First off, that is such an amazing frontpage to a newspaper. I wish American newspapers could be more like Marca. (What, annoyingly pro-Madrid?) Do you think this was taken when Baptista found out he was surpluse to requirements at the Bernabeu? Also, if Madrid is “the best” as the quote reads, then what is Arsenal? Probably “lo maximo también” or something along those lines.
So Jose Antonio Reyes can stop his bitching now that he is a member of Real Madrid and hopefully Julio Baptista will get more playing time at Arsenal. He’ll be a good attacking midfielder/second striker to run around behind Henry and run people over like the absolute freight train he is. “El Bestia” isn’t named that for nothing. Reyes should fill some of the midfielding gaps in Madrid’s lineup (mostly on the wings, especially when Beckham fancies himself Steven Gerrard). Good trade, really, since Reyes wasn’t working out so well and couldn’t stop whining about how he loved Madrid. And of course Atletico are in on the action now too.
In classic overhype, AS declared the deal “done”. Mission accomplished. Wonderboy is home. And the thing is I actually like Reyes, though not enough to tolerate his annoying high school angst about missing Spain.
According to soccerway.com Egyptian international defender Mohamed Abdelwahad collapsed died during a training session with his club in Egypt, Al Ahly. The cause of death is still unknown. Abdelwahad was 22.
Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano appear to be headed to West Ham United in a surprise move by absolutely everyone involved. Both have been high-profile targets of just about every big name in England throughout the summer, but it seems that West Ham are going to nab the pair. Not sure what this means for West Ham, but it can only be a good thing, especially with Dean Ashton out until at least late October. Bobby Zamora is competent (four goals so far in 3 games isn’t bad), but he is nothing compared to Tevez. Mascherano will no doubt also bolster a mediocre midfield.
In other transfer news, Jonathan Woodgate has joined Middlesbrough on a season-long loan. Not bad for the British club, but it won’t help Real Madrid’s defensive woes.
In a move that should bring a measure of stability to a slightly sub-par midfield, Aston Villa has signed Stilian Petrov from Celtic for €9.6million/$12.3million) (which could rise to €11.9million/$15.3million depending on appearances). Petrov is the Bulgarian international team captain. According to UEFA.com, Petrov has been in the Scottish Premier League for 7 years, making 224 appearances with 53 goals. He has also played for CSKA Sofia. Perhaps the most interesting part of this move is that for 4 of his 7 years at Celtic, Petrov was coached by Martin O’Neill, the current Villa coach. Petrov will provide, at the very least, a little more depth to a midfield that really has no standouts. Petrov should be an immediate first-teamer alongside Gavin McCann, but with Jlloyd Samuel out injured there is a small gap in the defensive capabilities of the midfield that Petrov should more than adequately cover. It should be noted, however, that Samuel is a defender being used in a midfield holding role slash 5th defender and so the tactical approach O’Neill takes from here on out could be somewhat different than in previous games as Petrov is an out-and-out midfielder. This should be — barring a miracle — the only major signing before tomorrow’s transfer deadline.
Also in Villa news, owner Randy Lerner is looking to create a £100million/$190million financial package which would include naming rights to the Villa Park stadium and other commerical interests, presumably high on the list being jersey rights.
Complete Aston Villa schedule/results
First: Thomas Gravesen has moved from Real Madrid to Celtic for a reported €3million/$3.8million. It’s about time, seeing as he was never going to fit in at Madrid, either with his teammates or his coaches. Celtic will be happy to have a world-class asskicker in the middle of their defensive front. Gravesen is apparently a replacement player for Stilian Petrov who transfered to Aston Villa earlier in the day, but it begs the question, why didn’t Aston Villa just go ahead and get Gravesen at about a third of the price? Your guess is as good as mine, especially when you consider that Gravesen is probably better than Petrov (up for debate, of course, seeing as Petrov is the Bulgarian international captain, but Gravesen has 64 caps for Denmark, which is quite impressive in and of itself).
There are rumors in the air that Inter Milan and Madrid would like to make a friendly trade of Adriano for Ronaldo. That’s a bit like wife-swapping if you’re both married to an Olsen twin. Why even bother? I mean, it’s not like Madrid don’t have the money to pay Ronaldo’s salary or Adriano’s more-than-likely mirror-image contract and, really, they both play almost the same way. The whole point of dumping either of the players on a different team is so that you don’t have another striker. Let me be more specific:
Madrid striker count: 5 (Robinho, Raul, van Nistelrooy, Cassano, Ronaldo)
Inter striker count: 7 (Slavkovski, Ibrahimovic, Lampros, Julio Cruz, Adriano, Alvaro Recoba, Hernan Crespo)
While neither Goran Slavkovski nor Lampros appear destined to play any kind of minutes at all this season, I still think 5 is serious overkill when you’re talking about some of the premier strikers in the world. As for Madrid, Guti is technically listed as a forward, but hopefully he goes to Atletico anyway and opens some room up front for…the other 5 forwards currently available. Even providing that one of them gets injured (cough cassano cough) and either Robinho or Raul play in an attacking midfielder role, that still leaves too many big contracts and too many big egos resting on the bench. Perhaps that doesn’t phase anyone at Madrid, but it should. With Graveson and probably Baptista gone, the midfield should settle down a little (there will only be 12 midfielders on the roster at that point — is that even legal?). So basically the point is that putting Ronaldo in Inter Milan means Inter will still have 7 strikers and Adriano going to Madrid would mean Madrid has…still 5.
Sevilla made a big statement aganst Levante in their league opener: 4-0 by Kepa. Good to see Kanoute on the board again as well. Sevilla will certainly make a Champions League push this year, but will probably fall quite short of the title. I imagine them in fourth place by a couple to Valencia.
Euro2008 standings are available as well. Statistically speaking, the best team in Europe is….Georgia! +6 goal differential thanks to their thrashing of Macedonia a few weeks ago. Rappers delight!
The first of several Euro2008 qualifier predictions and discussions is post here. It’s England – Andorra (Sept 2). Check in periodically for updates to the Euro2008 and Champions League pages as there will be more predictions and reviews.
The standings have been updated for the EPL and La Liga after today’s results and Ligue 1 and Apertura 2006 were added as well. The Champions League group stage standings are added as well, on their own page.
It is interesting to note that so far, Clausura champs Pachuca are currently 0-0-4 for a grand total of 0 points after round 4 of the Apertura. Oh the fickle winds of sport.
EPL:
Middlesbrough 0 – 4 Portsmouth. Holy crap. Kanu came through with two goals, giving notice to all of his many critics (yours truly included). Quite a display of attacking power, even if it’s just Middlesbrough we’re talking about (wait, didn’t they beat Chelsea? Thanks, gods of soccer, truly helpful for future predictions…).
La Liga:
Sevilla 2 – 3 Barcelona. It took an 88th minute Gudjohnsen goal off a corner to get the three points, but the reigning champs are off to a good start. Eto’o and Messi scored the other two. Good to see the Gudjohnsen is finding a home, though I still prefer Saviola.
In a move reported to be worth €25million (~$32million), Spanish interntational winger Joaquín has moved to Valencia, ending weeks of rampant speculation. Despite having demanded a transfer for some time, apparently Joaquín couldn’t help but cry in front of the media as he announced the move (link in Spanish). Joaquín signed a six year deal with Valencia.
This is bad news for Real Betis who are on the verge of losing Ricardo Oliveira to Milan (does he still have to pay the €1million fine if he leaves?). According to Clubcall.com, there is a serious hitch in the plans as well as another fine for Oliveira because he apparently doesn’t give a crap about what Betis says, but if the move takes place — which is certainly should due to the bad blood between Oliveira and his team — Betis will be seriously weakened throughout its squad. And for a team that once fielded Tab Ramos, this is quite a drop.
Valencia, on the other hand, now have a very solid squad all around and it must be said they are certainly a force to be reckoned with in La Liga as well in the Champions League.
A friend of mine invited me to do write ups about Aston Villa when Andy Lerner took over and that sounded fun, so here’s the first installment of Villa series, with plans to preview and review each of Villa’s games.
Phil Ball has posted his La Liga preview and before you say “but La Liga already started, what do I need a preview for?” remember that we’re talking about Phil Ball here. He is always current.
Finally I got around to updating the standings page, which is now available for your viewing pleasure. So far I have the EPL, La Liga, and the Bundesliga going. I’ll be posting Ligue 1 and the Mexican Clausura soon as well as a page for the Champions League. When Serie A starts, I’ll do that too. Come to think of it, it might not.
The Spanish League has returned! Fernando Morientes netted for Valencia in their opener against Real Betis. The final score was 2-1. Who ever said Morientes was good? More games today, though Ronaldinho will miss Monday’s game against Celta.
Also, the first major trophy of the year, the UEFA Super Cup (which some would say is not a major trophy), went to Sevilla after they beat fellow Spaniards Barcelona 3-0 in Monaco. The game would have been worth discussing if someone other than just Sevilla had shown up. The first chink in the azulgrana armor? I doubt it.
In a fairly astute move on the parts of both clubs, Mark van Bommel has left Barcelona for Bayern Munich, with only a medical standing between the Dutch international and his new home. With the return of Xavi and the continued improvement of Andres Iniesta, Barcelona has relatively little use for the Dutch player who has found it hard to become a first team regular. As for Bayern, van Bommel will be a solid replacement for the departed Michael Ballack.
The Champions League group stage draw was set today in Monaco and, as always, there are some scintillating games coming up and some weak groups we can all lament. Like in the World Cup where Mexico and Portugal were all but assured of passaged due to pulling a group with Iran and Angola; there’s always a group of death and group of sighs. Without further ado, here’s the 2006/07 group stage:
Group A: Barcelona, Chelsea, Werder Bremen, Levski Sofia.
Wow! This is the group of death, really. Perhaps it can be called the Group of Armegeddon. It might come down to who can score more against Levski Sofia to determine who advances, which is the only reason it might not be Armegeddon-esque. It’s not very fair to Levski that it got stuck with the probable champions of Spain, England, and Germany, but I suppose that’s life. Prediction: Barcelona and Chelsea. Bremen is great, but Group B: Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Sporting Lisbon, Spartak Moscow
Another solid group: the probable champions of Italy up against last year’s German champs, Portuguese runners-up, and the Russian runners-up. With revamped lineups, it’s hard to declare Inter and Bayern shoo-ins for the elimination rounds, but Sporting and Spartak Moscow just aren’t up to the same level of the giants. Predictions: Inter and Bayern. Should be close, though, with Lisbon putting on a show. SoccerSpot is definitely rooting for Lisbon and Spartak.
Group C: Liverpool, PSV Eindhoven, Bordeaux, Galatasaray
A solid group that could provide some problems the bigger clubs. Galatasaray always brings it in European competition and after a 6-3 demolition of Mlada Boleslav, the other teams in Group C should beware of the Turks. No one is a slouch and Liverpool, the 2005 champions, have a new and deeper squad that could do some serious damage both domestically and in European competition. Eindhoven, the two-time defending champs of Holland who have won the Eredivisie title 5 times since 1999/00 (that’s all but twice if you’re counting). Bordeaux is the sleeper of this group, having played in the shadow of Olympique Lyonnais for the last five years, but they are a very solid team. Predictions: Liverpool and Bordeaux. Eindhoven will falter and Galatasaray will find itself outclassed, despite being one of the pluckiest teams.
Group D: Valencia, AS Roma, Olympiakos, Shaktar Donetsk
Valencia have a new strike force headed by Fernando Morientes and despite faltering against Salzburg in qualifiers, should be a lock to qualify for the elemination rounds. Roma are always the question and only qualified directly thanks to the Serie A scandal that dropped Milan and Juventus from the top two spots (the same goes for Inter Milan). SoccerSpot is a fan of Roma, but they’ll need to step it up mightly against Olympiakos and Shaktar Donetsk to have any hope of qualifying. Prediction: Valencia and Roma by a hair.
Group E: Real Madrid, Lyon, Steaua Bucaresti, Dynamo Kiev
This is an example a group that shouldn’t provide too many fireworks. Despite a few seasons of underachieving, Madrid is still an international powerhouse and Lyon, holding 5 straight French titles are to be feared. The same cannot be said for Steaua, but Dynamo Kiev could provide some stiff resistance if they come out playing their best ever. Predictions: Madrid and Lyon. Probably the most boring group. Group F: Manchester United, Celtic, Benfica, FC Copenhagen
Despite being a fan of Copenhagen (referred to as Kobenhavn as well, who beat Ajax to reach the group stage), it doesn’t seem as if the Norwegian minnows will be able to survive against the English runners-up or the Scottish champs. Benfica, while a good team, is weaker than the others and, if things go well, we’ll see a stunning Copenhagen run at the final 16. Here’s hoping that happens. Predictions: ManU and Celtic. The British are going to make a big impact in the CL this year, like Liverpool and Arsenal the last two years and the Scots deserve a little recognition for having a solid squad. Some sparks from Benfica, but not enough.
Group G: Arsenal, Porto, CSKA Moscow, Hamburg
Yet another solid group, but one which will probably showcase the disparity between major and minor European clubs. Arsenal, coming off a good year in the Champions League, will be looking for a repeat performance of their run to the final and with their burgeoning midfield genius Cesc Fabregas, it’s hard to imagine they won’t make it beyond the first round. Porto has enough experience to survive the onslaught of a very solid CSKA Moscow team, while Hamburg shouldn’t pose much of a threat for anyone. Predictions: Arsenal and Porto.
Group H: AC Milan, Lille, AEK Athens, Anderlecht
There isn’t much to say about this group, seeing as Milan is a shoo-in for first place. The fight will be for third, which is quite open. It could, actually, turn into one of the best groups or the biggest dud. Prediction: Milan and Anderlecht via goal differential.
And there you have it, the 2006/07 Champions League is officially underway and it should be a good year. Groups A and B should be the best and are certainly the ones to watch if you have a choice.
It’s just match day 2 and SoccerSpot can celebrate just a little: Chelsea lost! Chelsea lost! Okay, that’s enough now. It doesn’t mean the Blues won’t win the EPL, it just means Middlesbrough has ascended a notch in SoccerSpot’s favorite teams list (just ahead of Accrington Stanley, actually). Let’s just not get overexcited…after all, it took a 90th minute Viduka goal to beat them. We’ll wait till Watford beats them before popping the bubbly. Here are all the EPL results from today:
Aston Villa 2 – 1 Reading (damn! Reading scored first too!)
Champions League qualifiers are done and only a few hours are left before the group draw in Monaco tomorrow morning at 11am (EST). There were a few upsets and a few standard issue drubbings from bigger clubs. In CSKA Moscow’s 5-0 aggregate domination of Lithuanian side SCP Ruzomberek, SoccerSpot sees shades of a more successful Ogre. Ajax, on the other hand, went the way of Goliath. The complete results (aggregate in bold):
Spartak Moscow 2 – 1 Liberec (2-1 Spartak)
AEK Athens 3 – 0 Hearts (5-1 AEK)
Kobehavn 2 – 0 Ajax (3-2 Kobenhavn)
Lille 1 – 0 Rabotnicki (4-0 Lille)
Levski 2 – 2 Chievo Verona (4-2 Levski)
Galatasaray 1 – 1 Mlada Boleslav (6-3 Galatasaray)
Arsenal 2 – 1 Dinamo Zagreb (5-1 Arsenal)
To recap, SoccerSpot is happy to welcome Levski and Kobenhavn to the Champions League. May their campaigns be fruitful.
The results are in from today’s Champions League Third Round Qualifiers and every one of the minnows has been defeated by the larger clubs on display today, despite a couple of chances for the small guys to make it to the big stage. SoccerSpot is sad about that. Today’s scores are (aggregate in parentheses and bold):
Internacional striker Rafael Sobis, the author of two goals in the first leg of this year’s Copa Libertadores final against Sao Paulo, has signed with Spanish club Racing Santander. UEFA.com reports that Real Madrid have also added Internacional defender Ruben Gonzalez (as well as signing Raul Bravo to an extension, through 2009).
SoccerSpot has a burning hatred of the pressure put on young stars to become “the next great one,” whether it be Pele, Maradona, or Cruyff. It doesn’t matter, the point is foolish and smacks of insensitivity. Sobis, at least, is already 21 and has been steadily rising through the Brazilian ranks, but normally the international press doesn’t hold off this long (see Sergio Aguero or Kieron Souza Moura). Even in the US, Freddy Adu was hailed as the savior of American soccer when he was 14. 14! Silly, really, to expect so much out of such young stars. Only a very few can change the face of the international game before their teens are up and to expect that they are going to skip the universal development period is absurd. No wonder Maradona turned to drugs. Imagine him without the cocaine…
Brazilian striker Ricardo Oliveira has been fined a stunning one million euros ($1.29million) by Spanish club Real Betis for failing to return on time after a loan spell at Copa Libertadores runners-up São Paulo. According to ESPN Soccernet, Oliveira returned to Sevilla nine days late. Apparently, though, he should have known he faced such a stiff penalty (the largest SoccerSpot has ever heard of) since it was written into his contract. The best part is definitely this gem: “Asked why Oliveira was not at training on Tuesday, Lopera replied with a smile: ‘He’s asked for a couple of days rest to recover from the shock at having to pay the fine.’” Genius.
Posted by Isaiah 
Posted by Isaiah 
Posted by Isaiah 
And the misery continues for Juventus as they were 
The Champions League group stage draw was set today in Monaco and, as always, there are some scintillating games coming up and some weak groups we can all lament. Like in the World Cup where Mexico and Portugal were all but assured of passaged due to pulling a group with Iran and Angola; there’s always a group of death and group of sighs. Without further ado, here’s the 2006/07 group stage:
Brazilian striker Ricardo Oliveira has been fined a stunning one million euros ($1.29million) by Spanish club Real Betis for failing to return on time after a loan spell at Copa Libertadores runners-up São Paulo. According to 
