#and it's against sevilla so he could have faced ivan...
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wow love how trippier is already back with atleti so šime will never play again!
#and it's against sevilla so he could have faced ivan...#i swear to god the english footballers get away with some shit#ihc watches atletico
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Sleepless night
Pairing: Rakessi
Summary: After the Sevilla game, Ivan rushes to the hospital to see Leo
Wordcount: 748
Ivan slammed the door behind him, hurrying into the hospital room, his sweaty jersey still on his back. Leo was laying on a bed, his eyes closed and face contorted in a pained grimace. The Croatian rushed by his side, taking his hand in his, making sure that it was his uninjured arm.
At the touch, his lover’s eyelids fluttered open, but Leo’s stare was still unfocused and confused. Ivan squeezed his hand in a reassuring gesture before leaning down to put a kiss on his cheek.
“It’s me, babe. I’m here.”
Ivan couldn’t help but glimpse at his boyfriend’s right arm, covered in bandages. He could still remember him wriggling in agony on the pitch while knowing that there was nothing he could do to change it. At that moment, Ivan would have broken his own arm for Leo to be unscathed, but things didn’t work like that.
He swallowed back tears, knowing he had to be strong. It was Leo who needed comfort here, not him.
“The game…?”
“We won. I scored a goal. For you.”
Ivan whispered those words as if they were his most intimate secrets, and Leo’s eyes immediately brightened up.
“I knew you would. Even though you don’t like scoring against Sevilla, right?” He smiled, but his happiness didn’t last long. He winced as his arm hurt again, biting his lip hard so he wouldn’t let out a cry of pain.
“Leo! Should I call the doctors?”
“No, no, it’s alright… I’ll be fine…”
“Maybe you need painkillers!”
“Already took some. Calm down, Ivan, please. I don’t want you to panic because of me.”
“You’re hurt, what else do you want me to do?” Ivan shouted, but he calmed down almost instantly, sitting on a chair near Leo’s bed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m just tired and worried about you.”
“I know” Leo murmured, reaching for Ivan’s hand. His boyfriend complied to his implicit request and they just shared the silence for a moment, before the Argentinean spoke up again.
“The results arrived a few minutes ago. My arm is broken and I won’t be able to play during the clasico, or any other game for at least three weeks.”
Leo tried to keep his voice neutral, but Ivan looked right through him. He could see the disappointment in his eyes, the tears threatening to fall out. He didn’t wait a single second and hurried to hug his boyfriend, although he made sure to be cautious so he wouldn’t hurt him even more.
“I’m so sorry, love. I hoped it wouldn’t be that serious.”
“It’s so unfair, Ivan! All I want to do is to play and enjoy the game and help the team and… And…”
“Shh, I know querido, I know. I wish I could take all your pain away…”
Leo sobbed quietly against Ivan’s shoulders as his teammate gently rubbed his back, doing all he could do soothe him. At some point, their eyes met, and Ivan leaned down to put a butterfly kiss on Leo’s lips.
“Thank you, Ivan, thank you so much. I don’t know what I would do if you weren’t here.”
“Don’t worry, love, I’ll always be here to take care of you, I promise. It will be alright and you’ll make it through. You always do.”
“Could you… Could you just stay here for the night? I’m afraid I won’t be able to sleep much with my injury, and I don’t want to be alone.”
There was something almost childish about how shy Leo looked while asking him that. Ivan smiled softly at that and caressed his lover’s cheek lovingly before pressing their nose together in a tender gesture.
“Of course I’ll stay the night with you. I never considered going anywhere else, not when you’re hurt. Is there something specific you want me to do or…?”
“Let me just rest against you.”
“Sure. Make yourself comfortable.”
Leo moved carefully to rest his head against Ivan’s chest without hurting his arms. Then he went still, closing his eyes and listening to his boyfriend’s heartbeat. Ivan ran a hand through his dark hair, his stare full of fondness, before kissing the top of Leo’s head.
“Just rest for a while, cariño. I’ll be there to watch over you.”
Leo nodded slightly and did just that, knowing that he could put all his trust in his lover’s words. No matter how hard this all would get, Ivan would be here to have his back.
Taglist: @puolendollarinonni @arduango @smolmandzo @synne-sol @kettie09 @pachua @tinymodric @winters-chiid @ante-ray-bitch @fussballstuff @lukita-chan
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La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
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Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
0 notes
Text
La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
Zinedine Zidane is in his second spell as Real Madrid manager, while Ronald Koeman took over at Barcelona during the summer
Champions Real Madrid kick off their new campaign on Sunday with a trip to Real Sociedad and, with Barcelona in disarray, Zinedine Zidane’s men are odds-on favourites to retain the title.
But the big two are not the only compelling storylines to follow, so let’s take a quick tour of the new La Liga season.
Stability and sales at Real Madrid
Is this the season Martin Odegaard makes the breakthrough in the Real Madrid first team?
This has been an extremely calm and quiet off-season for Real, with the reigning champions happy to sit back and let Barcelona hog the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The only addition to Zidane’s squad has been the return of gifted attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard from loan at Real Sociedad.
The 21-year-old Norwegian delivered a series of dazzling performances during his time with the Basques, and he will now aim to gradually replace Luka Modric and further revitalise a midfield which has already been boosted by the emergence of Fede Valverde.
Other than that, Real’s only moves in the market have been through the out door. Around £100m has been raised through the exits of players like James Rodriguez (Everton), Achraf Hakimi (Inter Milan), Oscar Rodriguez (Sevilla) and, at long last, Gareth Bale.
The club are expected to save those proceeds for a major push to sign Kylian Mbappe next summer, and in the meantime Zidane will continue to rely on his blend of trusted veterans like Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos and Toni Kroos, along with gifted youngsters Odegaard, Valverde, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Turmoil in Barcelona
After his appointment as Barcelona boss, Koeman reportedly told Messi “your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team”, helping Messi decide he wanted to leave
If stability has been the word of the summer for Real, the opposite is true at their eternal rivals Barcelona – embodied in the fact that beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces a formal vote of no confidence after more than 20,000 fans signed a motion against him.
Bartomeu was the chief target of Lionel Messi’s fury after his failed attempt to leave, and it’s clear that many fans feel the same way about the president’s running of the club over the past few years.
Barca’s embarrassing 8-2 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich made their failings startlingly obvious, and that has been followed by a change in manager with the arrival of Ronald Koeman – who is remembered fondly by Barca fans after scoring the winner in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria at Wembley.
Attempts to revitalise the squad are moving slowly. Ivan Rakitic has returned to his old club Sevilla, Arturo Vidal is expected to join Inter Milan and Luis Suarez will probably also leave, but the Catalans’ bleak financial situation under Bartomeu means there are few funds for fresh faces.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay and Manchester City defender Eric Garcia are Barca’s targets, but even they may prove to be outside the club’s price range.
Messi, of course, is staying for now. But the acrimony of his aborted departure, and his obvious disgust with Bartomeu, has left a sour taste which will linger long into the new season.
So Koeman is surrounded by a lot of questions, and very few answers.
Simeone under the microscope
Diego Simeone led Atletico Madrid to the La Liga title in 2013-14
Albeit in a less dramatic manner, there are also question marks over Atletico Madrid following their disappointing Champions League exit against RB Leipzig.
That was seen as a wasted opportunity and strengthened the impression that Diego Simeone – who has spent the past fortnight at home after contracting Covid-19 – needs to introduce a more expansive style of play.
Criticism that Simeone is too negative and does not give his players enough freedom have been circulating for years, but they have sharply intensified following last summer’s arrival of gifted youngster Joao Felix.
The Portuguese star generally looked uncomfortable in Simeone’s rigid system during his first season at the Wanda Metropolitano, and if Simeone fails to find a way of allowing greater attacking fluency then patience in his methods will soon start to run out.
Villarreal win the transfer market
On the whole it has been a quiet transfer window, with the majority of moves coming for low-cost veterans or promising prospects from the Segunda Division.
The uncertainty engendered by the pandemic means it is unlikely we will see much cash splashed in the last fortnight of the window, although Atletico, Sevilla and Granada are all in the market for a striker, with Watford’s Luis Suarez, who spent last season on loan at Real Zaragoza, in their sights.
There has, at least, been plenty of activity at Villarreal, who look set for a serious top-four challenge after the recruitment of Unai Emery as coach, midfield duo Dani Parejo and Francis Coquelin (both from near-neighbours Valencia) and Japanese rising star Take Kubo on loan from Real Madrid.
A warmly welcomed move has been David Silva’s return to Spain. The former Manchester City man has joined an open and attack-minded Real Sociedad side who should be perfectly suited to his style, and he is in line to make his debut this weekend against Real Madrid after recovering from coronavirus.
Sevilla’s double midfield swoop for Oscar and Rakitic has sparked hopes they could narrow the gap on, or even overtake, the top three, while cross-town rivals Real Betis are expecting the appointment of former Villarreal and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini to reignite a talented but previously underperforming squad.
Uncertainty at Valencia
The waters are choppy at Valencia, where the sale of key players Parejo, Rodrigo and Ferran Torres has led to fresh protests against unpopular owner Peter Lim.
New boss Javi Gracia has already voiced his frustrations at the club’s failure to replace those outgoing stars, but Lim is expecting his coach to place his faith in a talented batch of youngsters which includes gifted South Korean teenager Lee Kang-in and 17-year-old Englishman Yunus Musah, who dazzled on debut in last weekend’s dramatic opening-night 4-2 derby win over Levante.
That victory showed there is still plenty of talent within Los Che’s ranks, but there is also an enormous amount of uncertainty. If anyone can rival Barcelona for unpredictable drama over the coming weeks, it will be Valencia.
The article was originally published here! La Liga: Real Madrid begin title defence with rivals Barcelona in turmoil
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Is Neymar coming back? Will there be a Real Madrid revival? La Liga's big questions
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Is Neymar coming back? Will there be a Real Madrid revival? La Liga's big questions
Neymar scored 68 goals in 112 appearances during his four-year spell with Barcelona between 2013 and 2017
Can Barcelona balance domestic demands with the chase for Champions League success? Can Zinedine Zidane plot Real Madrid’s path out of the doldrums? And will either of them sign Neymar?
The new La Liga season is one with questions facing all of the leading contenders after a summer of heavy spending – not just Real and Barca, but Atletico Madrid and Sevilla too.
It is a testing start for champions Barcelona, who kick off the campaign away to Athletic Bilbao on Friday.
To preview the season, BBC Sport tackles four key La Liga questions.
Barca refreshed by new duo… and Neymar?
After winning the past two league titles by extremely comfortable margins (11 points last season and 14 points in 2017-18), Barcelona have refreshed their squad with a pair of big-money signings.
Hugely promising Dutchman Frenkie de Jong has arrived from Ajax for 75m euros to energise a midfield where Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitic are starting to look their age, while 120m euros secured French World Cup winner Antoine Griezmann from Atletico Madrid to provide much-needed cover and competition for Luis Suarez at centre forward.
However, the biggest deal of all could still lie ahead, with Neymar being lined up for a sensational return from Paris St-Germain – possibly sending Philippe Coutinho in the opposite direction – two years after he quit the Nou Camp in acrimonious circumstances.
It’s hard to see how manager Ernesto Valverde could accommodate all his attacking talents if the Brazilian does make the move: a quartet of Neymar, Griezmann, Suarez and captain Lionel Messi in the same starting line-up would be bold beyond belief. So one of them would probably have to sit on the bench, also leaving France international Ousmane Dembele in the cold.
Although president Josep Maria Bartomeu seems set upon securing Neymar as a trophy signing, Barca would arguably be better served by leaving the Brazilian in exile and lining up Griezmann on the left of attack, Suarez through the middle, Messi on the right with the versatile Dembele in rotation.
Regardless of how the squad shapes up by the end of the transfer window, Barca’s season will inevitably be played out against the backdrop of their quest to regain European supremacy in the wake of consecutive calamitous second-leg collapses at Roma and Liverpool.
Maintaining focus on domestic duties while also straining for Champions League success will be a tough balance to strike, and the pursuit of Neymar is doubtless intended to ensure the squad is stockpiled with world-class attacking power when the serious stuff rolls around next spring.
That might risk unsettling the squad, but Barca should still be nothing less than leading title contenders once again.
Felix to inspire new-look Atletico?
Joao Felix only appeared in 26 games for Benfica before Atletico Madrid paid 126m euros to sign him
Atletico Madrid, runners-up for the past two seasons, are the most intriguing prospects of the new campaign, with hardy coach Diego Simeone overseeing the biggest squad overhaul of his eight-year reign.
The loss of Griezmann to Barca has been offset by the capture of the third-most expensive player in history, Portuguese starlet Joao Felix; the 126m-euro signing from Benfica concluded a sensational pre-season by scoring a classy winner against Juventus last weekend.
Felix’s arrival has sparked suggestions that Simeone will open up into a more expansive style, moving away from his defence-first strategy and allowing his expensive purchase full licence to link up with Diego Costa, Alvaro Morata, Thomas Lemar and Rodrigo Moreno, a new arrival from Valencia.
Realistically, though, Atletico’s success this season will largely depend on whether Simeone can instil solidity into a new-look defence following the summer departures of long-serving stars Diego Godin, Filipe Luis and Juanfran.
The reshaped back four contains England international Kieran Trippier, whose challenge to adapt to Simeone’s demanding methods will be fascinating to watch over the next few months. Full-backs getting forward to support a narrow midfield has always been a hallmark of Simeone’s sides, so the former Tottenham man won’t lack opportunities to shine.
Spain international defender Mario Hermoso, young Brazilian left-back Renan Lodi and former Real Madrid midfielder Marcos Llorente are also on the long list of summer arrivals at the Wanda Metropolitano and, if Simeone can get everyone to gel, the reconfigured Colchoneros could become a major force.
Is Zidane under pressure already?
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane is still trying to figure out his strongest side after the club made eight signings this summer
A few miles across the capital, it has also been an eventful summer at Real Madrid, who Zinedine Zidane is attempting to lead out of the doldrums after they fell to 17 defeats in all competitions under three managers last season.
Worrying pre-season performances included a 7-3 thrashing by a Felix-inspired Atletico, and Zidane does not appear to have much idea as to his strongest starting 11 or preferred tactical approach. In the past couple of games, he has even experimented with a 3-5-2 formation – something he has hardly ever employed previously.
This has not been a happy summer for Zidane, frustrated deeply by the failure to lure Paul Pogba away from Manchester United or find a new home for the unwanted Gareth Bale. It is hard to escape the sense that the Real boss is under pressure before a La Liga ball has been kicked.
Despite his silverware-laden first spell in charge, Zidane faces doubts over his tactical nous and wider coaching ability, especially at the head of a team in a transitional period, and those questions will be fully answered in the next few months.
New signing Eden Hazard will play a key role, whether he operates from the left flank or as a support striker to Karim Benzema and/or summer arrival Luka Jovic, and Zidane has the option of further sweeping away his ageing old guard by giving playing time to exciting young wingers Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo Goes, Brahim Diaz and Takefusa Kubo, new defenders Ferland Mendy and Eder Militao and midfielder Fede Valverde.
But the picture is muddied by the potential arrival of Neymar, with club president Florentino Perez eager to challenge Barca in the quest to prise the Brazilian away from PSG.
Quite how Neymar would fit alongside Hazard is anyone’s guess, but it would be another engrossing storyline at a club where dull days are rare.
New faces in fourth place?
In the deep south, Seville is probably Spain’s most passionate football city: last season saw Sevilla (36,052) and local rivals Real Betis (44,142) attract a combined average attendance of more than 80,000; not bad from a population of fewer than 700,000.
Both clubs have been busy in the summer and head into the season with new managers. Sevilla have given former Spain and Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui a (perhaps last) chance to resurrect his faltering career, and the return of legendary sporting director Monchi from an ill-fated stay at Roma has led to a frenzy of transfer activity.
Lopetegui has 11 new signings to call upon, the most important of which could be playmaking midfielder Oliver Torres from Porto. He was a big star at youth level, winning the Under-19 European Championships with Spain in 2012 under the guidance of Lopetegui, and now has the perfect manager with which to blossom.
Across town, Betis also have a new man in charge after poaching Rubi from Espanyol. But it has been a turbulent summer behind the scenes with club legend Lorenzo Serra Ferrer quitting as vice-president following an internal dispute, and the subsequent loss of Giovani lo Celso to Tottenham, Junior Firpo to Barcelona and goalkeeper Pau Lopez to Roma could signify a difficult campaign.
Last season’s fourth-placed finishers Valencia have also been troubled by political strife, with popular general manager Mateu Alemany narrowly avoiding the sack after a series of disagreements with Singapore-based owner Peter Lim.
Alemany is a close confidante of manager Marcelino, and any resurfacing of this summer’s tensions may undermine the progress made by Los Che in the past couple of years.
The uncertainty at those clubs could open the door for a new face in fourth place, and it will be fascinating to see if unfashionable Getafe can be more than a one-hit wonder after finishing fifth last season. The Azulones have enjoyed a stable off-season, and the retention of highly-rated manager Jose Bordalas could be the most significant ‘non-move’ of the summer.
Elsewhere, Real Sociedad will be well worth watching after adding Swedish wonderkid Alexander Isak, hard-running winger Portu and Real Madrid youngster Martin Odegaard to complement outstanding forward Mikel Oyarzabal, while fellow Basques Athletic Bilbao will hope striker Inaki Williams can justify a lucrative new contract by leading their challenge for the top four.
Athletic’s opening night match-up will help give an early answer to this season’s biggest question: Can anyone stop Barcelona?
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UEFA Europa League Match Betting Previews – 24th October Thursday
Qarabag v APOEL Nicosia
I’m keen to oppose goals in one of the more unfashionable games in the early kick offs between Qarabag and APOEL. It’s two nations not particularly famous for footballing exploits in Azerbaijan and Cyprus; it must be a challenge for bookmakers to try and get a hold of the difference in quality between the pair. The odds suggest Qarabag are a slightly better side and I’d tend to agree with that thought process and 2.150 on the hosts do look fair to me. That being said I’m much more inclined to take the 1.810 on under 2.5 goals.
Funnily enough these two met in the qualifying for the Champions League in the summer and APOEL actually won the tie but eventually we’re denied a place in the top tier European competition by Ajax. Qarabag won the first leg in the Cypriot capital 2-1 but went down 2-0 in the home leg to many peoples surprise. Away from home APOEL do set up in a defensive formation and that’s what Qarabag face week in week out in their native league and they tend to struggle to break teams down, well they rarely thrash teams, 1-0 and 2-0 are regular scorelines for ‘The Horsemen’.
APOEL managed to hold Sevilla to just a 1-0 win which showcases their defensive resolve. They managed a clean sheet against Ajax too so they’ve kept it tight against better teams than the Azerbaijani champions. Their last three games have seen under 2.5 cop and three of the last four Qarabag games have also seen this bet profit.
Asian Total Goals Betting Recommendation: Under 2.50 goals at 1.810
Saint Etienne v Oleksandria
I was surprised by the goal line in this game as hosts Saint Etienne tend to be a team involved in tight, dour games. We backed the under 2.5 line when they hosted Wolfsburg in Matchday 2 and that landed, we’re getting a higher line here even though the visitors don’t pose as much of an attacking threat as the Germans.
Claude Puel is the new man in at the Stade Geoffrey Guichard, a controversial choice given his history as manager of fierce rivals Lyon. However he has done good things in Ligue 1 if not to everyone’s taste in the premier league, his sides tend to be more defensive than most and that’s been seen with back to back 1-0 successes over Lyon and Bordeaux.
Loic Perrin is the glue that holds the backline together, his experience is invaluable for Les Verts and since William Saliba has come back on loan from Arsenal they’ve formed a formidable partnership at the back. He’s also helping 18 year old defender Wesley Fofana improve and he made the grade for the last game. When he’s out Mathieu Debuchy can slot in on the right side of a back 3. It’s proven an impenetrable trio.
Visitors Oleksandria are debuting in this competition. Sure, Shakhtar Donetsk and Dynamo Kiev are mainstays on the European scene but the alternative side usually changes year on year. We’ve had Vorskla Poltava last year who weren’t so successful but Zorya Luhansk and Dnipro have both upset the applecart and done better than expected. Six of their last eight games in all competitions have seen fewer than three goals and they would be delighted if they can get a point here.
I’d expect the visitors to let the hosts have plenty of the ball but that’s not really where Saint Etienne thrive, they themselves prefer to play without the ball and it could be a game sorely lacking in creativity. Saint have seen their last five see 2 goals or fewer, 1 or fewer goals has been scored in four of those five too. With that in mind, opposing a goal heavy game is the way to go in the Loire region on Thursday evening.
Asian Total Goals Betting Recommendation: Under 2.75 goals at 1.925
CSKA Moscow v Ferencvaros
This has to be a must win for CSKA Moscow after back-to-back defeats in the UEL. A 5-0 chastening away at Ludogorets will have shocked the CSKA faithful but they were with 10 men for that game, a 2-0 reverse against Espanyol wasn’t the ideal response either so it places a lot more pressure on a win here.
They should have too much against this Ferencvaros team though, the Hungarians haven’t been in Europe for a while and they lost out to Ludogorets too 3-0. They rode their luck a little on matchday 1 at Espanyol too where they scraped a draw. I highly doubt they’ll qualify from this group and they face a long trip to the Russian capital in search of their first win.
CSKA youthful midfield trio of Ivan Oblyakov, Ilzat Akhmetov and Nikola Vlasic have impressed this season and their dynamism will be key for the hosts. There’s a youthful look about this side going forward, Fedor Chalov is and has been the chief goalgetter in recent years, it feels like he’s been about forever but he’s still only 21. Strike partner Arnor Sigurdsson is only 20 years old too, I’m sure they’ll want to make their mark on the continental stage to try and gain some admiring glances.
The ‘Armeitsy’ are around 1.500 to win this one which isn’t too surprising given their opponents but we can get 1.900 on the hosts with a -1 start on the asian handicap and that looks worth a play. As long as they win we don’t lose anything, if Moscow win by a single goal then we get our stakes back, any other win for the home side and we take a full profit.
Asian Handicap Betting Recommendation: CSKA Moscow -1.00 at 1.900
Have access with Saint Etienne v Oleksandria, CSKA Moscow v Ferencvaros, and Qarabag v APOEL Nicosia’s most competitive odds though the best betting broker service or through VOdds!
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Neymar, Pogba, Eriksen: La Liga deadline deals to look out for on Monday
Is El Clasico going to be on the agenda for Paul Pogba, Neymar or Christian Eriksen this season?
Transfer deadline day might have already been and gone in Britain, but in many European countries it remains open until Monday and some huge deals could still be struck.
Most of the big-money moves are likely to take place in Spain’s La Liga, where potential swoops by the big guns have dominated the headlines for much of the summer.
The biggest story, of course, has been the uncertainty over the future of a certain Brazilian superstar…
Is Neymar returning to Barcelona?
By far the most high-profile, drawn-out and costly move of the summer would be the return of Neymar to Barcelona from Paris St Germain.
On the face of it, the transfer should be simple: Neymar wants to join Barca, PSG want him out and Barca want him in. But the deal is beset by political boardroom machinations deep enough to make Brexit look like a playground squabble over hopscotch, so it has been very difficult to get over the finishing line.
A big complication is that Barca don’t have enough money, they even had to take out a bank loan to complete the signing of Antoine Griezmann from Atletico Madrid earlier in the summer. The Catalan club have been trying to conjure up creative alternatives, such as a player-exchange or a loan deal with a compulsory purchase clause, but none of these have been accepted by PSG.
The French club rejected Barca’s latest offer following two days of talks earlier this week, and reports on Saturday claimed that Neymar has now given up on sealing the move despite the clubs agreeing a valuation of around 200 million euros. However, given the secretive and shady nature of this particular deal, that could be no more than another outbreak of mind games. It’s probably safest not to believe anything until the final bell has sounded.
European transfer deadline day – Monday, 2 September Deadline (times all BST) English League One and Two 17:00 Bundesliga 17:00 Serie A 19:00 La Liga 23:00 Ligue 1 23:00 Scottish leagues Midnight
Considering the sky-high fee and the acrimonious manner of his departure from the Camp Nou two summers ago, it’s not surprising that Neymar’s possible return to the club is being met with a fair amount of opposition.
Former Barca director Toni Freixa summed up the hostility by tweeting: “We’re jeopardising the club’s economic sustainability. I don’t understand what interests are at stake, but those of Barcelona surely are not.”
But president Josep Maria Bartomeu appears to be ready to forgive Neymar and forget all the fuss his forced departure caused a couple of years ago, so one of the most sensational transfers in football history could still happen despite the lack of progress in recent days.
However, an increasingly popular conspiracy theory – expressed by former France international Frank Leboeuf among others – claims that Barca have no intention whatsoever of completing the deal and are actually handing Neymar an elaborate form of punishment for his earlier treachery, with the added bonus of stringing along PSG for a few months.
Surely not…?
Dembele and Rakitic: pawns in the deal?
Ousmane Dembele joined Barcelona in a £135.5m deal from Borussia Dortmund in 2017
The key to completing the Neymar deal could be whether one or more of Barca’s current stars agree to move to Paris in return, and over the course of the summer practically half the Camp Nou squad have been linked with PSG as part of the transaction.
Right-back Nelson Semedo, central defender Samuel Umtiti and former Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho (who ended up joining Bayern Munich on loan) are among those who were reportedly offered or requested as pawns without agreement being reached.
Another name thrown into the hat is Ivan Rakitic. And suspicion is provoked by the fact that although the experienced Croatian midfielder has been virtually ever-present over the last couple of years (only Lionel Messi has started more league games since manager Ernesto Valverde arrived in 2017), he was left on the bench for the first three games of the new campaign.
Along with Rakitic, Barca could be prepared to part with flying French winger Ousmane Dembele, who has been no more than a partial success since arriving as a big-money replacement for Neymar from Borussia Dortmund (where he had been managed by current PSG coach Thomas Tuchel).
Dembele has shown flashes of his enormous talent during his time at the Camp Nou but he has also tested Valverde’s patience by regularly suffering injuries amid reports of personal indiscipline – it should be noted, though, that Dembele has played more games for his club (66) than Neymar (58) in the last two seasons, so the ‘injury prone’ tag cannot be fairly used as a decisive factor against the Frenchman.
Brazilian midfielder Arthur Melo – largely overlooked by Valverde so far this season – and young centre back Jean Clair Todibo have also been touted as possible PSG recruits. There’s every chance that Neymar’s move to Barcelona will only happen if at least one player heads in the opposite direction.
A late Real bid for Pogba?
Paul Pogba has made an indifferent start to the new Premier League season with Manchester United
Real Madrid have also been consistently linked with a swoop for Neymar this summer, with the Bernabeu club’s president Florentino Perez a long-term admirer of the Brazilian star’s match-winning abilities along with his commercial pulling power off the pitch.
However, the arrival of Eden Hazard and the failure to dispense with Gareth Bale or James Rodriguez means that Zinedine Zidane’s squad is already amply stocked with winger/forwards, and speculation about Real snatching Neymar away from Barca has significantly died down over the last few days.
That doesn’t mean Real have definitely concluded their business for the summer though, because an addition to the centre of midfield is very much on the agenda for Zidane, who quipped on Saturday that his club could still explode a “bomb, or two bombs” before the window closes.
Over the last 12 months the club have allowed the departures of Mateo Kovacic (to Chelsea), Dani Ceballos (Arsenal) and Marcos Llorente (Atletico Madrid) without making any major additions in the middle of the pitch, leaving inexperienced Uruguayan Fede Valverde as the only alternative to the long-serving trio of Luka Modric (who will turn 34 next month), Toni Kroos and Casemiro.
It’s no secret that Paul Pogba has been Zidane’s number one target ever since he returned to the Bernabeu six months ago, and the coach has been left frustrated by his club’s failure to make progress with Manchester United over his compatriot.
Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen and Ajax star Donny van de Beek are the other leading options, and Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon has also been linked, but Pogba remains Zidane’s favoured choice and it would be unwise to completely rule out developments before Monday’s deadline.
Zidane certainly won’t want to head into the campaign with only four midfielders at his disposal, so it would be more surprising if Real don’t sign someone. The question is whether United can be persuaded into striking a deal.
The transfer of Atletico Madrid forward Angel Correa may be key to several other deals taking place in Europe
Atletico and Sevilla swooping for strikers?
La Liga’s early pace-setters, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla, are both looking to boost their striking departments before Monday’s deadline.
Atletico have already come close to signing all-action Spain international Rodrigo Moreno from Valencia, with a planned 65 million euros swoop progressing far enough for Rodrigo to start saying his farewells to his Valencia team-mates on the dawn of the new season.
But then AC Milan’s bid for Atletico forward Angel Correa – which would have financed the deal – fell through at the last minute, so Rodrigo has stayed in Valencia for now. Milan’s move for Correa could still be reignited, though, and that would pave the way for Rodrigo to complete his transfer to the capital.
In turn, the income from that transfer could see Valencia finalise an agreement with Barcelona for creative midfielder Rafinha, while the Mestalla club are also seeking a cut-price right-back following a long-term injury to regular starter Cristiano Piccini.
Along with Atletico the only other team in La Liga to win their opening two games is Sevilla, where there has already been a summer of frantic activity after the return of iconic director of football Monchi resulted in no less than 12 new signings – and they are not finished yet.
The Andalusians waved goodbye to three strikers during the off-season, with Wissam Ben Yedder, Andre Silva and Luis Muriel all departing, and West Ham striker Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez has been lined up to support Dutch target man Luuk de Jong, a summer arrival from PSV.
Another striker who could be on the move – perhaps even to Sevilla if the Chicharito deal falls through – is Real Madrid striker Mariano Diaz, who scored 21 goals for Lyon in the 2017/18 season but is unwanted by Zidane and will be available for around 20 million euros on deadline day.
All these potential transfers, though, are being abandoned into the shadows cast by the truly big story of the summer: will there be another late twist in the Neymar saga?
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It's the right time for Barcelona to cash in on ace once lauded by Xavi - opinion
It has been quite the journey for the 31-year-old Croatian sensation in Catalonia.
Ivan Rakitić arrived in 2014 from Sevilla and has since played a total of 269 games for Barcelona. He was a huge part of their success back in 2015 when they won the treble with Luis Enrique, scoring in the final against Juventus, and his role and influence in the team only got stronger with the appointment of Ernesto Valverde two campaigns ago.
Rakitić was among the players with the most minutes for Blaugrana and was simply undroppable throughout the past two seasons.
But while he seemed irreplaceable for the coach and the board, who even turned down a rather lucrative offer from Paris Saint-Germain last year and decided to keep him instead, the tide seems to be turning and Rakitić is once again a hot topic in Catalonia.
With the arrival of some new faces in Frenkie de Jong, the promotion of Sergi Roberto to midfield and youngsters from La Masia like Carles Alena and Riqui Puig, Rakitić’s importance is diminishing with each passing day.
How do we know that? Well, the proof is already clear on the table. In the last two games, Rakitić only spent 45 minutes on the pitch as he failed to start in either bout against Athletic Bilbao or Real Betis.
Is it the case of changing of the guard or has Valverde finally accepted that the 31-year-old has to give way to the younger generations? Either way, he was right to do it. There’s no denying the Croatian midfielder has been one of the best servants to the club in the past years since his arrival from Andalusia, but there comes a time in everyone’s career when you have to give the torch to the younger crop of players.
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The core of Barcelona’s team is getting on: Rakitić is 31, same as Sergio Busquets, and in that same group of players over the age of 30 are also Luis Suarez, Gerrard Pique, Jordi Alba, Arturo Vidal and, most importantly, Lionel Messi. Barcelona pride themselves on fast-paced, possession-based and dominant football but that style is hardly sustainable with an old core of players.
And looking strictly at the players who could be eligible for a transfer and still lucrative in the financial sense, Rakitić is a viable option. Of course, one could argue that Vidal is in a similar position but the difference is that the Chilean offers a unique set of skills, hunger and determination that no other Barcelona player can actually match.
He might be over 30 years old but he is very much the non-stopping, aggressive and attacking minded type of midfielder that the Catalans are missing. He is also still fresh in the squad, only entering his second year with the team and it would seem rather peculiar if he was discarded right away after a good first season.
Rakitić, on the other hand, is nearing his “expiration date” and Barcelona should cash in while there’s still relative interest in his services. He is undoubtedly still a top player who could arguably fit into any squad in the top five leagues but at Barcelona, he’s become expendable.
This makes even more sense when we take into account their tough financial situation, which was only worsened by the latest expensive purchases and the reported chasing of Neymar.
And finally, the opinion of the fans and the public outbursts that Barcelona have to face every time Rakitić plays a game should be a big enough sign for the player that he is no longer wanted at the club. Of course, it has to be said that he doesn’t deserve all those insults and bashing coming from countless Cules on social media but it has come to the point where it just might be in his best interest to leave.
If the early signs are anything to go by, he won’t get much game time if he stays and the fans are unlikely to have a change of heart, so he should make use of the interest that’s reportedly still there.
Once, he was hailed as one of Barcelona’s best signings in the history by none other than the legendary Xavi Hernandez but now is the right time for another talent to take the spotlight and for Rakitić to move on.
It was great while it lasted and he would most likely have something to offer even if he did decide to stay, but at the end of the day he has to consider what’s in everyone’s best interest.
As it stands right now, saying goodbye would be exactly that.
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