T he Estadio de la Cerámica was the venue, Villarreal versus Barcelona was the match, and as the pitch action ensued into the 90th minute, Lionel Messi was the target. He had…
Tag: la liga
THREE EVENTS OCCURRED in perfect synchronicity in order to facilitate Florentino Pérez’s second attempt at managing the global superpower that is Real Madrid. The first was on 10 March 2009 as Real Madrid…
IMAGINE YOURSELF AT 15. You, as many others, were probably worried about next week’s maths test or perhaps if that cute boy or girl at the front of the class was into…
After defeats against Real Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup and Barcelona in the Spanish Supercopa, Jorge Sampaoli prepared his Sevilla players for their first La Liga game of the season, against…
IT’S 7 JANUARY 1995 – EL CLÁSICO DAY. The tension, as always, is incredibly high, but this match between Real Madrid and Barcelona, midway through the campaign, has the feel of a contest…
AS TEMPERS FLARED during a particularly feisty Madrid derby at the Bernabéu in December 2012, Atlético Madrid assistant manager Germán Burgos directed a threat towards José Mourinho that would unnerve even the most confrontational of…
“YES ISCO, I stopped the silliness.” This was Asier Illarramendi’s first return to Anoeta since he decided to switch the blue and white stripes of Real Sociedad for the famous white of…
BORN TO A World Cup-winning father in Mazinho, Thiago and Rafinha Alcántara have been surrounded by football and its culture for as long as they can remember, including growing up with cousin…
As featured on Guardian Sport THE BUILD-UP TO THE FIRST GAME OF THE SEASON is always accompanied by a febrile sense of anticipation for the campaign ahead. Although the presence of Euro…
European football possesses within it a rich tapestry of clubs, each with a unique history and niche within which they exist. Many clubs stay within the perceived parameters of their place in…
Football in its contemporary format is one dominated by the development of the superstar. With the sport becoming evermore a global game, it is reaching its tentacles into areas that had previously been…
Club Deportivo Leganés, a small team from a quiet suburb in southern Madrid, will this autumn become the 61st club to contest a La Liga season, just two years after even tinier…
This story starts in Valencia, but not where you might expect. The year is 2015 and Benicàssim is hosting one of biggest music festivals on the continent. Thousands of sunburnt revellers are…
For the second time in three years, the two biggest teams in Madrid faced each other in the Champions League final. Real Madrid had endured a somewhat disappointing season, unable to fight…
Ever since they invited Andalusian neighbours Recreativo de Huelva to a friendly match on 8 March 1890, history has always been a vital component in the makeup of Sevilla FC. Los Rojiblancos…
Vitoria-Gazteiz is a proud city. The seat of government for the Basque Autonomous Community, it also serves as the unofficial capital city for the region. The home of not one but two…
FOOTBALL ARRIVED QUIETLY ON SPANISH SHORES through British workers employed at the Rio Tinto Mine Company on the outskirts of Huelva, Andalucia, in the late 19th century.At the time, it would have…
Few players with the CV that Gerard Piqué boasts divide opinion quite like the Spaniard. From his pro-Catalan public statements to his defending, which sways from world class to erratic, we examine how the Barcelona star polarises the football world.