Musings at the Midpoint

Here are my main thoughts on football so far, or at least what little I have seen of it.

The EPL: Though I live in Spain, I seem to watch more of the EPL than anything else. This is largely a result of scheduling -- it so happens that the EPL play games at reasonable hours here in Europe, whereas in Spain the games are so bloody late in the evening (though when you've got a toddler). I've caught some Man City, Man United, Arsenal and Spurs games - all have entertained. The Man City  Man United game was particularly entertaining. Neither team looked like world beaters, but both looked like they could score goals against anyone. Due to current standings, my money's on United for the title. They aren't spectacular now, but I can't see anyone else overtaking them.

La Liga: Barcelona are off to a tremendous start. I watched several games at the start of the season, and watched victories fall into their lap even when they scarcely deserved them. It seems they started believing in that luck, and eventually stopped having to rely on it for wins -- lately, their form has been tremendous.
It gives me no end of pleasure watching Madrid stumble as they have. Though I haven't watched them much this year, I have followed them closely in match reports. Unlike Barca, luck has not been with them much this year.  It appears Jose Mourinho has almost worn out his welcome in Spain - I won't be mourning his departure should it come in the summer.

The Champions League: Keeping with Madrid - theirs was the group to watch, eh? Dortmund was spectacular; Man City was apathetic, and Madrid were well tested.  Great games in that group. Kudos to Celtic for making it through in Barca's group, too. Neat to see them beat my club in that competition -- they deserved it. Chelsea - ha! Unlovable winners last year made for pleasant watching this year in their failure.
The next round has some great games - Madrid v. United being the real one to watch, of course. Though Barca v. Milan will be interesting. I went to their quarter-final game last year and it was great. Marcotti's take on some of the other matchups is worth viewing.
All for now -- hoping for more football and more posts in 2013.
Happy New Year!

Where We Stand: FC Barcelona vs. Malaga from the Camp Nou

My vantage point

The first game for Pep at home since announcing his retirement.  When I bought the ticket to this game in March, Barca were six points adrift of Madrid, and may of us thought for sure the league was gone. A roller coaster ride from then to now, and it is officially true, the league is gone. Now, so too is Pep Guardiola. 

So be it. No turning back now. Tito will be the new boss, but there is the small matter of the remaining games this season, including one Cup Final, to consider.

Pep's first Post Announcement game away to Rayo Vallencano (a 0-7 thumping) was a serious statement by coach and players that this is not a team to bury their head in the sand despite some tough results. This game, at home, was sure to be remarkable as well.

Malaga are a powerhouse team in the making largely due to the backing of newish club president Sheik Al Thani. His billions brought Santi Cazorla to the team, as well as Ruud Van Nistelroy, Martin Dimichelis, Julio Baptista and Joaquin.  All stars in their own right. This season, Malaga have been good enough to qualify for Europe.  

Pep fielded an interesting bunch, giving Pinto a chance to warm up for the Cup Final. He did alright, making a couple of clutch saves towards the end. Mascherano played another spectacular game, as did Cesc. Messi, not in the best form for most of April, looked quite a bit sharper in this game.

Highlights of the game for me:

1. Pregame keepy uppy between Messi and Dani Alves separated by about 40 yards --- quina control!!!
2. At 6 minutes in, an innocuous ball drifted out if touch near Pep and co. Pep noticed a lack of concentration from his squad and left the bench to issue some instructions -- chants of GUARDIOOOOLA rang throughout. An awkward but notable moment for the coach and crowd.
3. Malaga's goal on 26 minutes was well earned -- Barca had lost focus for a stretch, Malaga via Rondon netted their goal right in front of me. 
4. Messi's second penalty award was also right in front of me. It looked clear in the stadium, but I'm not so sure after seeing this one replay. Regardless, his chip over Kameni for his hat-trick was sublime.
5. Diego Buonanotte is a tiny but very clever footballer. At 5'2" and 125 pounds, I couldn't see him cutting it in any professional sport in the US.   
6. I got to see Ruud Van Nistelroy play. Legend. Roundly booed in the Camp Nou for his time at the Bernabeu.  He nearly scored with his first touch of the game.  
7. Leo broke Muller's record -- nice one. 
8. At 87 minutes in, the boixois nois unveiled a big GRACIES banner dedicated to Pep. Loads of Guardiola chants throughout from then to the end. He will be missed.

 


 

Clasico 2012 Post-mortem

Alright, so the blau-grana had a rough day at the office. From my seats just barely under la tribuna in the south-west corner of the Camp Nou, Barca just seemed to have an off night. The Madrid players were more up for this one, and their tactics proved effective enough for the win. The Barca players never got out of second gear.


This resurgent Madrid squad came to out fight Barca for every ball, to close the space down quickly, and to not let Barca get into any sort of attacking rhythm. They played out this strategy to near perfection. Like Chelsea at mid-week, when it mattered, they made their chances count.

So what now? So life goes on. We focus on the next game, at home to Chelsea, and we try forget about all of the misplaced and intercepted passes tonight.

Perhaps Pep played the cast he did with one eye on the CL tie in just a few days. No Pique, no Cesc, no Alexis, at least until later on. I hope that's the case; he's been saying for the past several weeks now that Barca will not win the league. Let's say Pep played a weakened side tonight so that he could deliver us he Big Eared trophy come May. Ya. That's my story and I'm stickin to it.

Everyone is entitled to have the occasional off night.  Barca's off nights in the league this year have sadly come a bit too often. Congrats to Madrid to have surely taken the title now. Hope the boys can pull it together in the Champions League.

Khedira scored the first goal on this play

FC Barcelona 5 - 1 Valencia

I moved to Barcelona with my missus and the toddler on February 7 of 2012. We hope to stay for a while.

This was my first game at the Camp Nou since moving (I went to the Classic in 2010 previously), and I was excited beyond measure. Here is what i wrote along the way - sorry if it's a bit rough around the edges.

It is 55 minutes before the start of the game but I have already entered the stadium. I took the 54 bus from near the Arc de Trionf to get here  - it was so slow, I'll be glad when my bike gets here.

I had two beers, one in Bar Jaguar where I struck up a conversation with a Morrocan. I left there pretty quickly. Too many gringos. Walked down the street to the Staff Bar - much better - Catalan bartender and folks speaking Catalan outside that I could chat with. Ok, I chatted with only one older guy, a soci. Asked him if we had any chance to win the league. He shook his head and said no. But maybe the Champions League and the Copa del Rey. I like his optimism.

40 mins before kickoff. The Camp Nou is starting to fill out, but it is still pretty empty. I'm off for a walk around the stadium.

5 mins before the start - Manel on the PA system.

Kickoff - turning off the iPad.

Half time 2 - 1 to Barca., it just started to sprinkle. Busquets' mistake led to the first goal - he's not been playing well. He did do better after that error at least.  Alexis has been stupendous. Messi's first goal had a touch of luck to it. So did the second.

Final result - FCB 5 - 1 Valencia.  Messi's chip on the keeper though was pure class. Iniesta has also been great. His little chip to set up a near spectacular effort from Fabregas was really amazing.

It was a great game for this Barca fan, a great welcome to Spain.

The Liga is dead. Long live the Champions League! Barca and Arsenal

Barca

Molt be, al final, but we passed through some really rough moments in that game. This was a really important game for the confidence of the Barca players. Having just lost the league, and I am certain that they have just lost the league, the only competition of any great importance is the Champions League. Bueno, this is not to slight the great tradition of the Copa del Rey, but frankly, it's just not as important. Teams are judged by direct competition with their contemporaries in other leagues.

To reinstate player confidence, the ideal opponent would have to be credible, but not too strong. Bayern Leverkusen fit the bill perfectly. They have a solid reputation as a European club.  Though not in the top tier, they regularly make it into European competition. It is a good thing that we face them now.

Barca showed some frailty in this first leg. Sergio Busquets gave the ball away with far too great frequency; Abidal again was strangely out of character. Against Osasuna, Abidal had a crapper. Granted, so did the entire barca defense. Messi payed a poor first half, but made up for it in spades in the second. Credit should go to Adriano, playing left in the attacking three for the first time I have seen him the, ever. He played reasonably well. Alexis was stupendous.
 _
Arsenal
And l thought the Barca performance was sub-par. Wow. Arsenal played a real stinker tonight against Milan. I am and have been a skeptic for some time of Arsene Wenger, but this performance was truly awful. Risicky should be sold, Arteta just isn't good enough. Henry? Past his prime and out of shape.

I understand that it is difficult to play so far away from home, and that everything is complicated by the opposition. Milan were much better prepared for this game. It looked like the payers had done their homework, and they stymied almost every single Arsenal attack. Good for them. It will be nearly impossible for Arsenal to turn this tie around. See you in the next round, Milan.


**In the near future, I will be heading to games at the Nou Camp. Pictures to be included.
 

Osasuna 3 - 2 Barcelona? Hem Perdut la Lliga

We were late. I knew we were going to be late, but didn’t know exactly how late we were going to be. It was too late, apparently. By the time I made it back from the Maquinista Mall, somewhere north of downtown, about 9 Metro stops north of the Arc de Triomf, after a marginally productive trip to the Genius Bar, Osasuna was up two to nil. What the fuck? I couldn’t believe what I was reading on the tiny screen in the bar we passed. I asked the guy outside the pub “Es veritat? Dos a cero?!” “Si, si, es veritat.” Madre mia.

We ran the last block and half to the entrada, zipped up the elevator shaft and stormed into the living room.  “Es veritat?! Dos a cero a Osasuna?!”

Thirty minutes had gone by, and so had the Liga.  There was no way Barca was coming back from two down, at Osasuna playing on their potato field of a pitch, in sub-zero temperatures. On top of this, they were playing with a makeshift midfield, saving the premier engine for the Champions League game this coming Tuesday.

Argh. I’m not sure I like this strategy.

David v. Goliath: Racing and Valencia Hold Real Madrid and Barcelona

Si, hay liga indeed. Maybe.
I watched the Madrid game yesterday, and caught most of the Barca game through a combination of Radio Barca and Gol TV courtesy of the Druid in Inman Square. Both teams drew in fixtures to Racing de Santander and Valencia respectively, in what was probably the best set of results for La Liga's PR officers. However, it is very apparent that the top two teams are breaking away in terms of attracting and contracting talent, and there appears to be no end in sight.

For fans of different teams in La Liga the situation looks frustrating and difficult to reconcile.  I am a fan of one of the big teams, Barcelona, but I cannot stand the fact that our spending power and that of our rivals Madrid has reduced the others in the league to mere also-rans. Points differences between the second place finisher (either Barca or Madrid each of the past three years, with the big points jump at the 2009-2010 season) and the third place finisher tell a depressing story.

2010-2011  21 pts between Madrid (2) and Valencia (3)

2009-2010* 25 pts between Madrid (2) and Valencia (3)

2008-2009   8 pts between Madrid (2) and Sevilla (3)  

2007-2008  (Villareal finished above Barca; Madrid won the title)

2006-2007   5 pts between Barca (2) and Sevilla (3)

2005-2006   1 pt between Madrid (2) and Valencia

*In 2009, both Barca and Real Madrid brought in some remarkable players, and a few, in Barca's system at least, seemed to come in to their own at just the right time. Madrid's 2009 shopping spree included Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema, Albiol, Lassana Diarra, Arbeloa, Xabi Alonso, Esteban Granero, and a goalkeeper called Adan. Ay Caramba!

I like to think that there is hope, but that means some hard decisions need to be made, specifically something on the order of salary caps and/or some sort of redistribution of wealth. Fine to say, nearly impossible to implement. It would require the leaders from Barca and Madrid to pony up to the table and offer to sacrifice a significant percentage of their earnings to create a more balanced league. As things now stand, the big two will continue to bring in the most talented and most expensive ball players, leaving the others to the remaining scraps. While football is a funny game, and one can regularly see examples of Davids beating (or drawing) Goliaths -- reference the most recent match from either Barca or Madrid -- the current course if unaltered is untenable.

The Usual Suspects

Leagues are at or are nearing the half way point and we are starting to get a sense for how things will end up. I've caught a good number of Premiership, La Liga and Bundesliga games. Here are my thoughts on the Usual Suspects for winning those leagues.
The Premiership:
Man U is in first place after displacing a Chelsea side that have recently shown that they can be beat. That is a bit a surprise to me as I thought the Chelsea bench was deep, and the motivation to win was still strong. Drogba's illness (malaria) and Lampard's absence due to injury has cost them dearly. Perhaps they can recover after the New Year?
United's bench is starting to look stronger than I initially thought at the start of the year, with Chicharito helpfully scoring valuable goals, Park putting in some good shifts and even Anderson doing his bit for the team.
Some people at this stage are saying Arsenal could challenge for the top but I am not completely convinced (especially after the tame defeat agains United on Dec 13). Arsenal tend to take on injuries at inopportune times in the season. If they can make it through January and February healthy, I may but more stock in their chances.
La Liga
See the next blog for the Clasico eval, surely 3 key points to determine the winner of the league.
As for the also rans, I too have been impressed with Villareal, and deceived by both Sevilla and Valencia. Neither of the latter can put any kind of good run together, and Sevilla, despite having a good squad on paper, are in a downward spiral.

Bundesliga
Judging by what I have seen of of them so far this season (admittedly only a few games), Munich don't deserve to win anything. Sure they have been hit by injuries to some key players, but this is Munich. More is expected.
Dortmund -- these guys are playing out of their skin, a mix of confidence and style. Hope they can keep it up after the long break, depite losing their Japanese star to the Asia Cup in January.
Hannover ? I just can't believe their good form will continue after break. Let's hope they can keep it up enough to make the UEFA EuroLiga Cup or whatever it is called.