La Liga

[RichC]

Horrible side aren't they great they've done so well vs Barca & Madrid but he's moulded them into something pretty unpleasant on the pitch

[BigChief]

Costa is beginning to make sense now. If only Coutinho/Sterling could hit the ball like Torres still can. (Not that I want Torres back!)

[Zapater]

Horrible side aren't they great they've done so well vs Barca & Madrid but he's moulded them into something pretty unpleasant on the pitch

Definitely, I think that most of the competitive teams in La Liga (outside of Barca and Madrid) have been over the last 2 decades. 'SuperDepor' were filthy, I've never seen a team throw more wild elbows and dive as much as Juande Ramos' Sevilla and even some Valencia and La Real teams despite not being bad were uncompromising.

Even look at this Valencia team now which is starting to become competitive, they're following a similar model to Atleti where Nuno is making a bit of a name for himself. He's even managing to get players like Parejo and the like flying into challenges. Parejo usually has a reputation of shirking the rough stuff, now he's well up for it. A manager that players will go to war for seems an important ingredient more now than ever when trying to get something on Barca or Madrid. It installs a backbone into a team that was missing that makes them incredibly difficult to beat. It can unfortunately make for some horrendous viewing.

[Liverpel]

Real Madrid beat Real Sociedad 4-1 today.

[spud_gun]

Barca have just gone behind to Villareal

Awful deflection

Suarez starts for Barca.

[Bender]

Cristiano Ronaldo would sell for £300m if Real Madrid decided to let him leave tomorrow, the Portuguese superstar's agent has told BBC Sport.

Jorge Mendes said the 29-year-old forward was the "best player ever" and the "best sportsman ever".
Mendes added: "You can't compare him with anybody else."

Ronaldo was voted the world's best player for a third time last month, beating Barcelona rival Lionel Messi to the prestigious award.

Asked how much he was worth, Mendes said: "Cristano Ronaldo? One billion. His buyout clause one billion, so it is one billion.

"If, for any reason, the club decide to sell him tomorrow for 300 million, someone will pay."

[Phoenix07]

Dani Alves looks set to leave Barcelona at the end of the season after the Brazil defender’s agent admitted he has yet to receive a new contract offer to remain at the Camp Nou.

Alves, whose current deal expires in June, had been expected to sign an extension due to Barça’s transfer ban, which prevents them from making any signings until 2016. However, his agent confirmed on Tuesday that no offer has been received and Alves is now likely to leave.

“They haven’t contacted us,” Dinorah Santana told the Spanish radio station Cadena SER. “I interpret that silence to mean they don’t want Dani Alves, so we will begin searching for a new club.

“We won’t wait for Barcelona, they have to take the plunge. Alves has spent seven years here and he has behaved like a professional at all times.

“Barcelona have not had a sporting director for a month and Alves is free to negotiate with any club. [Former director of football] Andoni Zubizarreta didn’t tell us anything.”

The news is likely to alert both Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain, both of whom have been linked with an approach for Alves. Under current regulations, he is now free to sign a pre-contract agreement with any club outside Spain.

Alves joined Barcelona in 2008 for an initial £23m after six years with Sevilla.

http://www.theguardian.com/football/...contract-offer

He'd be superb in our 3-4-2-1 formation. Experienced, but would demand very high wages.

[Mike]

He'd be superb in our 3-4-2-1 formation. Experienced, but would demand very high wages.

A few years ago he'd have been worth a punt, but not now.

The fact he hasn't been offered a new contract shows he's not what he used to be. His best days are behind him. He is and could be a useful player for us, but for the wages he'd be after we could and should be getting more.

[ChesterDave]

Athletic beating Real 2-0 inside 20 minutes

[Trippendicular]

Athletic beating Real 2-0 inside 20 minutes

Lovely scissor kick from that Saul kid.

[Reece]

Weren't we linked with him not too long ago?

[spud_gun]

How dare the Spanish league schedule such a big game for a 3pm kick off

[spud_gun]

Atletico Madrid 4 - 0 Real madrid

What a scoreline that is.

Fair play to Atletico

[McDermotX]

Battered.

[Phoenix07]

Simeone just knows how to beat Real Madrid.