La Liga Review

La Liga is the one league I feel like i'm having an affair with right now, The Premier League has always been my first love but I always have to surround myself with Spanish action just purely because it's so damn enjoyable. Everyone always labels the league a two horse race but it's the sub-plots that make it exciting and great on the eye.

The top four currently stands at:

Barcelona:81Pts

Real Madrid:68

Athletico Madrid:65

Real Sociedad:54

Lionel Messi - Another perfect season?

So the question is, has there been anything out of the ordinary from La Liga this season well yes and no. The prevailing theme really has been Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo playing their classic game of raise the bar. Messi has scored an astronomical 57 goals in 46 games this season that is well over a goal per game, this is why he belongs at the very top of football, when you look at the fact that he has scored 310 goals in 375 games overall you kind of understand the important of the little guy. What Messi offers isn't just sheer skill and technique he has an aura to motivate just by being on the pitch.

For reference you only have to look at PSG in the quarter final of the Champions League after drawing 2-2 at Parc Des Princes Barca were heading out after Javier Pastore had shocked the Camp Nou but the introduction of a half fit Messi meant he could galvanise the troops and of course have a hand in the goal. Mesmeric and inspirational.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano scoring against old boys United

Let's be honest in an assessment here, Cristiano hasn't done anything out of the ordinary this season, his goals to game ratio has always been superb which is why he's up there with Messi, he is the biggest player at Real clearly yet what he has done this season is score crucial goals at defining times and that's how great players are decided. Messi achieved the feat to score against every side in La Liga consecutively but his service is unmatched at Barca. Not taking anything away from L.M. Ronaldo hasn't equalled that feat but he still stands out every game for the Galacticos. If you look at both top teams these two have been driving forces but there's nothing new about that in all realism.

It's no secret that Les Catalans have simply strutted to reclaim their title from rivals Madrid but it's the emergence of other sides and the disappearance of others that really defines the tournament this year. Remember Athletico Bilbao, a side with players like Iker Munian, Fernando Llorente, Susaeta? Well take a look back at last season when this side completely outplayed Manchester United home and away in the Europa League in what looked like a complete change in momentum in the top leagues.

Fernando Llorente driving Bilbao to a 3-2 away win at OT

This was the scene of one of the biggest upsets in general but not among Spain because Bilbao were purely unresistable at that time. They not only did the business at OT but also maintained that momentum and won both legs. Interesting change of events to where we are today? Bilbao currently reside in 14th place and 19 points behind 4th place, this is sheer astounding. Their manager Marcelo Bielsa is under pressure and suddenly it's backs to the wall. It's a strange one this because aside from Javi Martinez to Bayern the same side remains, mystery it is, a worry, it's becoming.

Another disappointing group of teams in the form of Deportivo, Levante and Osasuna, sides who have enjoyed better times and yet especially Deportivo who currently reside outside relegation would be the most disappointed. It's been a tale of either sides on the up or sides simply on the decline, consistency is key. Solidarity is a powerful component in Spain, also retaining your better players is imperative but just like any other league if the bigger clubs come calling then it's Buenos Dias and thanks for coming.

Here are three suprise packages who have done themselves if not their teams any favours:

Malaga's Isco at the heart of their CL run

Radamel Falcao - 30 goals for Athleti

> Malaga have continued to amaze fans around the world for their heroics and if it weren't for suprise package Borussia Dortmund coming from behind in injury time to break Spanish hearts it could have been a completely different story. Isco is the kind of player every time should have. Cool, composed and technically gifted in the engine room of midfield. Malaga's side isn't gifted with superb players but he's one of them and will surely attract attention despite the best efforts of Los Boquerones.


Athletic Madrid have been the closest to closing the gap from the front two and making it more competitive, this is simply down to a great team ethic and the marksmanship of Radamel Falcao. When they brought him in from Porto personally I thought the price tag was overflated at 40 million Euros which made him the most expensive player in Athletico's history.
30 goals return this season enables that some of that fee is being paid back. Interest from United is high, hardly suprising.

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Real Sociedad in my opinion are the suprise package this season. The two indicated above have been unplayable at times this season but looking at the sides Real have emerged out of nowhere. Carlos Vela has chipped in with 13 goals and that's a statement on it's own but it's the form of players like Antoine Griezmann and especially this man Xabi Prieto. Prieto has 7 goals on his own which from his holding midfielder position is astounding when he's the creator. Griezmann has 9 himself it's goals throughout the team which has propelled this side to 4th place and a brilliant season.


Overall La Liga has been a success this season, they could have two representatives in the final of the Champions League, could have been more had a lack of concentration not robbed Malaga. The top two have raised the bar and keep on improving although Real will be disappointing by their points difference in contract to Athletico who will be very happy with their season and have something to build on. Barcelona can be beaten and outfought as AC Milan proved and few occasions in La Liga this season. Also could I make a small mention to Celta Vigo who in their first season in the league are in 20th place 4 points off safety and it could have been much worse if it weren't for the form of
Iago Aspas. A small side who have done extraordinary well to reach La Liga itself, If they don't beat the drop with 7 games to go, I hope they at least make a speedy recovery back.

Iago Aspas - Swansea City Target?

Thanks for reading, Hope you enjoyed and gained an insight.
Daniel John

Futsal - Developing Technique

Futsal -  Is it really the solution to the problem that not only faces England but also the other home nations. I read an article on BBC Sport earlier which said that this sport could give our players the technique we desperately crave against stronger nations such as Spain/Germany/Holland etc. First things first here's a quick outline on the sport itself.

Futsal is a different style of football which is used indoors a bit like Masters football but with a smaller ball to coin technique and control. It was developed by the Brazilians and Uruguayans in the 1930s due to the lack of playing football fields. An interesting stat from Brazil is nowadays more players play Futsal over Football but lack spectators/funding so it doesn't attract attention, you can see where the samba flair comes from now?

The Game Itself...

The match consists of 5 players on each sides one of which is a goalkeeper although it has the advantage of unlimited substitutions, maximum being nine. These can occur at any time even in-game.  It's played on a hard court which puts emphasis on keeping the ball on the floor, this is emphasized by the fact the ball is smaller and attracts less bounce. Traits which benefit from this are control, composure, creativity and the ability to curb your technique. The match will last for 40 minutes with 20 each way and the usual 15 in between so it's half the actual game of football and a smaller pitch but with less players and non stop action it's physically demanding as well. Another bonus of this sport is there's no offside so clinical finishers like Javier Hernandez and Robin Van Persie would really get to grips with this easily. The fouls and the cards remain the same.

Brazil

As you may have guessed since the sport was created by the Brazilians they currently top the rankings in both male and female forms of the game whilst Spain which is hardly suprising looking at their technique in the main game follow behind.

Where are we going wrong?

When you look at England you look at players like Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverly, Jack Wilshire and they have excellent technique especially the latter two considering their age. The whole England team as a whole should be doing much better than they actually are. Yes they are 4th in the rankings and have beaten sides like Brazil/Spain recently but not when it really counts and not through sheer technique and skill. There is a different between the top national sides and our home nations overall. From a young age in countries like Spain/Brazil/Germany you are directed into a system and are shown technique even at a young age and put emphasis on control and technique early on because the quicker they develop the technique, the quicker they can improve on it. Here's something from Barcelona...

This clip embodies everything you see with the current Barcelona side, composure on the ball well above their age, this is something you will not find across Britain even if you scourge YouTube.

The Bright Side

There is a bright light on the horizon in the form of more funding being put into grassroots football with money comes the backing but without the players and coaches and the motivation to succeed then nothing will grow from this. If the home nations can encourage their players to develop technique from a young age even using Futsal as an example then we can create the superstars and prepare them from a young age. If their old enough they should be good enough simple as that. Age isn't a problem it's a solution look at Leo Messi himself started off at a young age and broke into the Barca team at a young age and now has that experience under his belt and has become the best player in the world, co-incidence definitely not!. There is talent at home with the likes of Gareth Bale, Rooney, and Wilshire etc. The solution needs to be to develop more players like this and make them versatile and creative and let them play with their instincts instead of sticking them in a system. Barcelona is a classic example of this, players are set into the 4-3-3 formation as soon as they join the youth team and have it embedded into them. Look no further than players like Cristian Tello, Isaac Cuenca and Gerard Deulofeu for examples of this.

Key Points 

- Use Futsal as a way to improve players technique particularly from a young age.

- Players who are scouted into the youth system even under 10s should be focused on core skills like composure, technique and versatility and letting the others follow at a later age.

- Use the models set by Barcelona, Bayern and Inter Milan as examples

- Nuture young talents like Zaha, Ince and Chalobah and give them ability to express themselves, pace is a good thing but technique and composure is a bigger asset.

- Use Coaches from afar and spend money if you have to because home coaches don't have the same knowledge and ingenuity.

- Use tight passing games and force youngsters to develop quick thinking and composure from a young age or risk losing out.

Thanks for reading
Much Appreciated
Daniel John