Sevilla all at sea as Montella sees the door

Club struggling to adjust to life in the post-Monchi era

Joseph Sexton @josephsbcn

If Barcelona securing a 25th La Liga title in A Coruña ranked as the weekend’s least surprising news, then events a day before and 1,000 kilometres to the south must have run it a close second. Following Friday’s limp 2-1 defeat at 17th-placed Levante, Sevilla parted company with Vincenzo Montella.

The former Milan and Fiorentina boss had been in the job for less than four months. Yet despite taking them to a first Champions League quarter-final in 60 years — at the expense of Manchester United, no less — the question remains as to why he was ever appointed in the first place.

To say this season has been a rollercoaster ride for the club would be an understatement, but with no wins in their last nine matches, the simple fact is that Montella took a side who were in fifth position — two points behind Real Madrid in fourth — on his arrival to eighth, and outside the European places.

Remarkably, they have shipped five goals on six occasions already this season — most recently in last week’s Copa del Rey final against Barcelona — with their goals against column in La Liga a whopping 54; three more than bottom-placed Málaga.

Vincenzo Montella struggled and was shown the door by Sevilla at the weekend

“If Sevilla outran Barça like Montella said,” local daily Estadio Deportivo's editor Joaquin Adorna wrote witheringly last week, “Then it must have been some pretty brainless and pointless running.”

All of this off the back of their highest-ever single season playing budget, their record transfer total outlay, and their most expensive individual signing.

To analyse how we got here, one needs to look back to a couple of key departures last summer.

First of all, rockstar sporting director Monchi — the man who unearthed the likes Dani Alves, Júlio Baptista, Seydou Keita, and José Antonio Reyes, as well as bringing in the likes of Ivan Rakitic for peanuts — left the club after 17 stellar years in his post.

The current Roma recruiter set up a network of over 700 scouts worldwide, and netted the club an incredible €200 million net transfer profit during his tenure. It also represented the most successful period in the club’s history, with nine trophies; including five Europa Leagues.

Secondly, manager Jorge Sampaoli left to take charge of the Argentina national team. That left the club scrambling to find a like-for-like replacement for the Marcelo Bielsa disciple, and the obvious choice was Bielsa’s former assistant Eduardo Berizzo following his excellent three year run as head honcho at Celta Vigo.

The performances didn’t always convince under Berizzo, but the results were for the most part sound. However, having fallen out with the midfield lynchpin Steven N’Zonzi and been left fuming at the recruitment work of Monchi’s successor Óscar Arias, there was palpable tension in the air.

Arias in turn paid with his job last Thursday. In another piece entitled ‘Arias’s mortal deadly sins’, Estadio Deportivo laid a litany of failures firmly on his doorstep. 

With their record defensive signing Simon Kjaer enduring an injury-wracked campaign, they had only two fit centre backs for most of the season, and he was castigated for failing to secure the likes of Michy Batshuayi or Daniel Sturridge on loan in the winter, opting instead for Everton flop Sandro Ramírez.

Above all, the piece concluded, “he failed to recognise or learn from his mistakes.”

Into the breach steps their former manager Joaquín Caparrós, thirteen years down the road. Having spoken — but given little away — on the radio over the weekend, he was a little more generous at his official presentation on Monday.

“I’ve looked at the players,” he began. “And they’re in good physical shape, not as tired as they look from the outside.

“Now we need to work on the mental side, and break this cycle of poor results. I know the talent and quality of these players, now let’s see if we can achieve what we need to.”

What they need do is to overhaul seventh-placed Getafe to make it back into Europe. What will hurt more than anything is to see crosstown rivals Real Betis staring down at them from the lofty heights of fifth.

When Berizzo was sacked, somewhat heartlessly, a week after a successful operation on a cancerous tumour on December 22nd, Betis were languishing in 14th. 

The time between then and now has seen a stunning 16 point swing in favour of the side who won for the first time in over a decade by 5-3 at Sevilla in Montella’s first league game in charge.

They will contest the return fixture on Saturday 12 May in Caparrós’s second game in charge, the penultimate round of the season. But he refused to be drawn on the derby on Monday.

“We’re not going to think too far ahead. A few fine details will change, but nothing more. We need to take it step by step and not think beyond next Friday’s game [against Real Sociedad]. We have to be ready.”

Zidane makes his mark

My Column for Marca

Real MadridThe Frenchman came out on top in his personal duel with Luis Enrique

This was the biggest test of Zinedine Zidane's tenure as Real Madrid boss to date, and he passed with flying colours. 

Madrid were at a low ebb when he took charge and although initially there had been some concerns over the difference between their performances at home and away, on Saturday he silenced the doubters. 

Not only did they come from behind, but, in doing so with ten men, he tactically outwitted Barcelona's treble winning manager.

His side also managed to shackle the seemingly unstoppable MSN frontline of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar who put in subdued performances against an obdurate merengue backline. 

Rather than bring on another defender following Sergio Ramos' sending-off, he kept full faith in maintaining a complete complement of attackers and the gamble paid dividends.

Indeed it was those final 15 minutes, either side of the sending off, that Madrid really sprang to life. 

Cristiano Ronaldo netted the winner, but there was no question of sitting deep - Los Blancos might even have extended their advantage in the closing stages. 

This willingness to attack caught cold a Barcelona side that seemed to have run out of gas, and the strategy is to Zidane's credit. 

Questions were asked over his tactical nous when he came off second best to Diego Simeone in the Madrid derby, but this one was won on the chalkboard. 

What's more, Zizou lifted the curse that's burdened new Madrid coaches for almost a decade. 

Not since 2007, under Bernd Schuster, had a Real coach succeeded in winning his first clash against the Catalans.

It happened to Manuel Pellegrini, there was the infamous 5-0 under Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti suffered a narrow defeat and of course there was this season's drubbing at the Bernabeu under Rafa Benítez. 

Nine long years on, Zidane bucked that trend to emerge victorious.

And it couldn't have come at a better time. 

In the early part of his time in charge, there has been criticism over performances on the road but now Madrid have won each of their last three away games. 

Indeed, they are on their best run of the season now with six straight victories in all competitions. 

At the weekend they faced the most daunting of challenges, and prevailed.

Zidane himself recognised after the match that this victory could prove a real shot in the arm as far as morale goes.

The Champions League is entering its final stages and although three points here brings them closer to the summit in the league, it's the renewed confidence it brings that could prove the biggest filip.

Madrid were at an emotional low point when he took over, but this victory shows that he's managed to make a real impact in his three months at the helm.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE AT MARCA IN ENGLISH

Turks against the Portuguese? Welcome to the Galician Derby

Joseph Sexton

My column for Back Page Football

Celta's Nolito in action against Depor last season

Peruse the international media, or the partisan locally based Marca and Mundo Deportivo and you’d be forgiven for thinking that there was only one game taking place on the planet this weekend. Reams of paper and 17 scrolls down the page and you might find snugly hidden away something different. The 500 millionth (or so it feels) clásico this decade isn’t the only biggie today. Indeed, it’s arguable that it might not even be most interesting game of matchday 12 in La Liga.

No, Sir. That clash has been moved to an 18.15 local time kick-off to avoid the ridiculous situation we’ve had in recent years of UK viewers missing the opening quarter hour of that heavyweight duel. But skip further ahead in the day and there’s a real treat in store- the Galician derby, as Deportivo La Coruña host their fiercest rivals Celta Vigo. The turcos against the portugueses, as their respective slurs go, with the hosts in 6th and their opponents in 4th. Having endured stints in the second division and a few too many relegation battles for comfort in recent times, there’s no hyperbole when Celta’s left-back Jonny Castro describes it as “the biggest derby in years”.

It’s a particularly vicious derby, so much so that your correspondent has been dissuaded from making the hour and a half train journey north from Vigo-Guixar. Plenty will make the trip deep into enemy territory, however, with the allocation sold out. Normally the head of the supporters’ groups’ federation distributes tickets individually to the various fan groups in order to account for those making away trips but, with the Faro de Vigo reporting the security situation to be of the highest alert, they’ve washed their hands of the situation and left it to the club to dole them out. Things may  get hairy. Though, one hopes, not as hairy as these deplorable scenes when the clubs met in a promotion play-off back in the 1980s in Balaídos.

There’s history to this rivalry. Depor are the older of the two teams, but having spent several years more in the top flight, Celta have liked to see themselves as traditionally the bigger club. They made the step up first in the 1940s, reaching and losing a cup final. Depor have been as far down as the third tier, and only really began to establish themselves as a force upon being promoted in the 1990s. After coming close on several occasions, they finally won the La Liga title in 2000. Added to their Copa del Rey success in 1995, and spoiling Real Madrid’s centenary by winning that competition again the following decade, they remain the only Galician club to have won a national title.

It’s a curious quirk of history that both sides enjoyed arguably their most successful eras during that same period. Everyone remembers that Super Depor side, that which won at Old Trafford and Highbury and only fell to then not-yet Special One’s FC Porto in 2004's Champions League semi-finals. Having overturned a three goal deficit against PSG in 2001, they only went and did it again in that run, turning around a 4-1 first leg reverse against holders Milan in the quarter-finals. That’s arguably when the decline set in.

Down south, Celta boasted their finest ever side, including names such as Michel Salgado, Valery Karpin, Alexander Mostovoi, and the Brazilian World Cup winner Mazinho, father of Thiago and Rafinha Alcántara. Nicknamed ‘Euro Celta’, they twice made it to the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup, and then the Champions League in 2003/4. But - and this is why many Celtistas fear a return to Europe - they were also relegated during that maiden campaign. They bounced back the following season, but within two years were down again, where they remained until three years ago.

Deportivo’s decline was slower but no less painful in its conclusion. Having been a regular fixture in the top six, and runners up on several occasions, they began to drift in the latter half of the last decade before going down to much sadness - well, outside of Vigo anyway - in 2011. They returned after a season, but couldn’t maintain their status, ironically being pipped to survival by Celta. Back up they came, surviving - barely - last season, to ensure another Galician derby for the current campaign.

Celta have been the revelation of the season so far. The building blocks were put in place by Luis Enrique two seasons ago. Though it’s hard to imagine now, the former Spanish international was considered damaged goods when chosen by chairman Carlos Mouriño to take the side forward following a fairly disastrous season in charge at Roma. It took them three months to win a game at home, but even early on the Asturian’s faith in his methods was unshakeable. Following a disappointing 1-1 draw with Granada in their first home outing, he opined “if we keep playing like this, we’ll win more than we lose”. Time proved him right.

Therefore he left big shoes to fill as he departed for the Camp Nou along with Rafinha, a key figure during that season. Once again, Mouriño showed a willingness to think outside the box in appointing the Argentine Eduardo Berizzo, who made his name in Chilean football, first as assistant to the man who launched a thousand coaching careers, Marcelo Bielsa and then later as a manager in his own right. 

As you would expect from one who learned from the charismatic former Argentina and Chile boss, high pressing and rapid attacks are central to Toto’s philosophy. But there’s also a pragmatic streak, something Bielsa lacks but others who’ve been inspired by him - chief amongst those Chile’s Copa América winning boss Jorge Sampaoli - have added to the armoury. Whereas Bielsa’s sides tend to flag, both in games and in campaigns, Berizzo isn’t as relentlessly one-dimensional and indeed, late goals have become something of a hallmark of this Celta side.

Last year, they finished a respectable 8th, but this year they’ve been on top and never outside the top four. They were brutal in dismantling Barcelona 4-1 in September, have won away to Sevilla (where only Real Madrid triumphed last term), won at the Madrigal against then leaders Villarreal, and after leaving that late they also pounced at the death to claim three points away to Real Sociedad having been behind twice to David Moyes’ side. No team in La Liga can boast a better away record this year.

Deportivo, on the other hand, have a fairly poor home record to date, registering just one win. Whereas Celta have spread the goals, with recently-capped Nolito on seven and the rejuvenated Liverpool reject Iago Aspas on six, the Coruña club have leaned heavily upon the shoulders of Lucas Pérez, who has chipped in with seven of his side’s goals. 

Celta’s defence is leaky, Depor’s mean. The former is only partially falsely inflated by their shocking 5-1 home defeat last time round to Valencia - a quite bizarre game where the visitors scored with every shot on target while the hosts spurned several clear openings - and have the fourth poorest rearguard in the division as a result.

Celta travel with a full complement of players available, whereas Depor are severely hindered by the absence of the Costa Rican Celso Borges in the middle of the park. One of the leading interceptors in the league, he was plying his trade in Sweden before starring in his side’s surprise run to the quarter-finals in Brazil. Deportivo took the plunge during the winter break and he’s been a mainstay of this side ever since.

It all points to goals. Recently, Luis Enrique described his former club as the most exciting team to watch in Europe this season and it wasn’t a mere platitude. Some weeks before, following that Balaídos humbling, Javier Mascherano chimed “it’s painful to lose like that, to be outplayed”. Depor too have been far from circumspect. 

Given the turgid nature of their football in the last five years, many an eyebrow was arched when, upon being appointed as manager, Victor Sánchez promised a more attacking style. They’ve delivered upon that, and if Celta’s current lofty status may appear something of a surprise, Depor’s is even more so. A sensible bet would be for both teams to score and a total of three goals or more, according to tipster Jonathan Cordingley. Everyone’s eyes will be on Madrid earlier in the day, but you could do worse with the rest of your Saturday than stay tuned in for La Liga’s late kick-off.

Probable teams

Deportivo: Germán Lux; Laure, Alejandro Arribas, Sidnei, Fernando Navarro; Fayçal Fajr, Pedro Mosquera; Federico Cartabia, Jonás Gutiérrez, Juanfran; Lucas Pérez

Celta: Sergio Álvarez; Hugo Mallo, Sergi Gómez, Andreu Fontás, Jonny; Daniel Wass, Augusto Fernández, Pablo Hernández; Fabián Orellana, Iago Aspas, Nolito

Spanish Inquest: Best of Enemies

My column for Eircom SportsHub

Antoine Griezmann has been in exceptional form for Real Sociedad

This weekend’s Basque derby is full of significance. Clashes between Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad are always to be savoured, but this one will be the last at Bilbao’s cathedral San Mamés. Come next season they’ll be moving to a new home adjacent to this storied ground.

It also marks Marcelo Bielsa’s 100th game in charge- his longest time at the helm of any club. It’s fair to say matters have been more trying this term, something the Argentine readily conceded to the press pack on Thursday. “In evaluating my work this season, the conclusion is negative”.

It’s a different story up the road in San Sebastian where Phillippe Montanier has lead his side to sixth position. The Frenchman was criticised earlier in the season for his side’s perceived lack of ambition amidst underwhelming results. But of late, it’s their fluid attackers who’ve been drawing the praise.

Clearly, their key man remains the France underage international Antoine Griezmann. Last year, he’d had his head turned and his performances suffered as a result. This season, he’s regained his focus and whether playing in a fixed position or roaming free, he’s been a real nuisance to opposing defences.

It’s not just the prospect of Griezmann that will have had Athletic’s porous backline sweating. Imanol Agirretxe’s chipped in with 5 goals off the bench, and then there’s the former Arsenal man, Carlos Vela.

The Mexican finally seems to have found himself a home after multiple loan moves during his time in London. The penalty he won- and converted- in last week’s 1-1 draw with Levante was his 10th in the league to date.

Vela is another who likes to drift across the attacking line in games in order to elude his markers. His dribbling ability and intelligent link-up play are his principal assets, but this year he’s really grown as a finisher and enjoying getting frequent time on the pitch.

Athletic’s recent form has been wretched. The defence has been a calamity all season, but  further up the field their pressing game- so central last season’s success- had been an abject failure. The frequency of their concession of goalscoring chances stems largely from this. Once the initial press is beaten, their defence has too often been all at sea.

Eyebrows were raised when their stalwart between the sticks, Gorka Iraizoz, was absent from the selection for last weekend’s 1-0 reverse at Málaga. It’s true that he didn’t enjoy the best of times in their 4-0 defeat here against Espanyol, and has been unsure in several other games since the turn of the year.

Bielsa refused to give his thoughts, instead stating that “Gorka is a player with a lot of character. And I’m not one to give up my thoughts in public on selections and line-ups before I tell it to the players themselves”. But youngster Kepa- who described the Athletic goalkeeping shirt as ‘sacred’- look certain to start.

Meanwhile, the whole Fernando Llorente saga continues. Next year, he’ll be leading the line for Juventus. For the time being, it’s hard to see what he has to do to get himself back into Bielsa’s plans.

“Llorente will be available, as will [defender, Fernando] Amorebieta”. The fact that Llorente didn’t train with the first team on Wednesday should confirm another frustrating night on the bench for the Spain striker.

Fortunately for Athletic his stand-in, Aritz Aduriz has been in exceptional form this term, with the former Valencia man contributing 12 goals; their next highest scorer is Mikel San José, the former Liverpool centre back.

Certainly, they can do with all the help they can get in attack. Óscar De Marcos is still a doubt, and Carlos Gurpegui- never much of a goal threat- limped off in the defeat in Málaga. Iker Muniain has been off the boil all season, and may not even make the starting line-up here.

Meanwhile, La Real’s Uruguayan attacker Chory Castro was talking big in Wednesday’s press conference. “I can’t tell you how much I want to win at San Mamés. They’re down at the moment and we have to make sure they don’t get up”

“They’ll want to pick themselves up so it’s up to us to make sure they can’t. If we have the opportunity to stick away two or three goals, then fine... we’ll do just that because that’s our job.”

Big words indeed, but given Athletic’s travails of late one wouldn’t put it past him and his team-mates to make this another excruciating night for the home side.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub

Spanish Inquest: Clash of the continents

My column for Eircom SportsHub

Edinson Cavani has yet to strike up a partnership with Luis Suárez for Uruguay

Another slice of history beckons for Vicente Del Bosque on Wednesday. When Spain take the field against Uruguay it will mark the occasion of his 68th match in charge of La Roja - equalling the record set by Ladislao Kubala.

 

Unlike the Hungarian maestro, Del Bosque has laid his hands on international football's most glittering prizes. His side will face off against one of the great names in this arena, the Copa América holders of Oscar Washington Tábarez, as the first world champions meet the last.

 

In the last international cycle, this was the clash we were denied: the champions of Europe versus the champions of South America. They came close, but ultimately Brazil and Spain's paths never crossed. In the Confederations Cup, Spain were eliminated by the USA while Dunga's Brazil side fell to Holland in 45 minutes of madness in Port Elizabeth.

 

This doesn't quite have the same glamour billing as the clash that never was, and not just because for all their incredible successes Uruguay lack the cachet of Brazil. That terrific run which saw them make the semi-finals in South Africa and culminated with a record 15th continental title in Buenos Aires has petered out as the Celeste undergo a difficult generational change.

 

It looked to be going so well. Fresh from their success, Uruguay began the marathon South America qualifying section like a train. Moreover, they had the Olympics to look forward to as they looked to bed in the next generation talent from their underage squads.

 

But just as the senior side began to falter, the U23 selection endured a torrid time of it in London when the youngsters failed to step up and a heayweight frontline of Luís Suárez and Edinson Cavani failed to gel. Amomgst the pre-tournament favourites, they failed to progress beyond a navigable group.

 

Spain's exit at the same stage represented a hiccup, but for Tábarez this was a real blow. His reorganisation of the tiny country's youth set-up has seen them cast the net as far as possible in the hope of grooming the next generation of players for the senior team. It's not all about results, but their poor showing has left him reliant on ageing legs.

 

The resumption of their World Cup campaign brought further pain. A Lionel Messi inspired Argentina ran riot when the sides met in October, the 3-0 final score a pale reflection of their great rivals' dominance. That followed a 4-0 humbling away to a Colombia side on the rise.

 

One figure from that Olympic squad earmarked for the seniors was Southampton's Gastón Ramírez. The former Bologna man has had a mixed start to his time in the Premier League but was expected to feature. Unfortunately for Tábarez, an injury sustained at Wigan means he's absent.

 

This, and the fact that Diego Forlan won't start will necessitate a change of shape. A one-time progidy, the 23 year old Nicolas Lodeiro should start in the hole behind the forwards. This inteligent number 10 is rebuilding his career with Botafogo in Brazil following an unhappy stint at Ajax.

 

Forlan himself was in fine form on Spanish radio, as he reminisced over his 7 years in Spain. Asked if Uruguay were 'the kings of football' he sensibly batted away the question, before turning more serious in his response.

 

“It's inexplicable - if you look at it logically - that a country so small, with three million-odd people, can keep competing against the big boys and winning titles... it's extraordinary” Given that Forlán has been the glue that held their attack together, it'll be interesting to see how they fare without him.

 

For Spain's part, it's likely that their line-up will have a distinctly Barcelona makeup. Xavi and Xabi Alonso have both withdrawn, meaning an abandonment of Del Bosque's favoured double pivot for something more akin to the Catalans' take on 4-3-3.

 

Sergio Ramos and Álvaro Arbeloa are expected to make up the right side of defence, with Chelsea's Juan Mata the remaining non-Barcelona player in an eleven which will include Victor Valdés. Cesc Fábregas has been in the form of his life, often lining up in the forward line for his club but should feature in the midfield here.

 

Many long to see Isco get his maiden run-out but as, in his own words, “the best players in the world in my position are ahead of me” he'll surely start on the bench. Carles Puyol will win his 100th cap, while Chelsea's César Azpilicueta and Mario Suárez of Atlético hope to feature at some point for their first.

 

More than anything, this game represents and interesting clash in styles. Uruguay are no mugs, they know their strengths and their success has been built on playing to them. This means that a hard running midfield focusses on winning the ball before supplying it to the heavy hitters up front. Whether they will see enough of it and whether Lodeiro will prove adept at providing the darts remains to be seen.

 

Their preference is for a deep defensive line, and this will be further necessary as their captain Diego Lugano looks sure to feature. After 18 months with limited game time at PSG prior to his recent move to Málaga, he'll form a Spain-based partnership with Atlético's Diego Godín.

 

The likely full-back pairing of Inter's Álvaro Pereira and his namesake Maxi of Benfica are expected to patrol the whole flank, using their energy to give width in attack without compromising their defensive duties. Another option on the right is the more defence-minded Martin Cáceres, who's also comfortable at centre back and being part of a back three.

 

18 months ago before the South Americans suffered their prolonged dip in form, their chances of a win would have looked a distinct possibility. As it stands, they find themselves very much the underdogs. But it's a role they've always revelled in, and if the Suárez-Cavani partnerhip finally clicks they have the tools in their locker to put the hurt on the World and European Champions.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub

Spanish Inquest: Cup runneth over

My column for Eircom SportsHub

Manol de dios- Agirretxe condemns Barça to their first league defeat of the season

In the end, it was almost an after-thought. Attention was firmly trained on the Bernabéu before a ball was kicked in anger on week 21 of the season, just as it remained on Wednesday. Last week's mini-crisis at Real Madrid hogged the headlines as the recriminations grew.

In many ways, the cup was a welcome distraction for Real Madrid who nevertheless went into the game off the back of their best form of the season. The Spanish league calendar restarts with the return on week 20, when the order of games from the first half of the season is repeated.

It's too late to make good on a woeful opening half of this term for Real, but they appear to have taken those early setbacks personally. It all started to go wrong when Iker Casillas and Pepe clashed heads on the opening day at home to Valencia. Real might have been out of sight but instead were fortunate to get away with a 1-1 draw as Roberto Soldado's goal was incorrectly flagged offside.

If the feeling was that this had been aberration, then by week two it was already a full-blown crisis. Expected to dismiss little Getafe without fuss, a second-half showing of staggering stupidity at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez saw them go down 2-1 to the club from the south of the city.

The revenge has been brutal. Either side of being dumped out of the cup by Real, Valencia were ripped apart at the Mestalla last week, conceding five without reply. This week, Getafe's moment of reckoning arrived. Having held out in tense opening period, a ten-minute Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick left them licking their wounds on the short trip home.

Barcelona began their return run by showing a rare glimpse of their own mortality. Having walloped Real Sociedad on the first day, their encounter at the Anoeta was already a far cagier affair even before Gerard Pique's sending-off. They looked to have weathered the storm after a heavy deflection beat Victor Valdés for Chory Castro's equaliser. But 30 seconds into injury time, Manol Agirretxe slid through to deliver their first defeat of the campaign.

That defeat might have come as early as week two. On a balmy Sunday evening in Pamplona, Barca looked uncharacteristically leggy and off-key against Osasuna. With their pressing all over the place, each stray pass brought the home crowd to their feet and, leading since the 17th minute there, really looked no way back for the Catalans/

There was, but it came off the back of a moment of monumental misfortune. The build up to Lionel Messi's equaliser contained the non-award of an offside and then an expert — if entirely unintentional — pass off the heel of referee César Muniz Fernández at its closing stages. In the protests that followed, several cards were flashed; including a red for Francisco Punal. Minutes after all died down, the Argentine popped up again to net the winner.

This time round, luck had nothing to do with it. Despite Robert Loé equalising Messi's opener, the home side were 3-1 up by the break. After it, the world footballer of the year added his third and fourth, taking him to 16 goals from his last nine starts.

The jokers in this king's cup pack are Atlético Madrid. Back in week two a Falcao hat-trick had given a glimpse of things to come as they vanquished last year's Europa League finalists Bilbao 4-0 at the Vicente Calderon. Here, there was no Falcao and instead a 3-0 victory for the struggling Basques.

“Without Falcao, Atleti are a mid-table side” ran the Marca headline on Monday. Perhaps a harsh assessment as undoubtedly this had been the most complete performance seen this time round for Marcelo Bielsa's side by some distance. But there's a grain of truth in it too. Without their attacking fulcrum, they've won just two of their seven league games, and the bad news is that barring a miracle they'll have to make do without him for their midweek cup game.

Which brings us to last team making up the quartet, Sevilla. If you've heard reports of their saleable assets being linked to all and sundry this transfer window, then it's not without foundation. Sevilla's financial issues are the sort that most of the league's sides would warmly welcome. Rather then being mired in debt or in administration, the need to sell has been precipitated by their first annual loss in the last seven.

A fortnight ago they dispensed with their manager, the former Real Madrid midfielder Michel. In truth, probably a better pundit than a football coach, the telegenic Michel was replaced by the former Valencia boss Unai Emery.

It's far too early to offer any objective assessment of his work to date. But given his previous record at Valencia, the club's president José María del Nido will be hoping Emery can elicit a better response from what still remains one of the division's more talented squads and that the momentum gained from their Monday win over Granada will offset the effects of having a day less to prepare for Thursday's semi-final.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub 

Spanish Inquest: Banking on it

My Eircom SportsHub column

Pipe dream- Valencia's Nou Mestalla arena sits uncompleted

Stop me if you think you've heard this one before. A club breaks into the Champions League. Not only that, but then they go on to exceed all expectations. Giddied, all sense of financial probity goes out the window. Years later, they're still shaking their heads at the almighty mess left behind.

 

Firstly, it should be pointed out that Valencia are not Leeds. They've never quite gone into freefall, but rather have remained remarkably competitive. Not only that, but they've performed herculean feats in reducing the club's debt- which stood at an eye-watering €500m back in 2008.

 

In a country coming apart at the seams, they should be lauded for their canny work in undoing past mistakes. But now, they face the worst possible of fates: falling under the control of the regional government.

 

That may sound like quite a statement. After all, Valencia are famously saddled with two stadia: one can't afford to complete and another they can't sell following the collapse of the country's property market.

 

Their president — the economist, Manuel Llorente — carries his own share of the blame for what went wrong. But equally, his manoeuvring of the club back to a healthier financial state shouldn't be ignored. The genesis of the current problems can be tracked back to the departure of Rafa Benítez in 2004 following the most successful period in the club's history.

 

Benítez's war the American pair Hicks & Gillet was presaged by a similar falling-out over control of transfer policy at Valencia. After claiming the league title — his second in three years — along with the UEFA Cup, the manager departed for Anfield.

 

Having won that little battle at great cost what Valencia permitted next defies all explanation. With wage costs already spiralling out of control, in came Claudio Ranieri. Moderately successful in his first spell at the club, his second spell bordered on farce. Llorente and company effectively handed over the keys to the till; Ranieri embarked on a binge of signing average players for extravagant fees and exorbitant wages who proved difficult to shift on under his successors.

 

Any list of examples would go on and on, but the outcome was ruinous. At least amongst that sorry list came David Villa in 2005 and with the maturation of David Silva and later Juan Mata there remained the bones of a decent squad and— crucially — saleable assets.

 

But the other key factor was the arrival of Unai Emery in 2008 as manager following the rancorous reign of Ronald Koeman. Sometimes, you only appreciate a good thing once you've lost it. Valencia's fans are a notoriously intolerant bunch, and Emery like Benítez before him didn't escape the boo boys. His crime? Critics point to some 50 leads squandered in all competitions, or his inability to stay close to Real and Barcelona. But finishing third the last three seasons was as impressive as the resultant Champions League cash was crucial. His contract wasn't renewed last summer, and they've been well off the pace as a result.

 

About 18 months ago, it was reported that a deal with the local government and banks would see the remaining €250m debt wiped clean — and also allow work to resume on the new stadium. It was never going to be as simple as that. Rather, the regional government guaranteed a loan of €81m from a local bank to ease the club's cash flow crisis. That bank was subsumed into Bankia; a mega-bank laden with toxic assets created by the national government. With Bankia being bailed out to the tune of €20bn last year — and the regional government's bond rating long since relegated to junk status — this week's default on interest payments by the club saw it effectively turned over to Valencian government.

 

What a cruel fate this could prove. Of all of Spain's 17 autonomous communities, Valencia wins hands down in any race to the bottom for fiscal mismanagement. There's the airport in Castellón, completed but never opened in 2011 — as demand was neither there, nor ever had been. Later it even emerged that its runway, not being of standard dimensions, was worse than useless. This is but one example of a litany of failed vanity, pork barrel projects.

 

Then there's the composition of the government itself. Ironically a stronghold of the right-wing Partido Popular, who rode back into national government with the promise — more than fulfilled — to push through incredible austerity measures, the Valencian branch has long been a viper's nest of clientelism and corruption. For three years we saw the grinning face of local party chief Francisco Camps entering and exiting court hearings as part of the infamous Gurtel case daily on our televisions. His final vindication in the supreme court proved a pyrrhic victory for just two months after being re-elected again, he resigned his post as president of Valencian community.

 

The parallels are there. Valencia the club, and Valencia the region both got burned flying too high on a wave of euphoria and idiocy. But while Valencia the club has long since become a model case on how to slash expenses whilst somehow managing to keep producing the goods, the region's record in this area is dire and only moving in one direction. What this means for the club going forward having brought in Ernesto Valverde as manager is anyone's guess, but the prognosis doesn't look good.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub

Spanish Inquest: Seeing red

My Eircom SportsHub column

Why always me?

“We demand precision, consistency and neutrality, with just one small caveat; that it’s in our favour” - Andoni Zubizarreta

 

Such were the withering sentiments expressed by the former Barcelona goalkeeper in 2010. The issue was different; he was referring to the skewed and partial media coverage that plagues Spain’s football reporting. But the sentiment might as easily be applied to a more current issue; that of refereeing, another blight upon La Liga’s credibility.

 

The objective here is not to kick the leagues officials — though God knows, they’re deserving of a kick or two — but rather the circumstances they’re forced to operate in this season. In short, the vexed issue of official directives.

 

Discussion on refereeing, often heated, is nothing new. At times we demand nothing more than consistency; at others, common sense. But often as not, the two are mutually exclusive.

 

In England, this has been brought into sharp relief by Mike Dean’s red cards at the Emirates, the latter of which was rescinded to near — if not universal — approval.

 

Graham Poll’s column in the Mail is often illuminating on such matters. Referees are put under tremendous pressure not just by the glare of the cameras, or the speed of the modern game, but also by the mishmash of directives which are often hastily cobbled together depending on issue du jour.

 

Dean deserves sympathy, as Vincent Kompany’s red card fell under this umbrella, if not that elusive concept of common sense. The recent trend to allow no middle ground on simulation is another cursory example of well-meaning but ill-thought diktats. Suddenly it seems no longer possible that certain collisions can be neither a foul nor a dive.

 

But this wouldn’t be much of a Spanish inquest if we continue to tread this path, so let’s look at La Liga where — in certain instances — the law of unintended consequences has been taken to dizzyingly daft heights this season.

 

The LFP, the league’s governing body, declared a war on three fronts ahead of the start of the current season. Dissent, both from players and managerial staff is something I think we can all sign up to. The third prong, that of handball, is much more contentious.

 

That concerning player dissent, while sparking occasional controversies, can for the most part be credited as a success. When Sergio Ramos was awarded a second yellow for a crude challenge in last week’s Copa del Rey clash with Celta, his mouth landed him with an additional four-game suspension to that mandatory for dismissal.

 

In the heat of the moment, Ramos called the referee ‘shameless’ which, while not quite crossing the line of calling the referee’s honesty into account, brought with it a further four match sanction. As well as Saturday’s limp draw at Osasuna, he will miss a potential semi-final clash with Barcelona in the Copa.

 

Fair or excessive, it was at least by the book. Which brings us back to Zubizarreta’s words.

Naturally enough, a certain section of the press put forward the view that his punishment was conditioned by the crest on his shirt. Those doing so were put back in their box when the case of Espanyol’s Sergio García was brought up; in November the Espanyol forward suffered the same punishment in identical circumstances.

 

Then there’s the issue concerning sanctions applied to touchline staff. Again, in the greater scheme of things, this one seems a no-brainer. Whether it’s managers berating referees or screaming at hapless fourth officials, most find this a side of the game we can do without.

 

But here, we’ve seen matters taken to extreme degrees. As with any clampdown, there are casualties; and the opening weeks saw a spate of those. The problem is that officials have taken the directive as carte blanche to banish managers for rather more innocuous transgressions.

 

Simply questioning a decision, or asking for its rationale, has been deemed beyond the pale. Rather than being applied to those impugning the referee’s integrity, we’ve seen those with calm and passive body language being furiously pointed in the direction of the stand.

 

Indeed, in the whole of last season, we had a total of seven managerial sending offs. Only ten weeks into this, that number had been breached. That week, Rayo’s Paco Jémez became the latest, following a tame exchange. “This is becoming a dictatorship. How can you justify sending someone off for doing nothing?”

 

But rules are rules, and directives are directives. Even when the law is an ass. And this leads us to final theatre of this ‘war’.

 

Ball to hand? Hand to ball? Should that which is it let go routinely in other areas of the field be an offence inside the penalty area? Such matters inflame passions because, as with many refereeing calls, it’s a mater of interpretation. Except it isn’t; not in Spain, anyway.

 

The concept of unintentional handball is now an extinct species. The referee’s ability to draw distinction, to take into account context, has been eliminated. In its place resides a iron-cast certainty of singular idiocy — every handball is an automatic yellow card offence. It doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about an unfortunate midfielder doing his level best to draw his arm behind his back, or a defender impersonating a goalkeeper on the line. It doesn’t matter if the player’s already on a yellow. The result is the same. Every time.

 

So the next time you find yourself bemoaning a lack of consistency, remember; be careful what you wish for — because you might not like it when you get it.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub

Spanish Inquest: Paciȇncia to prove a virtue?

My Eircom SportsHub column

Domingos joins the Portuguese colony in A Coruña

Patience is not a quality generally associated with football club, even less so in Spain. Itchy trigger fingers abound to the extent that José Mourinho’s two and a half years at the Bernabéu makes him the longest serving incumbent.

It’s been a little bit different this season, however. Call it an outbreak of common sense, or call it an adjustment to the dire financial realities of the league’s clubs, but to date only three managers have left their posts. The last was Deportivo La Coruña’s José Luis Oltra over the Christmas break, with the side bottom of the table with just two wins to their name.

Surprisingly, it marked the first sacking at Depor since John Toshack’s in 1997. “We felt the change was necessary” said the president Augusto Lendoiro. “The situation was irreversible”. Oltra had led the club back to the top flight as champions of the Segunda last term. “I’m surprised to be honest”, he told the press after his removal. “It’s not really normal at this club”.

In his place Deportivo made an intriguing appointment in the former FC Porto forward Domingos Paci?ncia. 18 months ago, his star was burning bright. In his two years in charge of unfashionable Sporting Braga, not only did he edge Porto out of Champions League qualification — achieving their highest ever league finish — but his reign culminated in an unlikely Europa League final appearance against the northern giants in Dublin’s Aviva.

They lost on the night to a solitary Radamel Falcao strike, and what ensued proved one of thoseSliding Doors moments. Had André Villas-Boas stayed on, the Colombian might well have stayed too to have a crack at the Champions League. Had the Tottenham boss departed immediately rather than dragging his heels, then it’s almost certain that Domingos — who’d already signalled his intention to quit — would have been his replacement.

Instead, Domingos moved to Sporting Lisbon with the Porto boss embarking on an ill-starred reign at Chelsea. There’s a remarkable parallel between the two coaches’ fates. Both were criticised for their failure to adapt tactically, and both were removed early; some might say, even prematurely.

Certainly, that’s a prevailing sentiment amongst a large section of the Sporting support. Whereas Villas-Boas’ reputation was built around thrilling high octane football, Domingos’ Braga were by necessity a more pragmatic outfit built around an obdurate defence. This was somewhat at odds with Sporting’s association with slick, passing play.

Like Villas-Boas, the initial signs were promising. Throughout the Autumn, Sporting played some incredible stuff, with results to match. But by November, both had vanished and Sporting reverted to the Braga template of playing on the break. The final straw came when a full strength XI failed to dispatch a largely reserve-based second division Moreirense selection in the League Cup.

At the same time, Villas-Boas’ successor Vítor Pereira was under immense pressure. Indeed, part of Sporting’s stated rationale in sacking Domingos was that he was flirting with his former club. Aided in no small part by Benfica’s collapse Pereira’s side retained the title, giving the incumbent a reprieve while leaving Domingos out in the cold.

So now, rather than a return to Portugal’s second city, Domingos has rolled in at A Coruña, 300km to the north. And it’s not just for the two regions historic links that he’ll be feeling at home.

Deportivo’s squad is stuffed with Portuguese, from stalwarts like the centre half Zé Castro to a raft of summer loanees brokered by the super agent Jorge Mendes. Within this colony resides the promising young trio of Bruno Gama, Pizzi and Nélson Oliveíra, whose performances were sporadic under Oltra.

At the weekend, Depor marked the occasion with their first win in what feels like an eternity against Málaga. The performance was a nod the Braga old school: a gritty 1-0, eked out of minimal possession. But despite their inability to dominate the game, they finished with more — and better — chances the Andalusian side.

“I think we can can play much better than this”, conceded Domingos. “Four training sessions is nothing. We can improve. Everyone has their own style, and while the players understood some concepts, we can do more. But when you win, everything looks sweeter. We knew it would be a tough game because Málaga are a top side.

“This win gives us confidence, but now we have to think of the next one, then the next, then the next”.

Original article here on Eircom SportsHub