp Lahm, the list’s one time leader, and Manuel Neuer, its top goalkeeper.
Nevertheless, while Lahm’s illness-enforced absence denied him the opportunity to return to the summit, he remained Germany’s highest-ranked player at fourth, while Neuer retained his pre-eminent position at the top of the goalkeeping list despite a late challenge from Casillas. The German duo were even able to gain ground in the Index as they ended the tournament with a superior average score to some of those involved in the last two fixtures.
Suarez outshines Forlan
Although an impressive showing in the third-place play-off was naturally not weighted as highly as a starring role in the Final, others also climbed, with adidas Golden Boot and Golden Ball winners Thomas Muller and Diego Forlan making major gains to enter the top ten and top 50 respectively.
Forlan would have considerably higher but for a poor pass completion rate, with the Uruguay star ranking 61st out of 71 forwards who attempted more than 50 passes. Attacking colleague Luis Suarez ultimately outranked him with an eighth-place finish, while credit should also go to Ghana’s John Pantsil and Paulo da Silva of Paraguay, both of whom finished in the top 20 despite exiting at the quarter-final stage.
There could only be one winner, however, and it was Ramos who took the inaugural honours, completing a fairy tale couple of years for both him and his trophy-laden team.
1 SERGIO RAMOS DF SPAIN 9.79 2 JOAN CAPDEVILA DF SPAIN 9.74 3 CARLES PUYOL DF SPAIN 9.70 4 PHILIPP LAHM DF GERMANY 9.66 5 GERARD PIQUE DF SPAIN 9.63 6 DAVID VILLA FW SPAIN 9.59 7 WESLEY SNEIJDER MF NETHERLANDS 9.56 8 LUIS SUAREZ FW URUGUAY 9.53 9 THOMAS MUELLER MF GERMANY 9.51 10 MANUEL NEUER GK GERMANY 9.48 11 SERGIO BUSQUETS MF SPAIN 9.46 12 JOHN PANTSIL DF GHANA 9.43 13 MARK VAN BOMMEL MF NETHERLANDS 9.41 14 BASTIAN SCHWEINSTEIGER MF GERMANY 9.39 15 PAULO DA SILVA DF PARAGUAY 9.36 16 XABI ALONSO MF SPAIN 9.34 17 ARNE FRIEDRICH DF GERMANY 9.32 18 GREGORY VAN DER WIEL DF NETHERLANDS 9.30 19 JORIS MATHIJSEN DF NETHERLANDS 9.28 20 MAXIMILIANO PEREIRA DF URUGUAY 9.26
A NATION divided is now united. And, no, we're not talking about South Africa.
Spain, a serial underachiever, is one shot from glory. The pundits' favourite to lift the World Cup for the first time. And the people's favourite back home. They're celebrating on Las Ramblas and the Plaza Mayor. A national team, in the truest sense. For how long? Who cares. But right now, all of Spain is behind ''La Roja''. The power of football, and the scent of success.
Spain is a country riven, historically, by the great political and cultural divide between the Catalans and the Castillians. Not to mention the Basques and the Galicians. Its football culture has been defined by the deep, abiding, hatred between Barcelona FC and Real Madrid. But all Spanish fans have one thing in common. An enduring frustration with failure. It's been 60 years since Spain re-entered the international arena. Since Real Madrid and, more recently, Barcelona, became the benchmarks for club football. But in that time, the national team has consistently flattered to deceive.
Hands up if you remember Estanislao Basora? The Barcelona forward scored five goals in the 1950 World Cup, but Spain went out in the second round. Perhaps you might remember Marcelino Martinez, the Real Zaragoza striker who got his head to the ball to help Spain win the 1964 European crown. Until two years ago, when Spain won the European title for a second time, that was the only trophy in the cabinet. For a nation with such a rich football tradition, the hall of fame is scandalously small.
Vicente del Bosque is the coach who has changed everything. Perhaps because he comes from Castile and Leon, an autonomous province that promotes linguistic and cultural harmony, he's been able to bring the various groups together. The first player to congratulate Carles Puyol - the captain of Barcelona - when he scored the goal to win the semi-final was Sergio Ramos, who plays for Real Madrid. This is a team in the truest sense of the word. No egos, no in-fighting. Del Bosque hasn't changed much at all since he took over two years ago - at least in terms of tactics and personnel - but he has brought a calming influence. And it shows.
Italy, France, Brazil and England have all gone home with a whiff of disharmony in the air. Spain is into the final because it has been forged by the sense of mission. To right the wrongs of the past, when Spain was routinely tipped to do great things but failed to achieve even the smallest ambitions.
The modern Spain, it must be said, is blessed with arguably the greatest generation of players in its history. Between 2007 and 2009, it didn't lose in 35 games. A world record. Since then, it has lost just twice. Spain's campaign could have spiralled into a vortex of self-doubt and recriminations. Instead it has bounced back. Opportunity is knocking like it's never knocked before, and finally Spain is ready to take it.
There’s been plenty of ink for Paul the octopus lately, and why not?
Octopus Paul chose a mussel from a glass tank marked with a Spanish flag, while ignoring the tank marked with the German colors - indicating a Spanish victory in Wednesday's semifinal.
The octopus, also known as the “Oracle of Oberhausen,” has successfully predicted the winner of six World Cup matches so far.
Now, Paul has forecast the winner of Sunday’s championship match. And rather than go out on a limb—or maybe eight of them—the critter is sticking with the favorite, picking Spain over the Netherlands.
Handlers of the 2 1/2 -year-old floppy octopus—a resident of the Oberhausen Sea Life aquarium—usually have him make predictions only for games in which Germany plays. But because of Paul’s recent worldwide fame and demand for his pick for the final, they made an exception.
Here’s how the seer sucker makes his prognostications: Officials put a mussel inside each of two clear plastic boxes bearing the national flags of the teams in his tank. Paul then makes his choice by opening the lid with his tentacles and devouring one of the treats.
Millions across Europe, in Taiwan and elsewhere watched a live TV broadcast Friday of his choice of Spain, complete with breathless commentary. He also predicted Germany over Uruguay in Saturday’s third-place game.
Paul has gotten business proposals, has thousands of Facebook fans and even has the attention of world leaders.
Animal rights group PETA wants him freed. Many Germans—upset that he correctly picked Spain over Germany in Wednesday’s semifinal—want him fried.
“Paul is such a professional oracle—he doesn’t even care that hundreds of journalists are watching and commenting on every move he makes,” said Stefan Porwoll, the Sea Life aquarium manager. “We’re so proud of him.”
After his prediction of his home country’s loss came true, German TV showed footage of a grilled octopus. That prompted Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to fret about the safety of “El Pulpo Paul,” as he’s known in Spain.
“I am concerned about the octopus,” Zapatero said. “I’m thinking about sending in a team to protect the octopus because obviously it was very spectacular that he should get Spain’s victory right from there.”
In response to hundreds of angry e-mails from Germans, the aquarium actually took extra precautions, Porwoll said.
“I even told our guards and people at the entrance to keep a close look at possible football fans coming after Paul for revenge,” he said, adding that the hate mail was outweighed by declarations of love and requests for predictions.
PETA says Paul’s tank is too small. But Porwoll said the creature was born in captivity and has never had to deal with any natural enemies, so dumping Paul into the Atlantic would likely mean death. He could live up to four years in captivity, Porwoll added.
In the meantime, he might have a future beyond World Cup. A reporter from Greece asked if the mollusk medium could foresee the end of the financial crisis, and German TV stations have offered lucrative contracts, Porwoll said.
After Arab news sites reported Paul’s picks, it was suggested he be sent to Iraq to choose between two bitter rivals—Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his main challenger, Ayad Allawi—vying to head the new government.
Gary Jenkins, an economist with London’s Evolution Securities, hedged his market analysis note Friday with the phrase, “unless Paul says differently.”
Graham Sharpe, a spokesman for English bookmaker William Hill, said bettors have been asking the staff about the picks by the buoyant clairvoyant.
“If you had just bet 10 pounds ($15) on each of Paul’s six successive winning selections … so far, you would have made a healthy profit of 84 pounds ($126)—but if you had put the winnings from each bet all onto the next one, you would now be looking at 1,400 pounds ($2,108) of profit,” Sharpe said.
Paul is not without competition. There’s also Mani, a parakeet in Singapore, who predicted the Dutch would win Sunday by creeping out of his wooden cage and choosing between two cards that bore the two nations’ flags.
In South Africa, Spanish team defender Carlos Marchena isn’t putting too much stock in Paul’s pick.
“It’s only an octopus,” he said.
A sophisticated new analysis of team tactics predicts a Spanish win in Sunday's FIFA World Cup final and also shows why England were beaten by Germany.
Using the mathematical technique called Graph Theory, they have revealed the gaping holes in England's tactics against Germany game and made predictions about the Netherlands-Spain final that could rival the psychic octopus.
Ask a thousand football fans what they love about the
Spanish national team and you can bank on the fact that Xavi, Fernando Torres, David Villa, Andres Iniesta, quick passing and attacking verve will feature in the vast majority of the answers.
Only the anorak, and I, will fight for the good name of their defensive troops – Iker Casillas, Carlos Marchena, Gerard Pique, Carles Puyol, Sergio Ramos and Joan Capdevila. They are the least known and least appreciated of La Furia Roja, but some of the funniest,
cleverest and most hard-working
footballers at this tournament.
For example, had you any idea that for all Spain’s marvellously daring play when they tear into opponents, the World Cup semi-finalists have kept clean sheets in 19 of their 30 matches since winning the European
Championship in 2008?
And, based on the bedrock of their stingy back four, Spain have now won 40 consecutive internationals when they have gone 1-0 up. Marchena has racked up a world record of 53 inter-
nationals without defeat, beating Garrincha’s record of 49, Capdevila reached the quarter-finals in South Africa as Fifa’s highest-rated player of the tournament via their Castrol Index – earning 9.7 out of 10 despite the fact even the Villarreal man himself says he is “not a first line player”.
Ramos and Capdevila play more like wing-backs than full-backs and before last night’s win over Paraguay, the two had not only completed the majority of Spain’s 106 crosses into the penalty area (28 more than their closest rival) they also had two of the best pass
completion rates in the tournament, 79% and 81% respectively.
I wanted to be a bullfighter, not a footballer, but my mum was too scared
Sergio Ramos
Ramos is something of a law unto himself who told me last week that he got so high up the pitch against
Honduras because he has promised a girlfriend a goal and special celebration, so he’s flying down the wing regardless of tactical orders.
And Capdevila is a good footballer who is one of the most dogged of modern tacklers, but a flying machine he certainly ain’t any more. So shouldn’t Spain be conceding goals to clever opposition wingers? Isn’t the fact that they are often left with two at the back an invitation for quick counter-
attacking teams to score and to beat them on a consistent basis? The odd couple of centre-backs are a major part of why that doesn’t happen.
A couple of days ago, Argentina’s 1978 World Cup-winning coach Cesar Luis Menotti described Pique as “the greatest
centre-half I have seen since Franz Beckenbauer”. When I mentioned this to the Barcelona defender he stopped for a milisecond before confirming that “everyone knows that Menotti knows his football”. Which sums up Pique’s personality: good enough to be nicknamed
“Piquenbauer” in Catalunya, but cheeky, irreverent and occasionally wild.
Television interviews in the Camp Nou have been interrupted by Pique and Bojan dancing behind the presenter wearing only towels around their laps and this week at Ellis Park an interview with Cesc Fabregas was enlivened by the towering centre-half disrobing revealingly behind the interviewer in order to make his best friend, Fabregas, crack up in helpless laughter.
The fact he is so devotedly close to the massively serious, almost obsessively
committed Puyol is one of the
quixotic tricks football produces. They have played together 76 times for club and country, losing twice, and the bond works off the pitch too. “He’s heavy on your ears,” Pique admits about Puyol. “He thinks I lose concentration and he never stops yelling ‘Geri’ at me – even when the ball is in the opposition penalty area!”
Iniesta is an amused spectator with club and country. “They are completely different characters and players which is presumably why the fit is so good,” he says. “They each improve the other and if Puyol brings the power and the determination then Geri adds elegance and a great ability to bring the ball out of defence. Honestly, I think Geri
playing for Barca and Spain has added a lot of fun to Carles’ life. Before he used to stress out quite a lot. Since he teamed up with Pique he laughs more and enjoys his football more.”
Only Fabregas disagrees. “They are both a pain in the butt – between them they never let me sleep, they are always tormenting me and not one squad get-together passes without one or other of them trying to catch me out in one way or another.”
On either side of the two pillars are two more characters. Ramos, the most expensive Spaniard transferred between two La Liga clubs is the guy who arrived at the Bernabeu wet behind the ears but ready to claim: “I want Fernando Hierro’s shirt number and I want to emulate his achievements with Madrid.”
It went down like a proctologist at a finger buffet – but with maturity he has become one of Europe’s most powerful
and dynamic defenders. With a strong possibility Jose Mourinho will either convert him to an out-and-out centre-half or sell him to AC Milan there are golden years ahead for the Andalucian.
Nevertheless, he complains: “I never wanted to be a footballer when I was growing up, I wanted to be a bullfighter
but my mum would never let me because she was too scared. I have had to calm down a little over the years because if I admitted all the tricks I used to get up to when I was younger then they’d probably clap me in jail. That has probably helped me in football terms because when I play centre-half for Madrid it is a less free, more demanding role where concentration is at a premium.”
Throw in the fact that captain Casillas
is a flinty, rock-hard competitor and you have the Dirty Half Dozen (Casillas,
Puyol, Pique, Ramos, Capdevila and Marchena) who maintain La Roja’s defensive purity. Except that the final statistic to is that dirty they are not.
Pique is scrupulous about winning the ball cleanly and is rarely suspended, and in the group stage Spain became the first team since 1986 to avoid a single yellow card. Both the Spain and Barcelona
coaches tend to have consistency of selection as a weapon because, for all their physical force, Pique and Puyol play the ball, not the man.
And, above all, they don’t care if you love Villa or Xavi, or El Nino more than them. “You get used to being undervalued or less famous because it is the winning that counts” admits Puyol.
History will remember this Spain squad fondly, but without the Dirty Half Dozen they’d be nothing.
Graham Hunter
The rules are the rules. Luis Suárez, a striker, did not have to think as he batted a sure goal away from the line. He did the crime and he would do the time but he saved the World Cup for Uruguay — and he broke the heart of Africa.
Has this ever happened before, in any sport, where an entire continent was putting its hopes, its prayers, its soul, into a melee in front of a soccer goal?
Dozens of countries, so disparate, so far removed from each other, were surely wishing for Ghana to become the first African nation to reach the semifinals of the World Cup.
Ghana had the support of Nelson Mandela, the former president, now 91, who sent a letter to the Ghanaian federation saying that the entire continent wished success to the last African team. The South African team became the first host not to make it out of the first round, so all around Africa people became honorary Ghanaians after Ghana ousted the United States, fair and square, last Saturday.
But now all of Africa is gone, done in by an exchange that favored Uruguay. This was no Hand of God, so dubbed by Diego Maradona, after he swatted home a goal on the fly for Argentina in the semifinals of 1986. In that prehistoric age, the officials did not have a clue that Diego had made his deal with the devil, although the English defenders certainly knew.
The swat by Suárez had the smell of sulfur to it, no deities involved. He performed his handball on the goal line with the entire field watching him. He saved the game for Uruguay. He cuffed a continent as surely as he batted away the goal.
Suárez reacted in the first minute of injury time of the second overtime period, meaning the players had gone 120 official minutes and then nearly another one. Ghana was swarming the Uruguay goal. And Suárez stood on the line and knocked the ball away.
But was it cheating — or was it a cynical trade under the rules of a sport in which goals do not happen very easily? Suárez had no time to reason it out, but he is a professional, he knows the score.
He is 23 years old, plays for Ajax in the Netherlands, and he had to know there was a leeway in the law of soccer that allowed him to take a red card, an automatic expulsion and banishment from at least the next match. But at least there will be a next game. Uruguay will go on to play the Netherlands in the semifinals next Tuesday in Cape Town. Ghana is done. Africa is done.
The drama afterward was not inevitable, although it seemed that way. The trade Suárez arranged in an instant was his expulsion for a penalty kick for Ghana, no automatic, ever. It’s not a fair exchange but it is the rule of the sport.
Moments later, Asamoah Gyan whacked the ball off the crossbar, up, up and away. The 1-1 draw went into penalty kicks and Uruguay won, 4-2. Africa will not reach the semifinals this time.
For a time in those final furious seconds, the vuvuzelas seemed to die down because the fans were actually watching the match and reacting the way fans have always reacted in this sport of very few goals. They oohed and they ahhed and they roared and then they groaned.
Even as Suárez was sent off the field, the fans in the stadium knew they had been deprived, and surely they would say cheated. But that’s the trade. Touch the ball on purpose, bat away a goal, and the other team has a pretty good chance to make a penalty kick. Should the referee have the right to wave an automatic goal? That’s for the folks from FIFA to take up when they discuss the possibility of electronic surveillance or more referees at their next rules meeting later in the month.
The only thing left for Ghana was how it would react. After the players picked themselves up off the floor, Ghana officials said they had no recourse to protest.
And Uruguay Coach Óscar Tabárez noted that Suárez would be penalized by missing the next game, and that was a fair price for the red card.
One lingering question is whether the ball crossed the line before Suárez touched it, but since world soccer does not provide for goal-line officials or electronic surveillance or chips in the ball, there is no provision for review.
Ghana’s gracious acceptance matched the kindness that has marked this South African World Cup. Now Africa has no team left in this tournament, but its last team played well, and when it lost, it lost with grace. That memory should last as long as the result.
Match will take place on Saturday, August 7 at 7:30 p.m. at The Rose Bowl and replaces the previously scheduled Inter Milan match
The LA Galaxy will return to the Rose Bowl for the second time in as many years to take on Spanish power Real Madrid on Saturday, August 7. The game, presented by Pechanga Resort & Casino, kicks off at 7:30 p.m. and replaces the Galaxy’s previously scheduled friendly against Inter Milan, which the clubs have mutually agreed to look to re-schedule in the future.
“While we were looking forward to playing Inter Milan, we are very pleased to be able to bring our fans a game against one of the world’s biggest clubs, one that features a host of the world’s top players in Real Madrid,” said Tom Payne, LA Galaxy President of Business Operations. “Many fans will remember Madrid’s last visit to Los Angeles when the teams played in front of a capacity crowd at The Home Depot Center in 2005, and now we will be hosting them at the historic Rose Bowl in what will prove to be another memorable game for soccer fans throughout Southern California.”
This game is included in all Galaxy full season ticket plans as Bonus Game C. All season seat holders will receive new tickets in the mail for this game within the coming weeks. Additionally, all fans who purchased tickets for the friendly against Inter Milan will be issued new tickets for the game against Real Madrid or receive a full refund.
A special ticket pre-sale is underway now for all current Galaxy ticket plan holders wishing to add additional tickets at a discounted price to the game against Real Madrid. Additionally, fans who wish to purchase a 2010 full season seat or mini-plan that includes the friendly with Real Madrid can do so at this time.
Tickets are also on sale now to the general public as part of a special two-game pack starting at $46 that includes the Galaxy’s July 4th showcase against Seattle Sounders FC. That game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. and will feature a postgame fireworks extravaganza, which is powered by 104.3 MYfm. Single game tickets will go on sale at a future date.
A nine-time European champion, and 31-time champion of Spain’s La Liga, Real Madrid finished second in Spain’s La Liga this season just three points behind league champion, Barcelona, despite losing just four times all season long. In late May, the club named two-time Champions League winner Jose Mourinho as the club’s new head coach. He is expected to lead his full roster of international stars, including 2007 FIFA Player of the Year Kaka, 2008 FIFA Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo, Dutch midfielder Rafael Van der Vaart, Argentine forward Gonzalo Higuain, Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas and many others to Southern California. Ten of Real’s current squad are currently playing at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, while another three have played in a previous World Cup.
The Galaxy, who first played Real Madrid on July 18, 2005 at The Home Depot Center, with Madrid claiming a 2-0 victory, will return to the Rose Bowl for the second time in as many years. The club’s home stadium from 1996-2002, the Galaxy lost 2-1 to Barcelona in front of 93,137 in their return to the stadium last August.
The match against Real Madrid will be the Galaxy’s fourth international friendly played this year. They played to a 0-0 draw with CD Aguila of El Salvador on March 21 and defeated Boca Juniors of Argentina 1-0 on May 23 at The Home Depot Center. LA also defeated Puntarenas FC of Costa Rica 1-0 at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Calif. on March 10.
For more information about this game or to purchase tickets, please contact the Galaxy by calling 1-877-3GALAXY (342-5299) or visit www.lagalaxy.com/realmadridtickets.
About Pechanga Resort & Casino:
As the biggest and best Southern California casino, Pechanga is an all-inclusive resort destination with a larger casino and more slots than anywhere in Vegas, Pechanga is located in the Inland Empire, in the Southern California Wine Country of Temecula Valley, and freeway close to the Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County and Ontario airports. The AAA Four Diamond property offers a luxury hotel with a full-service spa, featuring a couple’s massage suite, and the finest restaurants with 24-hours of gambling action. Pechanga has superstar concerts; a comedy club; world title boxing events; three clubs and lounges, including Silk, the largest nightclub in Southern California; more than 100,000 square feet of convention/meeting space; and the new 18-hole Journey at Pechanga, which has been rated as one of the best new golf courses in the world. As the largest casino in the Western United States, Pechanga is perfect for a romantic weekend or just a daytrip with happening nightlife to make for an exciting getaway.
LA Galaxy Staff
