It's not Barca it's the ref. You have bad ref in every league. Barca is treated exactly like Madrid.

No way. I can see you didn't watch La Liga in the last 3 years.

Specially the matches in Camp Nou with all the lovely-penalties for Ronaldinho.

I do watch. And it's not just Barca. Madrid too. Big teams always get more good calls. Do you think Barca is dirty while other teams are clean?

Big teams do get more favourable calls.

That said, Barca is in a different universe from the good calls that a Juve or a MU or a Bayern get. I'm with Porty on this one; it's really shameful.

Not saying the others are clean. Just saying Barcelona get more good calls that any other team in Spain.

Juve-like, Moggi era.

Madrid show-time in Villarreal. 0-3 : Raúl, Sneijder and Nistelrooy with 52' min played.

Sneijder... Pretty damnity good signing, eh?

He was my dream sub for Seedorf when he retires.

Superb goal and assist for Raul. Amazing player.

Oh, and it's another one. Sneijder show. 0-4.

PS: This Villarreal won in Mestalla 0-3 last week.

They are looking pretty impressive, I must say.

Sneijder and Diarra OFF, Gago and Baptista ON.

No hat-trick for Wesley!

Guti, 5-0.

Guti. 0-5.

FT: Villarreal 0-5 Real Madrid.
Real kept a clean sheet!?

This is the reason why Capello was sacked. Their directors want this kind of wins.

And to think Robben is still to get in the team...

They do look good. But I think they'll get a few batterings this season, too.

And I can see you didn't watch La Liga before that! Otherwise you wouldn't complain! Or is it that you miss those days so much!??


Why do you think Robben will make all that big a difference? It's not like you can get any more attacking than this... plus it will be one more guy who does not defend on the field...

Madrid showed their true colors tonight !!!

They beat Villareal 5 away !!! IMO, Schuster is still experimenting .. And if Madrid can keep this form up, they will be a thorn in La Liga, but I still am interested to see how he will do in the CL

Agreed. They have some decent sides in their CL group so they won't have it easy, but will still qualify comfortabley. They've got a squad full of top players now, I see them going far in both La Liga and the Champions League with the quality in depth that they have.

About Barca, I wouldn't say they have the referees on their side anymore than United. They won the league a few years back, needing to beat Sheffield Wednesday, they were 1-0 down and scored two goals (94 + 96) when there was 3 minutes added on. The Pedro Mendes shot that was 3 yards over the line was a disgrace, anything to give United points. They have countless penalty decisions not given against them, Spurs should have had AT LEAST one against them last weekend. ALL big clubs get tonnes of decisions that way, it's the way football works.

Of course I complain. Talk about the present, not the past. Those thick hyped c*nts are no more than that: hype. Playing with 14 every single match. SHAME.

Robben? Well, when you buy a player that is the best in the world in his position you expect "difference", don't you?

Of course they are. But you talking about them like that is like a Giuve fan complaining about Inter being favored... it's kinda hypocritical don't you think?

Difference, yes... but not necessarily improvement. Especially when they have Drenthe on the left who is a real demon... It's not like they were missing a winger last night, that's what I'm saying.

Try to stay on topic


This is the SP La Liga thread

We were talking about teams getting favourable calls.

Exactly .. EPL refs are different from La Liga refs ..

Oh, I see. I thought dst bringing up John McCririck and Gotdon Ramsey was off-topic. Then I realised they were La Liga referee's, my bad.

What has dst got to do with this

hehe anyways, I was just pulling ur leg

ahahahhaha!!!!

Picture John McCririck refereeing an official game!!!!!!!!!

That would certainly be a sight to see.

Schuster, the new Madrid coach, said yesterday that the only team in Europe that can beat Sevilla nowadays it's Milan.

Basically he says Milan is never "tired of win trophies" and that we're the best team in Europe nowadays - the team to beat in the Champions League.

^^
Hmm something smells. Have they said they're gonna fire him already, so he's looking for a new job?

No Sevilla are not that good... it's just you that lost 5-3 at home! Get over it!!

I'd love to face Real in the Champions League... The Clash of the Titans that would be!

^^

What titans They don't stand a chance

http://www.marca.com/edicion/marca/futbol/...lo/1031628.html

Madrid last year: 351 M/euros of revenue
Barcelona's was 315 M/euros.


What about us? 100 M less than them, hum?

Goal.com

Porto you think Man u are arrogant? look at these @ss whipes^^^^^^ 6 pts from 2 games and their talking like this? thats why you were thrashed by sevilla?

He didn't say anything special. They've probably the best squad in Europe along with Inter, Liverpool, Barcelona and Chelsea.

What's the surprise? He said Real don't have the best players in Europe. That's clear. But probably the best squad, yes.

Supercup? ManUtd won vs. Chelsea... and nobody is saying they're better than the Blues.

Sevilla, Sevilla, Sevilla... bla bla. Last year they were owned in Bernabeu when R.Madrid really need to win for the title-race: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3-SIgFmSvc...related&search=

You think Madrid cares about Supercups? Or even their Coppa? No. That's for Sevilla's, Roma's, etc. Big teams are worried about the League and the Champions.

I agree that Real have the best squad in Europe.

But I think any club that dismisses any trophy has a bit of an ego problem. No team is too big for more honours, and if trophies like the Coppa or Supercup or whatever are that easy, then why don't the big teams win them every year?

how can anyone say they're the best team in europe when the season is only 2 games in?!!? at this pt sumone can say their the best on paper because it's obvious but best team? thats only obvious near the end of the season, when the trophies are won.

the problem with madrid is they dont really have anyone thats the best at their position. they just have lots of youung quality defenders. how can drenthe and robben even dream about playing together on the the left? there is no balance in that squad. cannavaro maybe but he doesnt play that well with madrid, metzelder is good but nothing out of this world, pepe is ok. the only real quality players they have are robben, ramos and ruud (robben we havent even seen him play with them yet, ramos isnt a Rb) hardly the best team in europe.

It's not because it's "easy" or not. It's about the $$$ they earn from each competition. Their priorities must be the Champions and the League. The Cups are just to rotate the squad... play the primavera, etc.

Even in Portugal that happens. That's why you saw Benfica losing to Varzim, a 2nd division team and Porto losing at home vs. a 3rd division team Atletico last season.

Sporting rotated the squad but had some luck with the draws. They were kicked earlier from Europe so they could concentrate since December on this Cup.

Maybe the other teams... the mid-table ones... without Europe take the Cup seriously. But the big teams?

Everyone has an opinion. The Real Madrid President just said what he thought.

Best at their position? ST: Ruud, LW: Robben, DMC: Diarra + some young talent like Drenthe, Robben, Sneijder, Robinho, Ramos, Pepe, Gago, Higuain, Marcelo + the quality of Cannavaro, Casillas, Saviola, Metzelder, Guti Raul, Heinze, Baptista...

By far a better squad than the Milan one. No balance in Madrid? This is their 2007 squad, not the 2005. You're a bit confused.

Well, every FA Cup since 1996 has been won by United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea.

It's nothing to do with prioritising, it's just the talk of teams who don't win it. I remember watching R10, Eto'o, Deco, etc. get owned by Getafe last year, so there's no excuses of a weakened team.

So you'd be happy to see Milan get owned in the Intercontinental, just because it won't give us much in the terms of money, and is just a distraction from the league?



Robben? I think people over-rate him just a little. He is ALWAYS injured, and was the 3rd choice at Chelsea behind Malouda + Cole. Mourinho isn't stupid, why would he let the best LW in the World go?

But RvN is the best striker in the World in my opinion, as is Diarra at DM.

Diarra is not the best defensive midfielder in the world

Drenthe is a s good defensively as jankulovski is, robben doesnt know how to defend same with robinho and higuain (played as a RW), sneijder is always going forward, ramos is always making runs up and down the flank + madrid will only play with 1 DEF MID now so who's going to defend? all this attacking talent, half of these guys wont even play so i dont see how you can reap their talent when their on the bench.

ya i agree too but he's still quality.

Intercontinental it's different. That's the world title.

3rd choice? Robben is WAY better than Malouda or Cole. The pace, acceleration, speed, tecnique, etc are unique. You don't find a better LW in the world: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXO-XYKq3tk

Plus he's 23. He was the most talented player in Chelsea's squad. They'll miss him, I've no doubt.


You forgot the: Ruud and Saviola don't know how to defend.

Seriously, look at this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTxgFq1YWKY

Only 1 DMC? Yes, and that's enough for La Liga. Barcelona played with no pure-defensive-midfielder and dominated for 3 years. In Europe it's other thing...

Oh and Capello taught them that.

QUOTE
Schuster Deems Liverpool "Ugly"


During an interview today, Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster looked ahead to Real Madrid's possible Champions League opponents. The German manager deemed AC Milan a real threat, as well as "ugly" Liverpool...

In today's interview with AS, Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster held court on Europe's top clubs, describing the Merengues' fellow-travelers in the Champions League.

He had praise for Milan, Chelsea, Manchester United, and Sevilla - but little for the likes of Inter, Barcelona and, particularly, Liverpool. Rather interestingly, Rafa Benitez was one of the names in the hat that Schuster's was picked out of, though the Spaniard pulled out of the race.

The new Madrid boss said, "AC Milan are the favourites. Right now they’re the only team capable of beating Sevilla, as they did in the Super Cup. - Damn Right biggrin.gif

"They have been playing together two years and that is noteworthy. Milan is never tired of winning titles, like a good team they repeat and repeat. - I like him already devil.gif

He went on to say, "Liverpool are not so attractive in its game; they an ugly team to play, hard and difficult. It is not necessary to remind people how tough they accounted for Barcelona last season." rolleyes.gif

"If I had to combine the strengths of two great teams in the world, I would take the attack of Manchester United and the defence of Chelsea. The aggression of Sevilla also interests me," he concluded. - Now that would be an all conquering team

Of course, something may be lost in the translation, but it's not the first time that a footballing figure has criticised Liverpool's style. In this context, though, it seemed to be grudingly respectful.

Indeed, the Liverpool style pays dividends, particularly in Spain. The Reds eliminated Barcelona from Europe's premier competition last season.


................ i think he wants a job at Milan lol

Surprisingly, I agree. Real have the best squad in Europe along with Inter. SQUAD... not TEAM (meaning starting XI)! I think it's too attacking personally but still, a great squad!


Please... He stayed there for 3 seasons and only played the number of games of 1!


Oh, enough with that already! Arsenal score a good 7-0 each season (Sorry, last season it was only 6 AT ANFIELD!) yet people don't talk about it for weeks...

1 result and ur saying the best team in europe?

the point is they only have 3-4 that will defend, while xavi and deco can defend when needed and for barca they're full backs dont go forward that much so you have a good 4-5 guys that wwont run in the box every chance they get.

I'm not saying they're the best team in Europe.

What I'm saying is that they've the BEST SQUAD [the 20 or 25 players] along with Liverpool, Inter, Barcelona and Chelsea. But that doesn't mean they've a better first 11 than us or Man Utd, Arsenal, Sevilla or Valencia. I meant... the entire squad is better (depth).

I'm saying that since the market close. Real, Liverpool, Inter, Barcelona and Chelsea. It was not because of the 0-5.

In my opinion *********'s squad is not that good! Actually, I think it's worse than Roma's... that's why I believe Benitez is doing an extraordinary job! With the material he has, he's no doubt the most successful manager around!

I don't really like Liverpool, but I agree with Porty here. Crouch has a very good International record, he can't even make the bench at Liverpool, they have superb depth.

They have the 2nd best squad in the EPL, that's for certain.