Week 19- Goals & Highlights

All of the goals and highlights from the weekend's action in La Liga.

ATHLETIC BILBAO 1 RAYO VALLECANO 2



VALLADOLID 3 MALLORCA 1



ESPANYOL 1 CELTA 0



OSASUNA 0 REAL MADRID 0



VALENCIA 2 SEVILLA 0



REAL BETIS 2 LEVANTE 0



REAL SOCIEDAD 1 DEPORTIVO 1



ATLÉTICO MADRID 2 ZARAGOZA 0



MÁLAGA 1 BARCELONA 3

Week 12: Sunday Previews

All kick-off times local (CET)

Human after all? After drawing two blanks Falcao will be looking to get among  the goals again

Deportivo v Levante (12:00)

Two contrasting sides- Depor have been loose and naive and have conceded more goals than any other side in the division; Levante are gritty and have the joint fewest goals scored in the top half. Depor have two wins and a draw from five games at the Riazor, Levante have a solitary win on the road.

Depor welcome Aguilar, Ayoze and Marchena back, but Pizzi is suspended following his red card in the 5-3 reverse at Zaragoza, a big loss for them. This probably means Javier Camunas will start. Levante's only absentee of note is Diop, Michel should start.

Depor only have 4 points from the last 15, and have struggled to win even the games where they've been on top, but Levante have only scored two goals on the road. Martins spurned a golden opportunity against Real Madrid last week, but his overall form in front of goal could tip this in the visitors favour.

Celta Vigo v Mallorca (16:00)

Celta go into this on a poor run of form, but that has to be mitigated by the fact that they've recently faced both Real & Barcelona. They were also in complete control at 2-0 against Rayo Vallecano last weekend until Gustavo Cabral got sent off. He'll be replaced in defence by Jonathan Vila.

Mallorca, however, are sinking like a stone having lost 6 on the bounce to render their bright start to the season a distant memory. Certainly that's the case for forward Tomer Hemed who was hooked early againt Barcelona last week- though that was their best recent performance by a long stretch.

The visitors are missing several first team players, most notably Giovani Dos Santos (who admittedly has flattered to deceive) and Joao Victor, and with such a short squad this leaves them rather bare. Celta, results aside, have been playing some good, positive football. There's a high level of understanding between their front four, and Aspas struck two against Rayo. A more than decent defence is well screened by Oubina and Alex Lopez. In short, they have a lot more about them than Mallorca and should be good enough to see them off.

Getafe v Valladolid (17:50)

Getafe are dropping away after straight defeats to Atleti and Real Betis but have shown themselves to be a good side this term. Their three-quarter line of Pedro Leon, Abdel Barrada and Diego Castro have been excellent. In front of them, Álvaro Vazquez has been anything but, registering a solitary goal to date and his place as a starter is in doubt.

Valladolid have been one of the stories of the season. They've taken their atrractive possession-based approach up a level, and have outperformed Celta & Depor who finished above them in the segunda last season.

Abraham is still out in defence for the hosts, whereas Marc Valiente is less of a loss for the visitors. Home or away, the philosophy stays the same for Miroslav Djukic's side. They claimed a draw via the penalty spot at Valencia last week but are up against and obdurate bunch in Getafe. A difficult game to call.

Granada v Atletico Madrid (19:45)

Suddenly, Granada are starting to show signs of life. They felt they were in their defeat here to Bilbao a fortnight ago but set that right in claiming a most unexpeted win at high-flying Betis last weekend. Left back Guilherme Siqueira should return, and with Dani Benitez integrated back into their starting XI after his lengthy ban, they can count on a vital component of the side that avoided relegation last term.

But this is a big ask for them. Atletico got back to winning ways last week against Getafe an Silvio is the only absentee here, and would probably not have started anyway. Falcao hasn't scored in his last two, form which he took into the midweek friendly against Brazil in New Jersey. He played the full 90 minutes there, as did Juanfran in Spain's junket in Panama.

Given the importance of both of those players, they'll be hoping to travel doesn't exact a hefty toll. At least others have been easing the goal buden on the Colombian. Adrian scored his first of the season last week, and Raúl García has chipped in with 3 despite being in out of the side.

All the signs point to an away win, and that's fully what I expect here.

Sevilla v Real Betis (21:30)

The Seville derby is one of those great La Liga occasions and Betis' strong start adds further spice to the encounter. Neither side enjoyed the last matchday; Sevilla went down in Bilbao while Betis were stunned at home by struggling Granada.

Benat has been a huge part of the Betis success story, but Pepe Mel would be happier had he not played the whole 90 minutes in 30c heat in Spain's win in Panama. He was the difference between the sides last season when Betis triumphed 2-1 on this ground.

Damian Perquis missed this through injury from the visitors but Mario fit again to take his place in defence that's not such an issue. Piotr Trochowski, out long term is Sevilla's only absentee as Diego Perotti has been named in the squad.

That old maxim about form going out the window in derbies is a lazy cliche, but this is certainly fiendishly tough to call. On the one hand, one can point to how well Betis have down this term. But Sevilla are only 4 points behind their neighbours, and in that run of three defeats in six was the game where Barcelona hauled themselves back from 2-0 down to triumph. Álvaro Negredo's having an excellent season, with 8 goals in 12. I have a slight fancy for Sevilla, but I'd more inclined to look at the market for red cards in this one. Gary Medel's a serial offender in this regard, with 1 to his name already this season (4 yellows in total).

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Week 12: Saturday Previews

Pochettino's last stand?

All kick-off times local (CET).

Here's a summary of the suspensions and injuries affecting those sides in action on Saturday.

Suspended:

Oscar De Marcos, Ander Herrera (Athletic Bilbao)

Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)

Christian Stuani (Espanyol)

Emiliano Armenteros (Osasuna)

Aly Cissokho (Valencia)

Abraham, Cristian Sapunaru (Zaragoza)

Injured:

Galarreta, Inigo Pérez (Athletic Bilbao)

Eric Abidal, Isaac Cuenca, Marc Muniesa, Thiago, Adriano, Alexis Sánchez (Barcelona)

Sergio Sánchez, Nacho Monreal (Málaga)

Punal, Masoud, Nino (Osasuna)

Marcelo, Gonzalo Higuaín (Real Madrid)

Jeremy Mathieu, Sergio Canales, Joao Perreira, Fernando Gago, Pablo Piatti (Valencia)

Ivan Obradovic, Glen Loovens, Maurizio Lanzaro (Zaragoza)

Doubtful:

Fernando Amorebieta (Athletic Bilbao)

Alex Song (Barcelona)

Osasuna v Málaga (16:00)

OSASUNA probably even surprised themselves last weekend, producing a stunning and badly needed 3-0 win away to fellow bottom feeders Espanyol. It was a curious game, where in many respects they were second best, but they produced a level of intensity not seen their home defeat to Barcelona in week 2. As such, a massive lift after their struggling start to the season.

They'll go into this one weakened, however. Armenteros has been their one outstanding player to date but he won't feature here. There's a big doubt over another important player, midfielder Punal, and another regular, Nino.

MALAGA come into this off the back of their first real dip of the season. They've not won in their last four in all competitions. In particular, their last two games, both at home, which saw 2-1 defeats to Rayo & a Real Sociedad shorn of Antoine Griezmann were desperately disappointing. Perhaps the shortness of their squad is beginning to catch up. Nacho Monreal is a big loss at left back.

Summary

The respesctive changes in form makes this one very difficult to call. As such, there's two important areas to consider in assessing this one. Firsly, there's the absentees, which look to hit the hosts a lot harder. Secondly, there's the question of whether they can match last week's intensity and whether Málaga's scope to improve will give them the edge.

Valencia v Espanyol (18:00)

VALENCIA have been edging up the table in recent weeks, while struggling to match the consistency they've showed in Europe. Last week's draw against Valladolid put the breaks back on after their impressive win over Atlético but the sending off of Aly Cissokho and subsequent penalty- which angrered their coach Pellegrino- conditioned that draw.

Cissokho is thus suspended, and with Jeremey Mathieu still injured, Valencia are missing their two first choices at left back. Joao Perreira isn't ready on the other flank, which means that Antonio Barragan should continue there.

Fernando Gago is back on the injured list, which makes matters trickier still. Fortunately, Ever Banega's integrated himself back into the team offsetting the loss of his compatriot. It was puzzling to see Pellegrino opt for Nelson Valdez from the start last week. Roberto Soldado replaced him, and will be restored to the starting line-up here.

ESPANYOL were left shellshocked after going down 3-0 at home to Osasuna last week. Few would have seen that one coming as with their recent upswing in form this was a game they were strongly favoured to win. The result was particularly harsh given that they dominated possession and created far more chances. But despite hitting the woodwork, they familiar failings in the final third were all too evident.

Christian Stuani picked up a yellow to earn himself a suspension, meaning on-loan Samuele Longo will step in up front. Finally, that ridiculous list of injuries that's plagued their season has cleared. Wakaso impressed in the opening weeks, though his form has dropped off since. They'll be hoping his midweek goal for Ghana helps him rediscover his mojo.

Off the field, the farce continues. Ahead of next week's elections, talk emerged last weekend that Mauricio Pochettino was on his way out. Previously, there'd been talk of him getting the sack, but last weekend in fact it was a case of him wanting to walk. He's staying for now, but every passing week sees his position under further scrutiny.

Summary

An important one for both sides. Valencia's performanes, particulary in Europe has lifted the pressure on Pellegrino as the heat's been turned up on his compatriot Pochettino. Valencia's overall incosistency leads me to hesitate a little on calling this one, even if all else points to a home win. In Espanyol's favour, the expectation of gaining points here is low, but regardless there's been a element of rabbit in the headlights running through their displays all season.

Barcelona v Zaragoza (20:00)

Leaky at the back, but still flying, BARCELONA put their defeat at Celtic Park behind them against Mallorca to extend their best ever start to a domestic season. Not without making things interesting though. Flying into a three goal lead, two for the hosts left them sweating a little 'til Messi's 76^th goal of the calendar year made the points safe.

The injury situation's improving too. Gerard Piqué is already back, and while Carles Puyol is available for selection he's likely to be eased back into action. Timely stuff, as with Alex Song almost certain to miss out and with Sergio Busquets suspended, they'll be able to play a defence comprised of actual defenders for the first time since the transition to democracy.

Alexis Sánchez reported back injured following Chile's defeat in Serbia, but Pedro's double against Panama cotinued his hot streak for the national team. David Villa struck his 299^th career goal that night, and will fancy his chances of reching the 300 mark against his former club should he get the nod.

ZARAGOZA come into this one in excellent form. Four wins from their last five sees them in the dizzy heights of 11^th, impressive given it was assumed they'd be hovering around the bottom again. They produced a fine comeback from two down against Depor last week, albeit aided greatly by the expulsion of Pizzi. Hélder Postiga's fine form continued with a brace.

They go into this one short their first choice full back pairing however, and Zucculini was hauled off in the first half following a nightmare display last week. This would be problematic at the best of times, but it's positively disastrous given the task they'll face here.

Summary

The so-called FIFA virus has plagued Barcelona in recent seasons, but its symptoms appear banished under Tito Vilanova. Given that Xavi was left out, and both Iniesta and Cesc played 45 minutes each, the midfield will be fresh. Zaragoza have excelled against middling oppostion this term, but their 4-0 defeat at the Bernabéu a couple of weeks back- even if it flattered Real to a fair degree- offers a fair indication of how this one will go. Vilanova may well continue his policy of shuffling the deck in midfield and attack as they look to clinch their Champions League group in midweek, but it's unlikely to cause Barcelona any difficulty.

Real Madrid v Athletic Bilbao (22:00)

REAL welcome back Karim Benzema and Sami Khedira for this game. With the defensive injury crisis eased, we should see something approaching their strongest first XI here. Cristiano Ronaldo missed Portugal's midweek friendly following an injury sustained at the elbow of Levante's David Navarro last week, but is fit to start here.

That was a big win for Real, especially in the circumstances. It was their first win in four games at the Ciutat de Valencia, where they lost last term. On a paddling pool of a pitch, under pressure, and having surrendered the lead after the break, the victory was a sweet one.

As such, Mourinho will be more satisfied than he's been of late. He criticised their performance despite the win to Zaragoza the week before, and indeed the 4-0 scoreline was flattering.

ATHLETIC's situation is a little trickier. Curiously, they're on the same points total as this time last season, but with all the brouhaha that's surrounded their season the outlook couldn't be any more different. They've lost 15 of their last 16 meetings against the Champions, and lost 4-1 on this ground last season.

Friday's news is that Fernando Amorebieta is highly doubtful. It's unlikely that he'll start here. Suspensions rob them of the inportant duo of Oscar De Marcos abd Ander Herrera. Marceloa Bielsa intends to try Gurpegi in midfield, which should mean a central defensive pairing of Mikel San José and Ekiza.

Markel Susaeta marked his debut for the national side with a goal against Panama on Wednesday. The ongoing nonsense means that Fernando Llorente is unlikely to start. In his place, Aritz Aduriz has scored half of their 16 league goals to date but he's one booking away from a suspension, which could leave Bielsa with an interesting dilemma ahead of next week. Last week's home win over Sevilla was huge, coming off the back of a lucky 2-1 at Granada.

Summary

Bilbao will do well to get anything here. Real are unbeaten at home since Barcelona's visit last December. A smart bet would be for to lead at half-time and full-time. Both of these sides' games tend to entail goals, so look for prices on three or more in total.

Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrao; Khedira, Alonso; Cristiano Ronaldo, Modric, Ángel di Maria; Benzema

Iraizoz; Iraola, Ekiza, San José, Aurtenetxe; Gurpegi, Iturraspe; Susaeta, Muniaín, Ibai Gómez; Aduriz

Week 10- Absentees & Fixtures

Antoine Griezmann struck twice at Valldolid but could miss Sociedad's clash with Espanyol on Sunday

Ahead of the weekend's games, here's the latest on absences along with kick-off times.

Fixtures (ALL KICK OFF TIMES CET)

Saturday:
Málaga v Rayo Vallecano (16:00)
Barcelona v Celta Vigo (18:00)
Real Madrid v Zaragoza (20:00)
Valencia v Atlético Madrid (22:00)

Sunday:
Real Sociedad v Espanyol (12:00)
Deportivo v Mallorca (16:00)
Osasuna v Valladolid (17:50)
Granada v Athletic Bilbao (19:45)
Sevilla v Levante (21:30)

Monday:
Getafe v Real Betis (21:30)


And a summary on confirmed and potential absentees for this weekend’s games. It's worth noting that word has just come out that Álvaro Arbeloa is now available for selection again for Real Madrid, while Sergio Ramos and Michael Essien have both missed training.

Loan contract stipulations:
Rubén (Rayo Vallecano)

Suspended:
Ander Herrera (Athletic Bilbao)
Gustavo Cabral (Celta Vigo)
Juan Forlín (Espanyol)
Victor Sánchez (Espanyol)
Jordi Amat (Rayo Vallecano)
Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid)
Álvaro Rubio (Valladolid)


Injuries ( * = doubtful)
Galarreta (Athletic Bilbao)
Iñigo Pérez (Athletic Bilbao)
Carlos Gurpegui* (Athletic Bilbao)
Borja Ekiza (Athletic Bilbao)
Gerard Piqué (Barcelona)
Eric Abidal (Barcelona)
Isaac Cuenca (Barcelona)
Marc Muniesa (Barcelona)
Thiago (Barcelona)
Carles Puyol (Barcelona)
Fabricio (Betis)
Sergio Rodríguez (Betis)
Rubén Perez (Betis)
Natxo Insa (Celta Vigo)
Samuel (Celta Vigo)
Salomão (Deportivo)
Abel Aguilar (Deportivo)
Javi López (Espanyol)
Jaime Romero (Granada)
Fran Rico (Granada)
Hassan Yebda* (Granada)
Dariusz Dudka (Levante)
Julio Baptista (Málaga)
Jeremy Toulalan* (Málaga)
Nacho Monreal (Málaga)
José Nunes (Mallorca)
Álvaro Giménez (Mallorca)
Javi Márquez (Mallorca)
Antonio López (Mallorca)
Joao Victor (Mallorca)
Uche (Mallorca)
Marc Betrán (Osasuna)
Manuel Arena (Rayo Vallecano)
Marcelo (Real Madrid)
Fábio Coentrão (Real Madrid)
Álvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid)
Sami Khedira (Real Madrid)
Liassine Cadamuro (Real Sociedad)
Gorka Elustondo* (Real Sociedad)
Claudio Bravo (Real Sociedad)
David Zurutuza* (Real Sociedad)
Antoine Griezmann* (Real Sociedad)
Piotr Trochowski (Sevilla)
Diego Perotti (Sevilla)
Jeremy Mathieu (Valencia)
Sergio Canales (Valencia)
Pablo Piatti (Valencia)
Ivan Obradovic (Zaragoza)
Maurizio Lanzaro (Zaragoza)

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Week 8- Sunday: Getafe v Levante

Getafe v Levante (12:00 CET)

The home side go in to this buoyed by a change of fortunes off the back a win at Zaragoza preceded by a home victory over Mallorca. The latter was helped by another one this season’s daft sending offs, but they sit in ninth. They go into this with a full quota of players.

Levante will look to Obafemi Martins to end their poor away form

It’s a rare event for them to win three on the bounce but then Levante, who are level with them on 10 points, have lost all of their away games to date. That said, they come into this having beaten cross town rivals Valencia. It’s too early to say whether Obafemi Martins will be this season’s Felipe Caicedo or Arouna Koné, but he Nigerian’s got two in two starts since joining from Rubin.

Both sides have short squads and settled XIs so the usual starters will feature. In a league that’s proving tight and tough to predict, this encounter between two even matched sides may be decided by who gets the better of the officiating. But Levante’s form on the road tips it in Getafe’s favour, all else equal.

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Week 8: Saturday previews- part 2

Valencia v Athletic Bilbao (20:00 CET)

It’s hard to pick who of these sides has been the bigger let down to date- their records have been identical in all save for goals conceded. Both lost derbies in the last couple of games- the hosts to Levante last time out, the visitors to Sociedad in week 6. Both won their other games, but the opposition were Zaragoza and Osasuna- two sides who have looked utterly clueless.

At least we can set apart some of the reasons why they’ve struggled. Valencia can justifiably point a spate of injuries in September, but are nearing a full quota now; only Sergio Canales is missing for them. Fernando Gago was excellent in both of Argentina’s recent qualifiers.

Best of enemies? Bielsa and Llorente

By contrast, Athletic’s problems have been largely self-made, and morale in the camp is low. The recent video footage of Bielsa’s training bust up with Fernando Llorente hammered this point home. With their star striker alienated, the only saving grace is that their summer recruit from today’s opponents, Aritz Aduriz, has chipped in with four goals.

Another plus is Ander Herrera’s return to fitness. He showed in flashes what Athletic had been missing in the win at Osasuna. But in what looks a tallest man contest between two midgets, you would have give the edge to the hosts. Anything less than a win will lead to further questioning of Mauricio Pellegrino’s managerial pedigree. Andrés Guardado has made a disappointing start to his time at the Mestalla and will need to up his game here.


Deportivo v Barcelona (22:00 CET)

It’s fair to say Barcelona will be strong favourites here, but traditionally they tend to play within themselves after international weeks and I don’t expect this to be a walkover. Depor’s lowly position is at odds with their level of performance, which has generally been impressive. But they’ve struggled to pick up wins and if we set aside their 5-1 thumping at the Bernabéu in week 6- where they played much better than the scoreline suggests- they were below par in their loss at Rayo last time out, and will have been disappointed with the 2-0 loss to Sevilla in their last outing at the Riazor.

Once again it’s going to be a decidedly makeshift defence for Tito Vilanova. But after going with the likes of Alex Song and Adriano in the centre alongside Mascherano of late, I expect a more orthodox selection in Marc Bartra this time. Martín Montoya had an excellent game against Real Madrid. With Dani Alves out for the rest of the month, the Spanish under-21 international can make a case for a regular spot on the right.

Martín Montoya: ready to step up

Depor have the capability in attack to test them, and Nelson Oliveira’s pace off the bench is a useful weapon. But as ever, the question is whether they’ll be given a platform of possession.

David Villa could return the first XI given Alexis Sánchez’s inconsistency and gruelling schedule with Chile. Pedro put in a stunning display against Belarus, where a hat-trick of chipped goals merely provided extra gloss. The ability to go inside or out will prove a challenge for Laure and Aythami on Depor’s left side.

Iniesta was saved for the France game, but withdrawn as a precaution in the Calderón where at any rate he didn’t look sharp. Fábregas is likely to get the nod in midfield here.

Week 8 Schedule

Here are the kick off times for the next round of games after the international break. All kick-off times CET

Week 8:

Saturday 20 October

Málaga v Valladolid (16:00)

Real Madrid v Celta Vigo (18:00)

Valencia v Athletic Bilbao (20:00)

Deportivo v Barcelona (22:00)

Sunday 21 October

Getafe v Levante (12:00)

Espanyol v Rayo Vallecano (16:00)

Granada v Zaragoza (18:00)

Osasuna v Real Betis (19:50)

Real Sociedad v Atlético Madrid (21:30)

Monday 22 October

Sevilla v Mallorca (21:30)

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Suspension Update

A summary of suspensions after matchday 7

Suspensions (one match unless stated):

Dani Benítez (Granada) 1 November

Gary Medel (Sevilla)

Sofiane Feghouli (Valencia) 2 matches

Romaric (Zaragoza)

Álvaro (Zaragoza)

Abdel Barrada (Getafe)

Emilio Nsué (Mallorca)

Victor Álvarez (Espanyol)

Mario (Real Betis)

Yacine Brahimi (Granada)

Beñat (Real Betis)

Alberto Botía (Sevilla)

Carlos Gurpegui (Athletic Bilbao)

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Matchday 5: Fixtures & Absentees

Ahead of this weekends matches, here are the kick-off times and notable absentees. 

Fixtures (all times CET)

Saturday:

Zaragoza v Osasuna (16:00)

Celta v Getafe (18:00)

Real Betis v Espanyol (20:00)

Barcelona v Granada (22:00)

Sunday:

Mallorca v Levante (12:00)

Levante v Real Sociedad (16:00)

Atlético de Madrid v Valladolid (18:00)

Athletic v Málaga (19:50)

Rayo Vallecano v Real Madrid (21:30)

Monday:

Deportivo v Sevilla (21:30)

Suspensions:

Dani Benítez (Granada)

Puñal (Osasuna)

Fábio Coentrão (Real Madrid)

Joseba Llorente (Osasuna)

José Nunes (Mallorca)
Longo (Espanyol)

Sergio Sánchez (Málaga)

Injuries:

Iñigo Pérez & Ander Herrera (Athletic)

Kader (Atlético de Madrid)

Carles Puyol, Andrés Iniesta, Eric Abidal, Isaac Cuenca, Marc Muniesa, Gerard Piqué (Barcelona)

Chico (Betis)

Javier Camuñas (Deportivo)

Odion Ighalo, Hassan Yebda, Manuel Lucena, Fran Rico, Roberto Fernández (Granada)

Julio Baptista (Málaga)

Álvaro Giménez, Giovanni Dos Santos (Mallorca)

Chory Castro, Cadamuro (Real Sociedad)

Diego Perotti, José Antonio Reyes, Baba (Sevilla)

Pablo Piatti, Sergio Canales, Ever Banega, David Albelda, Fernando Gago (Valencia)

Glenn Loovens, Ivan Obradovic, Adam Pinter (Real Zaragoza)

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