Sevilla gave up a late equalizer to lowly Xerez (who are actually looking alive lately, but way way way too late) today and by so doing sealed the fate of Manolo Jimenez. The Andalucians fired their coach following the third disapointing performance in seven days. Completely understandable, it just underscores how much of a rollercoaster coaching at the highest level can be. Rewind ten days and Manolo Jimenez is on the brink of taking Sevilla to a European quarter final for only the second time in the club's history. He has a 1-1 result in the bank with the crucial away goal from the first leg in Moscow and he has Luis Fabiano available for the second leg. The Russians come in and shock the world with a 2-1 win. Then they get spanked by Espanyol at the weekend and are fortunate to only lose 2-0. And now they give away two points to the worst team in the Spanish top flight, at home. When it pains it roars.
AS is reporting that the club have made contact with Luis Aragones. I could see how that makes sense. With Sevilla only a point back of Mallorca for the last Champion's League spot and only 3 points ahead of Bilbao and Deportivo (although they are on the slide too) time is of the essence and whoever is next should be on the sidelines this weekend.
Earlier today I had actually been speaking about Aragones with a friend, but for the Real Madrid job. Another name that popped into my mind is that of Laurent Blanc. With a very good chance of being at the helm of one of the last four clubs standing in Europe, as well as a realistic shot at a second consecutive French title, I think he might have the "it" factor that Madridistas crave so much. Add to that Zidane's role as a special aide to Florentino and the move looks very possible. Time will tell.
Speaking of the not-yet-vacant Real Madrid job: A guy who I think will not be the one is The Special One. In my opinion Mourinho will not be at the Bernabeu next year for 4 reasons:
1. I am an Inter fan and like him just where he is.
2. Jorge Valdano, Florentino's other right hand man and a Real Madrid icon, has a well known and long feud with Mourinho. I am not sure about Valdano but Mourinho does not seem to be the kind of guy to put something like that aside for the glory and prestige of the white shirt.
3. Mourinho is a borderline control freak (and I only say borderline because he wins enough to justify his actions) and Real Madrid is a club where many, many people want to put their stamp on the team.
4. Everyone knows he wants to work in England again. The Liverpool job is likely to come open over the summer and it is rumored Mourinho has always wanted to go there. It is also not inconceivable that Alex Ferguson retires within the next two years, opening up a second job in the Prem's top 4. Both of these suit Mourinho more than Real Madrid.
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Not Yet
Going into the weekend it really felt (or maybe I wanted it to?) like Real Madrid were about to enter full-blown crisis mode. Turns out I was wrong. Higuain scored 2 goals a few minutes apart and gave them the derby over Getafe. Guti stayed out of the squad and the bad blood with Pellegrini appears to be there still, but with the three points and Barcelona getting turning a win over Osasuna into a draw via a last minute own goal Madrid are now only one point out of first. Spanish football looks different today than a few days back.
And this week will be huge. A win away in Milan would put Madrid in a very safe position in the Champion's League. Meanwhile Barcelona take on Rubin Kazan in Russia with much more riding on the game than anyone thought when the schedule was released. A single point would essentially assure Sevilla's passage to the next round. Interesting times.
And this week will be huge. A win away in Milan would put Madrid in a very safe position in the Champion's League. Meanwhile Barcelona take on Rubin Kazan in Russia with much more riding on the game than anyone thought when the schedule was released. A single point would essentially assure Sevilla's passage to the next round. Interesting times.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The Shape of Spain
It is impossible to say for sure but I have a feeling when the winner of the Spanish league is crowned in the spring we will look back on this weekend as a pivotal moment. The top two teams (and to be honest it is a two horse race) had critical games. They both suffered disappointing and maybe embarrassing Champs League losses at home during the week, both were coming off deflating league performances from the previous week, both were trying to shake off the lingering effects of the "virus FIFA" from the international break, and both were up against teams near the bottom of the table.
One showed up and the other didn't. Real Madrid flopped on their visit to Sporting Gijon and got a meager nil draw. It is true they were without certain players like Gonzalo Higuain but the most expensive roster in the history of professional sports should be able to put at least one goal past the just-happy-to-be-here crew from Gijon. On the other hand Barcelona bounced back from two underwhelming results and absolutely plastered Real Zaragoza 6-1 in the Nou Camp. The Zaragoza goal was the product of yet another mental lapse in the Barca defense which has been all too common this season but aside from that it was really a masterful performance. As it stands now Barcelona have only a 3 point lead on Madrid but considering how good they are Real Madrid may not be able to afford falling back any further.
One showed up and the other didn't. Real Madrid flopped on their visit to Sporting Gijon and got a meager nil draw. It is true they were without certain players like Gonzalo Higuain but the most expensive roster in the history of professional sports should be able to put at least one goal past the just-happy-to-be-here crew from Gijon. On the other hand Barcelona bounced back from two underwhelming results and absolutely plastered Real Zaragoza 6-1 in the Nou Camp. The Zaragoza goal was the product of yet another mental lapse in the Barca defense which has been all too common this season but aside from that it was really a masterful performance. As it stands now Barcelona have only a 3 point lead on Madrid but considering how good they are Real Madrid may not be able to afford falling back any further.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Confed Cup Semi # 1
MUSIC: Joe Strummer- Arms Aloft
After the shocking results on Sunday we are looking at a different semi-final tomorrow than what I expected. I was totally wrong about the USA against Egypt. They played great and really made the most of the opportunity. Fortunately the Brazilians cooperated and stomped on Italy, putting us through on goals-for.
For me the game was decided in first five minutes. On one of the very first sequences of the match Jay Demerit misjudged a bouncing ball and it slipped by him, resulting in an Egyptian scoring opportunity. This and a few other incidents looked to give Egypt the run of play. In an earlier game the US would have been instantly demoralized and accept the inevitable goal from their opponents, but on Sunday the team stood their ground, worked together, and kept grinding. The Davies goal is proof of the effort and to me symbolizes all that went right on Sunday. He worked and worked, got in on a play that looked dead and used a nice bit of skill to put the ball in. Good job all around.
Realistically, it will be very difficult for the US to beat Spain, but that does not mean there is nothing to play for. A second strong showing will do wonders for this squad and there is all that people say about showing up being half of it. But...
It is not just that Spain are the European Champs and on a current unbeaten run approaching 3 dozen games. The match up does not look good for the US. The Spanish attack often culminates in the sublime and deft final touch from Fernando Torres or David Villa, but those is just the finishing touch on an effort many passes, yards, and sometimes even minutes in the making. The essence of this team is the artful passing through which they move the ball forward, pull markers off their positions, and create chances for their forwards. I think this will be an extremely difficult attack for the American midfield to slow and contain. Michael Bradley has been a superman for the US thus far and will have to be at it again. But he will need help. If they use the same line-up as they did on Sunday, two of the more advance players will need to drop back and pitch in some work in the midfield, leaving only guy high. And then there is David Silva, who has been declared fit and will likely start. He does not have the acclaim (and probably doesn't deserve it to be honest) that some of the elite wide-men do, but in this squad he can be lethal. Picking up balls from X & X then spotting out one of the strikers he might be a key point in the Spanish attack. The fact that flanks of the American defense have been targeted, justifiably so, in the two losses I think Spain will try to copy Brazil's game plan. Expect Sergio Ramos to move up the right side in overlapping runs the way Maicon did.
At this point the US are playing with house money and they should make the most of it tomorrow.
After the shocking results on Sunday we are looking at a different semi-final tomorrow than what I expected. I was totally wrong about the USA against Egypt. They played great and really made the most of the opportunity. Fortunately the Brazilians cooperated and stomped on Italy, putting us through on goals-for.
For me the game was decided in first five minutes. On one of the very first sequences of the match Jay Demerit misjudged a bouncing ball and it slipped by him, resulting in an Egyptian scoring opportunity. This and a few other incidents looked to give Egypt the run of play. In an earlier game the US would have been instantly demoralized and accept the inevitable goal from their opponents, but on Sunday the team stood their ground, worked together, and kept grinding. The Davies goal is proof of the effort and to me symbolizes all that went right on Sunday. He worked and worked, got in on a play that looked dead and used a nice bit of skill to put the ball in. Good job all around.
Realistically, it will be very difficult for the US to beat Spain, but that does not mean there is nothing to play for. A second strong showing will do wonders for this squad and there is all that people say about showing up being half of it. But...
It is not just that Spain are the European Champs and on a current unbeaten run approaching 3 dozen games. The match up does not look good for the US. The Spanish attack often culminates in the sublime and deft final touch from Fernando Torres or David Villa, but those is just the finishing touch on an effort many passes, yards, and sometimes even minutes in the making. The essence of this team is the artful passing through which they move the ball forward, pull markers off their positions, and create chances for their forwards. I think this will be an extremely difficult attack for the American midfield to slow and contain. Michael Bradley has been a superman for the US thus far and will have to be at it again. But he will need help. If they use the same line-up as they did on Sunday, two of the more advance players will need to drop back and pitch in some work in the midfield, leaving only guy high. And then there is David Silva, who has been declared fit and will likely start. He does not have the acclaim (and probably doesn't deserve it to be honest) that some of the elite wide-men do, but in this squad he can be lethal. Picking up balls from X & X then spotting out one of the strikers he might be a key point in the Spanish attack. The fact that flanks of the American defense have been targeted, justifiably so, in the two losses I think Spain will try to copy Brazil's game plan. Expect Sergio Ramos to move up the right side in overlapping runs the way Maicon did.
At this point the US are playing with house money and they should make the most of it tomorrow.
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