“Hope you had a good summer, and can enjoy what’s left of it – or depending on your hemisphere, I hope the early spring´s all green and gambolling. The World Cup seems strangely distant, and I’ve just got back from California where I took the family on holiday and where football (I mean soccer) was never far away. I missed Real Madrid by a day in Los Angeles and then by a day again in San Francisco, but never mind because I’ll be seeing them again very soon in Anoeta. Real Sociedad´s stadium is once again host to the top flight, but I’ve just missed out on their 1-0 win over an allegedly poor Villarreal because I’m still in England, where it’s predictably blowing a gale as I write.” (ESPN)

“As the new La Liga campaign kick-offs in Spain we travel to Madrid and Barcelona. Can Jose Mourinho turn his squad of under-achieveing Galaticos into a winning team? And is the dominance of Spain’s two biggest clubs a cause for concern? We also visit Milan as the Italian season gets underway and talk to the former Juventus and Chelsea striker gianluca Vialli.” (BBC)

“Every summer, football clubs all over the world throw their money away. In Granada CF’s case, quite literally. One morning in July, the Spanish second-division team awoke to find that the money earned from season-ticket sales — which it had handily “stored” in bin bags — had been thrown out by the cleaner. Already racked by debt and in administration, Granada had lost an estimated $500,000 thanks to a woman with a mop and bucket. Luckily, in the end most the cash was found in a recycling box.” (SI)

“Every society has a cultural expression for childhood fear. In the United States of America, a land of abundance, vast homes, and suburban distance, the isolation manifests itself in the form of monsters. These monster do not lurk in the woods, the roof, or the basement. Rather, these insidious fiends dwell in the vacant spaces that we reserve for our bloated quantity of non-essential material possessions: the closet, under the bed. At night, after you parents have left and the clouds have strangled any glimpse of light out of the moon, you can hear the creepy critters scattering about. You pull the sheet up and over your head, but to no avail. The monster can hear you breathing. And, more disturbingly, you can hear them breathing.” (futfanatico)

“The football season in Spain still has over a week to go before it finally gets going, but everything is already a touch topsy-turvy with la Liga’s supreme beings, Barcelona and Real Madrid. The narrative in recent years reads that the president of the Camp Nou likes to humour his managers by affording them a certain freedom in the hiring and firing of players. The coach’s job at Real Madrid tends to be given as much importance as the poor soul responsible for oiling up Cristiano Ronaldo’s pre-match pecks. Come to think of it, the latter still had more say at the club than Manuel Pellegrini did during his one and only year under Florentino Pérez.” (Football365)

Özil’s latest dream comes true
“If the front cover of Marca is to be believed – which it never should be, really – Real Madrid have landed themselves an absolute charmer of a footballer in Mesut Özil. According to Wednesday’s edition, the German told his former club, Werder Bremen, that “either you sell me or I won’t play” ahead of their Champions League clash with Sampdoria on Wednesday night.” (FourFourTwo)

Leo Messi
“It’s not big and it’s not clever but sometimes swearing is the only thing that will do. Sometimes you’ve used up every other word and nothing else quite hits the spot. You’ve rummaged round the back of the sofa, rifled through the drawers, turned out your pockets and still come up empty. Pep Guardiola insisted that he was clean out of adjectives and frankly so was everyone else. Spain was suffering a severe shortage of superlatives last night. The Catalan newspaper Sport invited readers to send in headlines for what they had just witnessed and there were plenty of super, sensational and sublimes, some magic, magnificent and marvellouses, wows and wonderfuls, plus deities by the dozen, and even a Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, but still there was no way to really do it justice. No polite way anyway. Just wide eyes, a wider mouth and a simple: holy shit!” (Guardian)

Super Cup sulking and Özil obstruction
“On Saturday night, LLL was considering breaking a firm blog tradition by sacrificing its precious time to watch a pre-season friendly. In this case, the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup between Sevilla and Barcelona. That was, until it discovered that Barça bigwig Sandro Rosell wasn’t bothering to travel to the Sánchez Pizjuán – apparently because he wanted to make his official debut at the Camp Nou next week, showing that the expansion of his presidential ego is progressing at a very pleasing place.” (FourFourTwo)

Philips Wouwerman, Battle scene, ca. 1655-60
“In July last year, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez made a major push to get at least one La Liga game a week played earlier in the day to attract Asian audiences and support: ‘The change is vital if the Spanish league is to compete with the English,’ he said. ‘The revenue figures for our clubs this year will be around the €1.55bn mark, in England the figure is closer to €2.4bn. It is not just the TV deals themselves but the potential repercussions that being shown prime time in Japan can have on marketing revenues.’ A year on, and it looks like this change to La Liga kick-off times will actually happen, following an offseason that has revealed just how parlous Spanish finances are, Barcelona’s debt and Mallorca’s financial troubles only the most obvious examples.” (Pitch Invasion)

“It’s a fairly testing task for the folks at Marca to hold just one coherent thought in their tiny little minds at any one time, never mind two. But that’s the contorting conundrum in the complex realm of Raúl that has been on the paper’s journalistic agenda ever since Florentino Pérez came back to the club last summer.” (Four Four Two)

“Guti leaves Real Madrid. For the casual fan, the question is: so what? Guti played the part of supersub for 15 years but little more. His record – most sub appearances in La Liga history – does not place him on the same pantheon as Di Stefano. But in a club that routinely ships their cantera players to mid-tier clubs, Guti was the exception. His leaving is a loss more in emotional terms than futboling concerns. So indulge us in some word-association games to commemorate the occasion.” (futfanatico)

“Spanish football teams are shooting for a new goal: To break even. In an effort to tackle reckless spending and rising debts among the 20 La Liga clubs, the country’s top teams will be subjected to financial regulation by a new independent body established by the Spanish government to ensure that teams are living within their means.” (WSJ)

“Javier Clemente squeezed into blue tights, pulled red knickers over the top and slapped a big yellow S on his chest. A quick fiddle with Photoshop and the amazing transformation was complete. Real Valladolid’s manager had, in his own words, gone into the phonebox Scum and come out a Saint; he had, in Athletic Bilbao manager Joaquín Caparrós’s words, gone from whore to nun in five minutes.” (Guardian)

“A question: What defines a league as strong and what classes it as weak? Should a league’s overall strength be measured on the successes of it’s most powerful constituents? Or on the sum total of all parts? If your answer is the former, then based on the 2009/2010 season’s outcome Spain’s La Liga is undoubtedly one of the strongest in world football. If you lean to the latter answer however, then La Liga may be classed as a league in serious structural trouble.” (Just Football)

“Desperation makes for strange bedfellows. And no, we’re not talking about David Cameron and Nick Clegg coming together to find the keys for No. 10 Downing Street after a British general election that left a hung parliament and no outright winner — although there is certainly plenty of politics involved.” (SI)

“After successfully running away with Spain’s league championship this season, turning the title race into a straight shootout between the country’s top two football teams, now Barcelona and Real Madrid could break away from the league altogether. Spain’s two biggest clubs are among the teams calling for the Primera Division to follow the example of rival European leagues and split from Spain’s second tier Segunda Division in a row over television revenue that threatens to create a schism between the country’s leading contenders.” (WSJ)

Francesco Guardi, The Doge of Venice goes to the Salute on 21 November to Commemor
“Barcelona struck a potentially decisive blow in the Primera Division title race by ending Real Madrid’s perfect home record to go three points clear at the summit. Lionel Messi’s 40th goal of the season in all competitions put the reigning Spanish and European champions on the road to victory in ‘El Clasico’, and Pedro Rodriguez completed the scoring 10 minutes after half-time.” (ESPN)

Manuel Pellegrini fears for Real Madrid future after Barcelona defeat
“‘I am not the one responsible for answering that question,’ said the Chilean when asked if he expected to be granted a second season at the Bernabeu by Florentino Perez, the club’s president and the man who appointed the former Villarreal coach. ‘And I am not the one who has to talk about my qualities as a manager.’ After an impressive run of form, Real went in to last night’s clasico – decided by goals either side of half-time from Lionel Messi and Pedro – level on points with the Spanish, European and World champions. Though mathematically they now lie just three points behind, Barcelona’s superior head to head record effectively gives the Catalans a four-point lead.” (Telegraph)

Buoyant Barcelona close in on title
“Deportivo, Espanyol, Xerez, Villarreal, Tenerife, Sevilla, Valladolid – those are the names of the teams that Barcelona have to play in La Liga during the next five weeks. However, to quote the succinct front page of the Spanish sports newspaper As on Sunday: ’21 points remain but the title seems already decided.’ Barcelona’s 2-0 victory at Real Madrid on Saturday returned them to the top of the table and gives them a three-point advantage in their bid to be crowned champions for the second successive season and the 20th time in their history.” (BBC)

Lionel Messi punishes Real Madrid to give Barcelona title lift
“This time Lionel Messi scored only once and it was not a particularly special goal, yet it could prove as significant as the four against Arsenal. The architect of Barcelona’s victory was the peerless Xavi Hernández but it was Messi’s 40th goal of a spectacular season that set Barcelona on the way to victory in the match that was declared the title decider. Real Madrid’s 14-game winning run at the Bernabéu came to an end and the feeling as disappointed fans left early was that so too did their chances of winning the league.” (Guardian)

Ronaldo and Messi duel in El Clasico
“Cristiano Ronaldo has never scored against Barcelona, so tonight would be a good time to start. Having heard the universal acclaim bestowed on Lionel Messi this week, Ronaldo will get the chance to overshadow him and take Real Madrid a giant step closer to winning La Liga in a match that has had the whole of Spain holding its breath and the sport scientists working overtime.” (Independent)

Real Madrid 0-2 FC Barcelona – Recap and Video Highlights
“The El Clasico was renewed once again on Saturday, April 10, 2010 as FC Barcelona traveled to the Bernabeu to face Real Madrid. The two teams were tied on points in La Liga with the result of this match likely to determine who will win the title. A win or draw for Barcelona would give them the advantage if the two points are tied on points. Real Madrid led the table on goal difference heading into the match.” (The 90th Minute)

“To listen to the debate and comment over the last week, both here in Spain and elsewhere around the world, you might think that only two players will be on the pitch at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium on Saturday for the latest edition of El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona.” (BBC)

“There’s never a low-key game when Barcelona faces Real Madrid. This meeting of Spain’s two biggest and most popular clubs, known around the world as El Clásico, is widely considered the fiercest rivalry in soccer. Decades of history, politics and tradition will be at play Saturday, issues of national identity, cultural independence and years of oppression.” (WSJ)

“Not all Spanish tribes suffocate their prey like the constricting Catalans. A fierce and respected tribe to the South, Valencia, sits back and springs traps. The Valencians are led by the shifty spy Villa who lives in the enemy’s shadows, and they are a force to be reckoned with… The ambush, like the entrapment of Barcelona, seeks to defeat prey while conserving energy. The ambush requires extensive planning, organization, and coordination. To successfully capture their prey, each and every part must move with precision and in sync. And, of course, the predator must deceive the prey.” (futfanatico)

“FC Barcelona hosted Valencia in the Spanish Primera Division (La Liga) on Sunday, March 14, 2010 with a chance to go top of the table. With Real Madrid playing the late match, Barcelona could go top of the table, at least for a few hours. They could also gain ground on goal difference which is where Real Madrid have the current advantage. Valencia were in third place and not likely to catch Real Madrid or Barcelona.” (The 90th Minute)

Florentino Peréz
“In the summer of 2009, Real Madrid sent shockwaves around the world by spending an estimated €252 million pounds. After FC Barcelona dominated Spain in 2008-2009, winning an unprecedented treble, Florentino Peréz felt it was essential to topple the Catalan giants.” (Just Football)

“Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola felt his side were back to near their best during their 2-1 home win over Malaga, even though they needed a late strike from Lionel Messi to seal the points. Guardiola admitted earlier this week that his sextuple winners were struggling to find top gear but he was far happier following last night’s victory which kept the Catalan giants two points clear of Real Madrid at the Primera Division summit.” (ESPN)

“In the off-season, despite the wave of cash and new signings, I had one serious concern: could Manuel Pellgrini balance the all-star egos in the locker room? And could he impose the Villareal short-passing approach on Madrid? He has done neither. And he has succeeded with fantastic aplomb. The Alcocorn hiccup aside, Madrid trails Barcelona by 2 points. The games, the goals, the endless and relentless storm ahead of progress. But exactly has Manuel done? It’s quite simple – he has imposed a style of Madrid that is Madrid. Madrid no longer plays like a lost puppy sniffing for scraps. Madrid now plays like Madrid. Allow me to elaborate.” (futfanatico)

“No sooner had Barcelona lost their first-ever competition under Pep Guardiola than they won a seventh title. No sooner had the coach sealed up a virtual contract renewal than he wrapped up a virtual title. Top of the table at the halfway stage of the season, Barca are Spain’s campeon de invierno (winter champions). And while Guardiola said it was “merely anecdotal”, most others insisted it was rather more significant.” (World Soccer)

“Pep Guardiola said it, Joan Laporta said it, and Carles Puyol said it. Cristiano Ronaldo said it, Kaká said it, and Karim Benzema said it. The Madrid press said it. Over and over and over again. Everybody said it. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but sooner or later FC Barcelona will lose in La Liga. The occasional lone voice dared whisper the words ‘whole’, ‘season’ and ‘unbeaten’ in the same sentence but most didn’t. Most wouldn’t. Everyone knew the day would come; many even knew when it would come. In Madrid they were counting on it. The maths had been done: -5+3+3=1, Real Madrid = champions. Twenty-one matches and almost six months later, the day had come.” (Guardian)