We Love Barcelona

Real Madrid and Barcelona have been the dominant force in the Spanish la Liga ever since the decline of Valencia. They have been able to win all the league titles for the last eight seasons, which is a source of major concern.

There has even been talk of the la Liga being not very competitive when compared with the likes of the English Premier league and the Italian Serie A. Only this season, there has been a change in the fortunes of the Spanish clubs because Atletico Madrid have been able to get past their arch rivals Real Madrid into the second position.

They are also having a healthy seven-point advantage between them and their arch rivals and are firm favourites to finish in the second position due to the presence of quality players like Radamel Falcao. The club president Enrique Cerezo has said that it is about time other clubs stepped up to the challenge from Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Even though Atletico Madrid may still not be able to win the title this season, Cerezo is confident that the club can only build on the success achieved so far. Atletico Madrid are a massive nine points behind Barcelona on the table, which has led to many believing that Tito Vilanova’s men have already secured 1 hand on the title.

“It is not only important for Atletico, but for football fans in general. La Liga was a two-horse race, but Atletico started well and has now fully cemented its place in the pack challenging for the league title. [I cannot] ask anything else from the team. Maybe the progress made by the team in such a short period of time has been the most notable change at the club. Simeone has given them confidence, self-belief and above all optimism and joy,” said Cerezo.

The Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova has said that he cannot be more delighted following the return of David Villa, who has been one of the impressive goal scorers for Barcelona since arriving from Valencia for more than £ 30 million.

However, he suffered a major injury last season when he was playing for the club in the Club World Cup in Japan. This kept him out of the action for Barcelona until the start of this new season. Even though he has been used sparingly by the manager, Tito Vilanova has said that he is extremely delighted with the way he is approaching full fitness.

David Villa recently scored two goals in the match against the third division club Alaves to help Barcelona progress 6-1 on aggregate. Even though he has already scored eight goals in just 16 matches this season, Vilanova has used sparingly in order to avoid setbacks in his recovery. Vilanova has said that the complicated nature of the injury means that he has had to use him sparingly. David Villa will turn 31 years of age on Monday and the speculation of him leaving the club has always persisted. Yet, Tito Vilanova has confirmed that he remains an integral part of the Barcelona first-team.

“Every day he looks better. It was a complicated injury and he has worked a great deal over the summer. He is a player who has the scorer’s gift and it is important to have him in the squad. He is a player who has quality and he is perfectly capable of playing with us,” said Tito Vilanova after the 3-1 win. Barcelona have made a spectacular start to the new season overcoming the disappointment of losing the first cup of the season to arch rivals Real Madrid. They currently have a three-point advantage over Atletico Madrid in the table.

A win for FC Barcelona against Atletico Madrid would certainly help the club to further stamp its dominance of La Liga, but it is not very likely that Madrid will make it easy for La Liga’s number one club; when the two top teams in La Liga come together, you can expect some exciting action. The gap between them is currently six points, and Atletico Madrid is determined to reduce it.

Let’s take a look at the clubs. So far this season FC Barcelona has enjoyed 14 wins and has lost just one match. In the club’s history this is the very best start to the season it has ever had and even beats the previous record held by Real Madrid. It seems that Tito Villanova, their newly appointed manager, has cast some sort of spell over them despite the fact that many people had been critical regarding his appointment.

Atletico Madrid has played 15 games from which the club has accumulated 37 points. Sitting 6 points in the table behind FC Barcelona, they are also five points ahead of their nearest rivals Real Madrid. A major asset of the side is their striker Radamel Falcao and from 14 starts he has scored 16 goals with one of them being heralded as the goal of the year. Although Messi with seven goals more is the highest scorer in La Liga, Falcao is still three goals ahead of third place striker Ronaldo.

However, most of Atletico Madrid’s goals have been scored at home with just one third of them scored in away matches, so scoring at FC Barcelona Camp Nou stadium won’t be easy.

If you are finding betting on this match a tough call to take then don’t forget that the internet has not only made it much easier for us to place bets at an online bookies but also to play games such as a football themed slot games on gaming club online casino – and if you aren’t into the slots then you can take a virtual seat at the poker tables here too.

If you can’t resist to place a bet on one of the biggest games in La Liga this year then you might consider that in their last four head to heads Barcelona has beaten Atletico Madrid on every occasion; Atletico has not beaten Barcelona since 2010.

The midfielder of Barcelona, Xavi, has said that Lionel Messi is the best footballer that the game of football has ever seen. Messi has scored 8 goals in the ongoing La Liga so far. Real Madrid’s star striker Cristiano Ronaldo has also scored the same number of goals, but, Xavi believes that Messi is a bit better than Ronaldo.

When asked who is better between Messi and Ronaldo, Xavi said, “Off course it’s Messi. He is the best in the business. I am privileged to have got the opportunity to play alongside him. He is really special. Apart from being a great player, he is a fine human being as well. He is one of those players who don’t like to talk too much in the dressing room, but, if you go to him for a bit of advice, he will be more than happy to help you.”

Barcelona has been performing pretty well in the ongoing La Liga season. The team has played 7 matches and has won 6 of them. Barca is currently at the top of the La Liga table with 19 points. On the other hand, Real Madrid is currently at no. 5 with 11 points in 7 matches. So, there is a difference of 8 points between these two teams.

When asked about Barcelona’s brilliant performance in the ongoing season, Xavi said, “This season has been great for us so far. The guys were a bit disappointed after not being able to win the match against Madrid last Sunday. But, that’s the way it goes. You can’t win every game that you play. It’s wonderful that we are at the top of the table at this stage of the tournament, but, it’s important to keep the momentum going.”

Barcelona will play its next match against Deportivo La Coruna at Riazor on Saturday.

The Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova has said that a 2-2 draw with Real Madrid was probably the ideal result. His comments were also echoed by his Real Madrid counterpart José Mourinho after the match. Barcelona and Real Madrid were facing each other in the league for the first time this season.

Due to the fact that Real Madrid were trailing Barcelona by a massive eight point in the table, José Mourinho said that it was one of the crunch matches of the season. However, Real Madrid could not get the win that they hoped that would reduce the lead for Barcelona at the top of the table.

The match finished as a 2-2 draw with both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo scoring the goals for the either teams. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been regarded as the two best players in the world. It has been difficult to separate them in terms of the goal scoring prowess over the years. It once again proved to be the case during the weekend as well, as Lionel Messi scored two goals for Barcelona. Cristiano Ronaldo once again matched the achievement by scoring two goals for Real Madrid as well.

The Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova said that the draw was probably the first result from the match because there was little to separate both teams. “I think that at the start of the season had we known we would be 8 points clear we would have accepted it. We had chances at the end, but we also had four defenders who were first choice last season who were injured. We spoke with the technical staff and I spoke with him ( Adriano) on Friday, we trained with him there on Friday and Saturday, but I wanted him to say he was the man to play there,” said Vilanova after the match.

The new manager of Barcelona, Tito Vilanova, wants to sign the Manchester City defender Kolo Toure. According to some reports, Vilanova wants a defender who is versatile and can play in the midfield as well. Toure has been performing well for Manchester City since the last three seasons. He is an experienced player and can also guide the younger players. That’s why Vilanova wants to bring him into the squad.

On being asked about Kolo, Vilanova said that the club is looking to sign some experienced players and Kolo is one of the targets of the club. He is a very good defender and he has done quite well for Manchester City. However, Vilanova said that it is up to the authorities of Manchester City whether they want to release Kolo or not.

Meanwhile, the Spanish players of Barcelona i.e. Xavi, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro, Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta have joined the club. The Spanish players were on Holiday after winning the Euro Cup 2012. Vilanova said that the Spanish players are vital parts of the team and it is good that they have joined the team.

Apart from the return of the Spanish players, there is another good news for Barcelona. The defender, Carlos Puyol, has been declared fit to play for Barcelona in the upcoming season. Carlos had discovered a serious knee injury in the later part of the 2011-12 season. He had to go through a surgery in May and he was not able to play in the Euro Cup. After being declared fit, Puyol said that he is delighted to have passed the medical test. It was not a good feeling to sit out of the team and watch the matches on television. As per Puyol, he had to work very hard on his fitness to get 100% fit.

Lionel Messi was not able to play for Barcelona in the exhibition match against Hamburg due to an injury. Due to the absence of Messi in that match, Barcelona has to suffer a great loss. The Barcelona authorities have said that Messi’s absence in that game has cost the club a total of 360,000 Euros. However, Barcelona was able to win the match 2-1. Dani Alves and Gerard Deulofeu scored the goals for Barcelona.

Barcelona was suffering with a calf injury and didn’t play the match. The Spanish Internationals of Barcelona were also not playing in the match. However, the young players of Barcelona performed pretty well. The new coach Tito Vilanova would be quite satisfied with his team’s performance. On being asked about how severe Messi’s injury is, the coach answered that it doesn’t seem to be that bad. But, you never know about the calf injuries. They might take some time. Hopefully, Messi would get rid of the injury pretty soon. The coach said that it is quite pleasant to see young players performing that well on the field. One of the younger players of Barcelona, Gerard Deulofeu scored a goal in the match.

Meanwhile, Lionel Messi has said that there is nothing to worry about his injury and he would be back on the field soon. Messi said that it’s a minor injury and nothing serious. Messi said that it is good to see the team not struggling without him. A team should never depend on a particular player. Messi also praised the young players for their impressive performance. It is important for the young players to grab their opportunities. Messi said that he is doing some light exercises and hopefully, he would be back to play in the second friendly game on Saturday.

Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas has said that manager Pep Guardiola, who will be stepping down from his post as the Barcelona manager following the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, is the greatest manager in the history of Barcelona. Guardiola has guided Barcelona to an unprecedented 13 trophies in four years, while he has the opportunity to claim his 14th title with the club he used to captain.

However, Guardiola has revealed that the pressure of managing Barcelona on a day-to-day basis has affected him and he will be taking a one-year sabbatical from the game. There has been glowing praise coming in for the Catalan, but none more so than the midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

It was Guardiola who decided to bring Fabregas back to the Camp Nou. The Spaniard left Barcelona for Arsenal when he was a teenager, but he has now signed for the club in a £ 35 million deal in the summer. Even though many argue that the presence of Fabregas picked the team has destroyed the stability that it had the previous seasons, Guardiola has always been supportive of Fabregas. Guardiola will be leaving the club in the same state he took over – without league title and Champions League title.

“If there is something extra about this final, it is the possibility of winning the title for our coach, the possibility of him winning yet another title and leaving with his head held high. He will do that anyway because he is the best coach this club have ever had, without a doubt. It is not something we have spoken about as a group but we all know we want to dedicate it to him,” Fabregas told reporters on Tuesday. Guardiola’s assistant manager Tito Villanova will be taking charge of the club from next season onwards.

Spanish club Barcelona have said that the claims that Lionel Messi racially abused Real Madrid player Royston Drenthe, while the Dutchman was at Hercules on a loan deal last season, is untrue.

The club have also praised Lionel Messi by saying that he is an extraordinary professional, who gives everything to the club and respects his fellow professionals.

The 24-year-old Lionel Messi has won three FIFA Player of the Year awards in the last three seasons, which has been matched only by the likes of Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane. He recently broke the record for the most number of goals in one single season by scoring 72 goals for Barcelona.

Even though he looks set to be without the Spanish la Liga and the Champions League trophies this season, many regard Lionel Messi to be the greatest player in the world. Royston Drenthe has played against Messi a number of times during his time at Real Madrid. His contract with the Spanish club will come to an end at the end of the season. He has been loaned to Premier league club Everton for the remainder of the season, but he has not been part of the club in the last few games due to disciplinary reasons. He claimed a few weeks back that Messi racially abused him while playing for Hercules.

“The player has always shown maximum respect and sportsmanship towards his rivals, something recognised by fellow professionals. We are sure that any accusations to the contrary are well wide of the mark,” said a spokesman from Barcelona regarding the claims made by Royston Drenthe. The Dutchman joined Real Madrid in 2007, but looks set to depart the club at the end of the season. Dutch club Feyenoord have been linked with the player in recent weeks.

Former Chelsea manager José Mourinho believes that it would be almost impossible for his former club to beat Barcelona in the semifinals of the Champions League.

Chelsea have been drawn against Barcelona after beating Benfica in the quarter finals of the European competition. However, not many are giving them an opportunity to win against the Spanish club, who are the favourites to win this year’s competition. José Mourinho is one among them, as the Portuguese manager made it into the semifinals of the competition with his club Real Madrid after beating Cyprus club APOEL in the quarter-finals.

Speaking after the match against APOEL, José Mourinho said that Chelsea have almost no chance of beating Barcelona, who have turned on the style in recent weeks. It is certainly a surprise to see Chelsea at this stage of the competition, especially considering their troubles earlier in the campaign.

They also were extremely close to being sent out of the Champions League in the first knockout stages itself after the 3-1 defeat at Napoli in the first leg. However, the appointment of manager Roberto di Matteo in place of Andre Villas-Boas has done wonders at Chelsea, but José Mourinho reckons that a place in the final will be a stretch too far for Chelsea.

“For me the big question is knowing who will play against Barca in the final because they are very good. It will be a great semi-final, Bayern against Real Madrid, and the best team will go on to play against Barca,” said Mourinho. “It will be exciting to play two games against probably one of the best teams in the world. We will find a strategy that will suit our players and our team to face Barcelona,” interim manager Di Matteo said after progressing into the semifinals.