La Liga
Real Madrid man may have played last game for the club following season-ending injury
Real Madrid’s Lucas Vazquez has been ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury in Saturday’s El Clasico victory, as confirmed by Marca. Vazquez has been an important part of Madrid’s title challenge this season, featuring 24 times in the league. During these games, he has recorded two goals and five assists, including his set-up for Karim Benzema’s opener on the weekend. Vazquez has featured 24 times in La Liga this season Despite primarily being a winger, the 29-year-old has played the majority of his games at right-back, largely due to the absence of Dani Carvajal. The former Bayer Leverkusen man has had a succession of injuries this season, restricting him to just 12 appearances in all competitions. However, it seems as if Vazquez’s season is over, after Marca c...
El Clásico’s impact on La Liga title race
In the 246th competitive fixture between Real Madrid and Barcelona on Saturday, it was Los Blancos who came out on top at the final whistle. First-half goals from Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos were enough to claim three points at the Estadio Alfredo di Stefano despite a second-half consolation for the visitors by Óscar Mingueza. With little over a month left of the season, we look at just how their 2-1 victory has impacted the La Liga title race. Which teams are battling it out? There are three teams left fighting for the title at this stage – Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético Madrid. Since Valencia in 2003/2004, these three are the only teams to have won a La Liga title. Atlético have done so on one occasion in that time frame, pipping Barcelona on the final day of the 2013/14 campa...
Tactical Analysis: How Real Madrid overcame Barcelona in El Clásico
Real Madrid and Barcelona may be two falling giants of European football, but their reputation remains high despite their struggles. Therefore, their clash – El Clásico – is still one of football’s biggest attractions, even if not the best from a quality perspective. The latest Clásico on Saturday had something much bigger at stake than pride – the La Liga title. Atlético Madrid looked intent on breaking Madrid and Barça’s duopoly on the Spanish top-flight, getting 50 points in the first half of their season and going clear at the top of the table, but they have slumped incredibly since. Their drop has allowed Madrid and Barcelona back into the title race, with Los Blancos just two points behind their Catalonian rivals going into this match. The hosts came away with a m...
Real Madrid complete El Clasico double to go top of La Liga
Real Madrid defeated Barcelona for the second time this season to climb to the top of the La Liga table. It was a lively start to the game, with the visitors having the first sight of goal. Lionel Messi slipped a ball through to Jordi Alba, who tried to find Ousmane Dembele with a low cross but was denied by the left hand of Thibaut Courtois. But it was not long before Los Blancos launched their first attack, and with that came the opening goal. Lucas Vazquez was fed the ball after some brilliant work from Federico Valverde, and the Spaniard’s low cross was expertly flicked in at the near post by Karim Benzema. Not long later, Zinedine Zidane’s men doubled their lead through a slice of luck. Toni Kroos’ free kick took a huge deflection off Sergino Dest, and Alba was unable to head the ball...
Club plan bid for £20m Everton star, Ancelotti feels he is ‘error prone’ – report
Valencia are lining up a summer move for Everton centre-back Yerry Mina, Football Insider reports. The Colombian is currently in his third campaign with the Toffees and has registered 73 appearances across all competitions. 20 of those outings have come in the Premier League this term, but he has largely been injured or on the bench in recent months. Mason Holgate, Ben Godfrey and Michael Keane appear to be ahead of him in the pecking order, and he could be on the move this summer. Valencia are planning an approach for his services. The Toffees are said to value Mina at £20 million, but he could be sold for less. While manager Carlo Ancelotti believes Mina is physically suited for the league, he personally feels the Colombian defender is ‘too erratic and error-prone’. Sportslens view:...
Three key battles that could decide El Clasico – and La Liga
Real Madrid vs Barcelona is always a big game, but this is massive. If either side can take all three points from this El Clasico, they will be in pole position to kick on for the league title. There really is nothing between the two sides at the moment. Both teams come into the game enjoying their best form of the season, with Barca unbeaten in 19 games and Madrid having lost just one of their last 19. With no clear favourite heading into the game, here are some of the key battles that could define the outcome of the biggest game of the Spanish season. Messi vs Casemiro The obvious place to start is La Liga’s top goalscorer. If Madrid are going to get anything from this game, they will need to nullify the threat of one of the greatest players of our generation – Lionel Messi. The Argentin...
Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona interested in signing £210,000-a-week German star – report
Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona are among the contenders to sign Jerome Boateng when his contract with Bayern Munich expires this summer, Sport Bild reports. The German has been a brilliant performer for the Bundesliga giants over the past decade, but it was confirmed earlier this week that his contract won’t be renewed. Boateng, who was previously with Manchester City, has been linked on multiple occasions with a return to the Premier League with Chelsea in particular. Bild journalist Christian Falk has now reported that Spurs and Barcelona are looking at Boateng as a smart addition to their respective squads this summer. Sportslens view: Spurs have had a stop-start campaign in the league, and they have been guilty of conceding late goals which have cost them valuable points. Jose Mourinh...
Lingard and Garner steal the headlines, but how are the rest of Man Utd’s loanees doing this season?
Manchester United’s link with their academy is synonymous and the list of talent which has come through the ranks onto the pitch at Old Trafford is endless. However, progression into the first team isn’t something which comes easy, and even those of the most fame now – including David Beckham – sometimes have to go out on loan to prove their worth. We’ve profiled some of the United players currently out on loan this season – both young and old – and assessed what their chances are of returning to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s line-up at Old Trafford anytime soon. Jesse Lingard We’re going to start off with the players currently loaned out to clubs within the United Kingdom and undoubtedly, Jesse Lingard has started to shine since his move to West Ham United. The 28-year-old is the only name on th...
Boost for Barcelona and Real Madrid as Atletico star set for spell on the sidelines
Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez has suffered a muscle injury in his left leg, as confirmed via the club’s official website. Suarez came to Atletico Madrid from Barcelona in last summer’s transfer window. Despite his age, the 34-year-old has shown no signs of slowing down, scoring 19 La Liga goals in 26 appearances. This has put him second in the race for the Pichichi, four behind former teammate Lionel Messi. Suarez has enjoyed a fine debut season at Atletico Madrid This form has helped Los Rojiblancos to the top of the La Liga table with just nine games remaining. They remain on course for their 11th league title, and their first since the 2013/14 season. However, Diego Simeone’s side have suffered a major loss of form, winning just four of their last ten league outings. This has seen...
Analysis: Liverpool’s poor pressing and TAA horror show ensured resounding thrashing by Real Madrid
As far as UEFA Champions League quarter-final ties go, they don’t get much bigger than this. Real Madrid hosted Liverpool at the Alfredo Di Stéfano in the first leg of the repeat of the 2018 Champions League final, but a number of key players were missing from both sides. Neither team had either of their two senior centre-backs available, while Eden Hazard and Dani Carvajal were also out for Los Blancos. Two depleted defences meant that we certainly had goals in store, and that was just the case as Real Madrid emerged 3-1 winners – just as they had done nearly three years ago. There was no Gareth Bale to bag a brace for Zinedine Zidane’s men, but Vinícius Júnior stepped up more than adequately with a match-winning performance. We will take a look at that and much more as we ...
Manchester United target to be offered new contract
Barcelona are preparing to offer a new contract to winger Ousmane Dembele, reports Spanish outlet Sport. Dembele came to Barcelona in the summer transfer window of 2017, arriving from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth up to €145 million. He was brought in to replace Neymar, who had departed for Paris Saint-Germain for a world record fee that window. Dembele celebrates a goal against Sevilla His time at the Camp Nou has not been as successful as hoped. He has shown flashes of potential, but injuries and inconsistency have held him back from fulfilling his potential. Nonetheless, there is no denying his talent. With a bit of fine tuning, the Frenchman could go on to become one of the world’s most feared forwards. Spanish publication Sport are claiming that the Catalan giants are set to offer...
Vinicius Junior hits brace as Real Madrid take commanding lead in first leg
Real Madrid enjoyed a fine evening in the Champions League quarter-finals, winning their first leg tie over Liverpool 3-1. It was a tough first half for the visitors. Karim Benzema fired an early warning shot straight at Alisson, while Vinicius Junior headed wide after some good work down the left from Ferland Mendy. On the 27th minute, Vinicius gave Real Madrid the lead with a real moment of quality. Toni Kroos found the Brazilian with a pinpoint 50-yard pass. The winger immaculately brought the ball down on his chest and fired into the bottom corner with his right foot. Ten minutes later, Los Blancos doubled their lead. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s interception from Kroos’ pass went straight to Marco Asensio, who lifted the ball over Alisson and tapped in from no further than a yard out. It ...
