Updates on Spain

As we all know (and if you didn't know) Real Madrid have won the Supercopa title with a 2-1 win at the Santiago Bernabeu. The aggregate was 4-4, but because the goal difference win of Real Madrid was smaller than Barcelona's they able to claim their first title and win of the season. I couldn't watch the game, but from my twitter updates, Real Madrid were really putting on the pressure and Barcelona were really off their game. Even though Valdes probably caused Barcelona the title due to the last game mistake, he made a lot of saves and good ones too to keep Barcelona in the running. All goals from Higuain, CR7, and Messi.

In other news, lots of stuff happened in Monaco today. First the Champions League groups have finally been draw! CHAMPIONS LEAGUE IS GOING TO START SOON! Below is a picture of the groups that will be played. Group D is considered the the death group or the group to watch. You have Real Madrid, Ajax, Manchester City, and Dortmund all of whom are the current winners of their own league. This is going to be the group to watch.

The other really important news that happened in Monaco today is the UEFA Best Player in Europe award was announced today. The top contestants were Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Andres Iniesta. And guess who won? No, not Messi or Ronaldo, but INIESTA! I'm sooooo happy that he won the award. If I were to choose the second person to get it, it would be Messi, but finally Iniesta won the award! He's being recognized for his AMAZING talent, and it's about time. Now we just have to wait and see who will win the Ballon d'Or this coming January. But then again that's a different story.

Reflection of Super Copa Leg 1

The first El Clasico of the season hit off with a bang at the Camp Nou. Both Spanish Giants went out onto the field and played a typical and not so typical Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona game. The went onto a 3-2 in favor of Barcelona with goals from Pedro, Messi, and Xavi and from Ronaldo and Di Maria. Pepe wasn't able to play game due to an injury during the previous they played against Valencia. And we all know he always adds some type of impact to the game. The game did produce a lot of yellow cards, but luckily there were no red cards. In games like these there is usually a lot of tension first because this is probably the greatest rivalry in football and second a lot of the players on each team play together internationally (Higuain, Messi, Di Maria, and Mascherano for Argentina) and then you basically have more than half of the Spanish National Team who either player for Madrid or Barcelona.

One thing I want to point out is that Valdes made a big mistake in that game. A simple pass back from Mascherano was sent to Valdes, but the keeper over thought it to much. Di Maria was coming in on the attack, but he wasn't exactly putting much pressure on Valdes. It's understandable that Valdes is trying to play the Barcelona way, but because he was trying to set himself up (and with a bad touch) Di Maria took the mistake as a opportunity and a opportunity won. Valdes should have cleared the ball because Di Maria was right in front of him, and he should of known any small mistake LIKE a bad touch could be devastating which is what happened

The Super Copa winner is still in limbo. With a score of 3-2 anything can happen during the second leg which will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu. Madrid will have the advantage of the second-leg being a home game and all BUT still nothing is decided yet until next Thursday!

Copa Del Rey Champions!

After what seemed to be a pretty mediocre season for FC Barcelona, they were able to end it with the Copa Del Rey trophy and send Josep Guardiola off on a happy note. A double from Pedro and another goal from Messi were made in the first half and clenched the final for FC Barcelona against Atletic Bilbao.

You have got to admit, this season has not been easy for Barcelona. They were kicked out of the Champions League semi-finals by Chelsea and they lost the league to their greatest rival Real Madrid. BUT on a happier note, they were able to end the season with 4 trophies, The European Super Cup, Supercopa de Espana, the FIFA Club World Cup, and the Copa Del Rey. Of course Barcelona wanted La Liga and the Champions League and you people out there, don't forget that Barcelona is bringing it back next season. You just wait and see.

Congrats Barcelona! Thank you Guardiola for your hard work and good luck Vilnova for next season! I can't wait to see all the transfers this summer!

Xavi Hernandez

If you don't know who Xavi is, you've obviously been living under a football rock for years. He's considered one of the best midfielders to have ever played the game and I can't agree less. I'm not sure how to explain it, but he's what keeps the team, FC Barcelona, ticking. His vision, excellent passing, and unbelievable control makes him an outstanding playmaker. He is so vital to both FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team. He's had a pretty amazing career winning every prestigious competition including the World Cup. At the age of 32, I would say he's had a very, very successful career.


Why am I even posting about this guy? Well first off he's probably one of my favorite players ever. I think I might like him better than Messi and that says a lot. If I could play like any footballer in the world, I would like to play like Xavi. His style of play is.....simply sophisticated. All he does it look for space. He uses that space to exploit his opponent and once he finds it, it can really hurt the other side.That's why one of his nicknames it The Puppet Master. The second reason I'm writing about him is because of his age. Like I said before he's at the age of 32 which is the wrong side of 30 in the footballing community. He still may have 2-4 years if he's able to stay in good shape. Other than that, he may have to retire soon and that will be a sad, sad day for many FC Barcelona fans.

So what does his age have to do with this post? Well as he ages, he'll eventually have to retire and then what? What is he going to do with his life? This is what I'm hoping will happen (a dream that will hopefully come true). He takes 2-3 years of sabbatical from football. Stay and hang with family and not have to worry about the complications of football. BUT I do want him to come back to the footballing world, especially FC Barcelona. I really want him to get a job there, if anything become a coach. He can begin working with the younger kids, you know the youth system, and eventually work his way up to be manager of the first team. That's what I really want, him to become manager of the first team. He has such incredible outlook on the game, I just want to see how he would use it to conduct the team plus he already has the Barca DNA embedded into him, so he knows how Barca plays. That's my hope, my dream for him one day. I would love, love, love to see him become manager of the first team. But there is still a lot of time and it could never happen. I mean I don't know why it wouldn't. He seems like the manager type, he just does. What would be even more awesome would be when Iniesta retires he could work with Xavi, you know become his right hand man. It would be like Xavi is Guardiola and Iniesta is Vilanova. Do know how awesome that would be? Then again guys, this is just a wish that is waiting to happen.

Every Reign Comes to an End

This past week and weekend have just been bad for my team Barcelona. They lost to Chelsea and arch rivals Real Madrid. Because of the El Clasico loss, the league has been given to Real Madrid (obviously), unless miraculously Madrid lose the remaining of the league games and Barcelona win theirs. We all know that's not going to happen. There is still a lot to play for, for the second-leg Champions League semi-final. Chelsea obviously have the advantage with a 1 point lead and Real Madrid have proven that it's not impossible to beat Barcelona at home. Chelsea have been standing their ground and have again proven they can be a world class team. Di Matteo has done a really good job by bringing this team up from what they began with this season. I applaud him for that.

But let's be honest here. The league is out Barcelona's hands and there is a CHANCE that they may not reach the Champions League final stage. Has Barcelona's reign come to an end? They have already won the UEFA Supercup, FIFA World Club Cup, and they are in the final of the Copa del Rey....but is that enough? If we are to compare this season to their recently previous seasons, this season was pretty "mediocre". How could I say that, this team has actually won numerous awards and accolades as a team and individual players (Lionel Messi). But their record and their current form aren't up to par. Maybe it's fatigue, older age, psychological matters, whatever it is, I believe that Barcelona are going to fall this season and start building themselves up next year.

This team has a lot of new fresh faces that still need the experience (Tello, Thiago, Montoya, Cuenca, etc). I know this may sound bad, but I think that a little dip in their success will be good for them. It relieves some pressure off of them. Everyone in the footballing world will have high expectations always, but too much pressure can really hurt people physically and mentally. At the end of this season they will be able to re-access this season and prepare for the next one. Barcelona aren't even going on a pre-season tour really, they have decided to stay in Spain. This just proves that they really are tired. Three years of success can really wear you out. From a business perspective though, you can't have failure and I don't think this is exactly failure, but just a little punch....a reminder what it's like to not succeed which gives them a larger motivation to win more next year. That's all.

Messi is the Best?

Born in Rosario, Argentina, 5'7, and may be considered the best player in the world, Lionel Messi has done it all. He's won so much for his club and individually. He continues to break records and he's only at the age of 24. This is not even his prime. So what are we to expect out of him. Some argue that he still not in the ranks of Pele and Maradona and it's only because of one thing: he still has not won a World Cup.

But does one have to win a World Cup to to be considered the best? There are arguments that say yes, while others say not. To win a World Cup is to say you've conquered the world of football....but is that true anymore? To me honestly, I really don't think you need to win a World Cup to be considered the best in the world. Think about it, when considering club competitions, clubs are trying to build the best possible teams to defeat their league opponents, European opponents, and the world. Meaning you're trying to pick the best for the best from ALL OVER THE WORLD. But World Cup teams (international teams) you only have so many players you can choose from; the people from that country. So you can only choose the best from such a select group. The fact that Messi has won the most prestigious European competition (UEFA Champions League) 3 times (2 technically) already makes him the best. Plus he's already won 2 Club World Cups which I believe maybe a better than the World Cup.

Messi is not a big man, but he is fast and is very known for his incredible dribbling skills. It's almost as if the ball is glued to his feet. Recently he broke the FC Barcelona's goal scoring record, and is now the top scorer of the club with 234 goals in all official matches (which is probably going to continue to grow). He's also broken his own record for most goals scored during a season with 54 goals in all matches, and that number is going to grow too. He already holds team trophies and individual trophies left and right with three consecutive Ballon d'ors, 5 La Liga Titles, 3 UEFA Champions League Trophies, and so on. Lionel Messi is always improving and the scary thing is he's only 24 meaning he hasn't even reached his peak yet. I really want to see what he'll be like when he does. (Freaking superman x10 maybe?). The only thing that is stopping him from being the best in the world is because he has not won a World Cup and until he does there will always be debate on whether he is the best who is to play the beautiful game. But hey it's not me to decide whether he is the best player. Everyone has their opinions and each footballer has their own unique style of playing which make they great. Like I think I might actually like how Xavi and Iniesta play more than Messi (BUT non-the-less I still love watching Messi play). They are both very known for their awareness on the field and their passing ability (especially  Xavi). But who do you think is the best player in the world? Is it Pele, Maradona, Cryuff, Zidane, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, CR7? There are so many to choose, but who is it to you?