From Childhood Fan to Career Hopeful

For my final blog post I had the idea of writing a personal entry about my passion, and story in relation to Football. I will of course add in my final prediction of who I think will win the Champions League this season.

Growing up I never had much of talent for sports, although that did not stop my mom from taking me to tryouts for every sport she could think off.  It is hard to believe that I would end up having such a big passion for all sports in general, and wanting to build a career in this industry. Part of my love for sports generated from my relationships with both my grandfather and my cousin Sebastian. If you have not noticed up until now, I am a huge FCBarcelona fan, part of the reason I am such a huge follower of that club is because my grandfather was from Barcelona, Spain. I remember sitting quietly on his bedroom floor watching the games on TV, while he took a nap. He was a very wise and strict man, and always encouraged me to read, and expand my knowledge about the things I found interest in. As a result of his influence, when I was twelve I started reading sports journal that related to the team, and European soccer in general. It helped me make friends at school, and it felt great to know so much about sports, which is something the majority of kids that age where interested in.

I was never much of an athlete, but I had an easier time getting along with them. For example, growing up I always looked up to my older cousin Sebastian, we shared a passion for football, but he actually had the talent for it. My cousin’s story still inspires me today, he has always been a hard worker and did his best to go pro. He traveled to Europe for a year for tryouts, and survived on his parents teacher salary. He could not make it in Europe, but ended up getting a scholarship for football here in the U.S. He worked, trained, and studied hard to earn his opportunities. He is a hero in my eyes, and part of my passion for sports comes from his inspiration. It is also interesting to discover how much athletes struggle in their lives, and how much pressure they face in their lives. This generated my interest for Sports Psychology, specifically in relation to athletes. I want to understand what are the mindsets, habits, and personal motivations required that make the difference between becoming a professional athlete, and failing to reach top level.

Becoming a Superstar and reaching title glory

In this blog we have reviewed teams, players, and the media in the hopes of learning more about the European Football world. After analyzing some of the top teams, and their best players we can now make our final predictions of who we think will be crowned Europe’s best team by the end of the 2018/2019 season.

Hopefully you have red all of my past entries, and although the season is only on its half way point. We know by now about FCBarcelona’s struggles on the defensive side of the field, and if they are unable to keep a clean sheet, they will not win this competition. However, they have the best team on an individual level, they have world class players per position, and hopefully they will have all their injured players back, and on top level to face the decisive part of the season. FCBarcelona is my personal pick to win the title, if they are healthy and fix their mistake. Main rivals and defending Champs Real Madrid, still have a lot off issues up in the air, and although Real is known for their luck, and top performances in this competition. I fear that they have to many issues to fix in a short amount of time, but you should never leave the thirteen time champion for dead. The English teams are strong this season, but will they be able to perform against top competition in the head-to-head face of the tournament. The same goes for French giant PSG, they are a talented side, and full of world class players, but will that hold up against more experienced and top level teams. My second favorite to win is Italian side Juventus. They are dominating the local league, and new Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be getting better with age, and could carry yet another team to Champions League glory.  Finally, as this seasons surprise prospect I choose Borussia Dortmund. They are playing great football, and are leading the German league. The team looks energetic, dominant on the offensive side of the field, and will be hoping to take the Champions league by storm. Other than FCBarcelona, and Juventus, this is this team I would least like to face in the knockout rounds of the Champions League.

Introduction

In this week’s special edition of Arepa Football, readers will have the choice of picking who they think have been the best players in this first half of the European football season. Readers will choose between candidates for each position. For each player, we will have access to some their stats up until this point of the Champions league, and the players chosen in my own ideal line up. This special edition will help us know more about individual players, how important they are to their respective teams, and finally who is the team with the highest amount of players in the all star line up. All stats, and selections have been sourced from official competition websites.

The Champions League’s All star group stage line-up

GK (Goalkeeper) 

• Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus) –

Matches Played  (4)  Saves  (13) Claims (13) Punches (2) Goals Conceded (2) Clean Sheets (3)

• Ederson (Manchester City) –

Matches Played (4) Saves (6) Claims (8) Punches (0)Goals Conceded (3) Clean Sheets (2)

• Roman Burki (Borussia Dortmund)

Matches Played (3) Saves (15) Claims (12) Punches (2)Goals Conceded (2)  Clean Sheets (3)

RB (Right-Back) 

• Kyle Walker (Manchester City)-

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (11) Tackles (1) Clearances (2) Blocks (0) Passing Accuracy (91%) Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

• Thomas Meunier (PSG) –

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (18) Tackles (2) Clearances (6) Blocks (1) Passing Accuracy (79%) Goals (1) Yellow Cards (1)        Red Cards (0)

• Luke Shaw (Manchester United)

Matches Played (4) Balls Recover (19) Tackles (7) Clearances (14) Blocks (1) Passing Accuracy (88%) Yellow Cards (0) Red Cards (0)

CB (Center-Back)

• Gerard Pique (FC Barcelona)

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (22) Tackles (5) Clearances (8) Blocks (3) Passing Accuracy (90%) Yellow Cards (0) Red Cards (0)

• Aymeric Laporte (Manchester City) –

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (23) Tackles (3) Clearances (11) Blocks (3) Passing Accuracy (92%) Goals (1) Yellow Cards (0)         Red Cards (0)

• Matt Hummels (Bayern Munich)

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (29) Tackles (6) Clearances (14) Blocks (2) Passing accuracy (90%) Goals (1) Yellow card (0)           Red Card (0)

CB (Center-Back) 

• Lukasz Piszczek (Borussia Dortmund) –

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (21) Tackles (3) Clearances (6) Blocks (0) Passing Accuracy (84%) Yellow Card (0) Red Card (0)

• Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)-

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (23) Tackles (3) Clearances (6) Blocks (8)  Passing Accuracy (92%) Yellow Cards (0) Red Cards (0)

• Chris Smalling (Manchester United)

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (22) Tackles (0) Clearances (20) Blocks (2) Passing Accuracy (89%)  Yellow Card (0) Red Cards (0)

LB (Left-Back)

• Jordi Alba (FC Barcelona)

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (26) Tackles (3) Clearances (7) Blocks (1) Passing Accuracy (88%) Goals (1) Yellow Cards (0)        Red Cards (0)

• Alex Sandro (Juventus) –

Matches Played (4) Balls Recovered (14) Tackles (4) Clearances (6) Blocks (0) Passing Accuracy (87%) Yellow Card (2) Red Card (0)

RM (Right-Midfielder)

• Ivan Rakitic (FC Barcelona) –

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 333/364 (91%) Assists (2) Distance Covered (42 km) Tackles (2) Balls Recovered (25) Goals (1) Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

• Toni Kross (Real Madrid)

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 414/439 (94%)  Assists (1) Distance Covered (43.7 km) Tackles (0) Balls Recovered (20)      Goals (1) Yellow Card (1) Red Card (0)

CDM (Central Defensive Midfielder)

• Sergio Busquets (FC Barcelona) 

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 336/349 (96%) Assists (0) Distance Covered (42 km) Tackles (7) Balls Recovered (26) Goals (0) Yellow Card (1) Red Cards (0)

• Axel Witsel (Borussia Dortmund)

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 296/314 (94%) Assists (0) Distance Covered (44 km) Tackles (1) Balls Recovered (19)          Goals (1) Yellow Card (0) Red Card (0)

LM (Left-Midfielder)

• David Silva (Manchester City) –

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 211/249 (84%) Assists (0) Distance Covered (43.5 km) Tackles (2) Balls Recovered (14)      Goals (3) Yellow Cards (0) Red Cards (0)

• Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund)

Matches Played (4) Passing Accuracy 126/160 (76%) Assists (1) Distance Covered (44.8 km) Tackles (3) Balls Recovered (15)      Goals (1) Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

RW (Right-Winger)

• Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona) –

Matches played (2) Attempts (12) Passing Accuracy 128/148 (86%) Assists (0) Top Speed (30 km/h) Goals (5) Yellow Cards (0)              Red Cards (0)

• Paulo Dybala (Juventus) –

Matches Played (3) Attempts (11) Passing Accuracy (88%) Assists (0) Goals (4) Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

• Kylian Mbappe (PSG)-

Matches Played (4) Attempts (12) Passing Accuracy (74%) Assists (2) Top Speed (32km/h) Goals (2)  Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

ST (Striker)

• Harry Kane (Tottenham)

Matches Played (4) Attempts (17) Passing Accuracy (79%) Assists (0) Matches Played (29 km/h) Goals (4) Yellow card (1) Red Cards (0)

• Edin Dzeko (ROMA)

Matches Played (4) Attempts (20) Passing Accuracy (71%) Assits (2) Top Speed (29 km/h) Goals (5) Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

• Antoinne Griezzman (Atletico Madrid)

Matches Played (4) Attempts (9) Passing Accuracy (76%) Assists (1) Top Speed (29 km/h) Goals (3) Yellow card (0) Red card (0)

LW (Left-Winger) 

• Neymar JR (PSG)

Matches Played (4) Attempts (15) Passing Accuracy (78%) Assists (0) Top Speed (31 km/h) Goals (3)  Yellow Cards (1) Red Cards (0)

• Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli)

Matches Played (4) Attempts (12) Passing Accuracy (79%) Assists (0) Top Speed (29 km/h) Goals (3) Yellow Cards (0) Red Cards (0)

• Philippe Coutinho (FC Barcelona) –

Matches Played (4) Attempts (17) Passing Accuracy (90%) Assists (2) Top Speed (29 km/h) Goals (1) Yellow Cards (0) Red Car (0)

My Team

Goalkeeper:

• Roman Burki (Borussia Dortmund)

Defense

RB: Kyle Walker (Manchester City)

CB: Gerard Pique (FCBarcelona)

CB: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)

LB: Jordi Alba (FCBarcelona)

Midfield

RM: Toni Kross (Real Madrid)

CDM: Sergio Busquets (FCBarcelona)

LM: David Silva (Manchester City)

Forwards

RW: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)

ST: Harry Kane (Tottenham)

LW: Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli)

 

 

 

As the European season heads into November, we can start predicting who will be heading into the winter break at the top of their respective leagues, and who will be heading into the champions league last 16. Teams from the top 5 leagues in Europe will be hoping to insure a top spot in their league table, and a place in the knock out stages of the Champions league. With two more matches left in the champions league, and half a dozen league games left for each team, the race is on for this season’s major titles.

Competitive Spanish sides are expecting a 3-1 result in their champions league Assault.

According to LaLiga’s official website, the league table is showing FCBarcelona at the top of the table with 24 points from a 7-3-2 record. Sevilla in second place with 23 points from a 7-2-3 record; followed by Atletico Madrid in third with 23 points and a 6-5-1 record, but they are only behind on goal difference. The game that will probably define the winter champion in Spain, will be the match between first place FCBarcelona, and third place Atletico Madrid. Although, with the point differential being so small between the top six spots, anything can happen between now and December 22nd. The Spanish league is severely competitive this season, and it will definitely be a close race at the half way point of the 2018/2019 season. In the Champions League, according to the official UFFA website, Spanish teams are having successful results, FCBarcelona is the only team to qualify to the last 16, with two matches still to go. Real Madrid is second in their group, and despite their bad form, their new coach seems to have recuperated his teams spirit after a 0-5 win in match day 4. Atletico Madrid is tied for first with German team Borussia Dortmund in their group, and will either take first or second depending on who the last to matches left in the group stage. Unfortunately, not all Spanish teams in the Champions league will have an easy road into the last 16. Valencia CF is currently in third place in their group, and will have to play against Italian league leaders Juventus, and Manchester United in their last two group stage matches.

The Italian teams are all starving for European glory after years of being overshadowed.

According to ESPN, in Italy there is a clear favorite to head into the winter as league leader, and that is Juventus who has one of the best records in football (11-1-0). Undefeated, and six points clear of second place Napoli; Juve have demonstrated to be one of the best sides in Europe. Other Italian sides, like Napoli, Roma, and Inter Milan have shown top skill, and are a threat to any team in Europe. Their results in the Champions league are a clear representation of that fact, UEFA shows that both Juve and Roma are leading their respective highly competitive groups. Roma will fight for first in their group against a reinvigorated Spanish giant Real Madrid, and Juvetus is beating out both Valencia CF, and Manchester United. Both Napoli and Inter Milan have also shown resilience in their groups, currently placing in second in their highly competitive groups. Napoli is beating out PSG for second in their group, but this is also the tightest group in the tournament; anything can happen in the last two matches, and at least one top club (PSG, Napoli, and Liverpool) will be leaving the league early. Inter has also shown great football in their group, and have to only get a draw against English side Spurs to guaranty second place in their group, and a spot in their last sixteen.

My Prediction for Last 16

Group A:

1. Dortmund
2. Atletico Madrid

Group B:

1. FC Barcelona
2. FC Internazionale Milano

Group C:

1. Napoli
2. PSG

Group D:

1. FC Porto
2. FC Schalke 04

Group E:

1. FC Bayern Munchen
2. AFC Ajax

Group F:

1. Manchester City
2. Lyon

Group G:

1. Real Madrid
2. Roma

Group H:

1. Juventus
2. Manchester United FC

Sources

https://www.laliga.es/en/laliga-santander

https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2019/standings/

http://www.espn.com/soccer/standings/_/league/ita.1

 

 

Introduction

Since the dawn of mediated sports, journalism has tried everything to get a peek behind the curtain in every level in sports. From world renowned Franchises and federations, to sponsors and players, the inside scoop is worth a lot to those who break the stories. Normally, something like a scandal would be detrimental to a player, a franchise, or even a federation. However, in today’s media based world, any publicity is good publicity. The more your name is on the news, the more marketable and recognizable your brand is. The media takes advantage of any type of story that would help them sell papers, and reach audiences no matter the subject line. In European football, it is none different, and even though the US sports media market has a strong hold on what audiences see. The rest of the world is focused more on the black and white ball sport. Around the world, sports journals live off what happens in these European football matches.  There are journals that are based in a city like Barcelona, for example “SPORT” and “Mundo Deportivo”, who are primarily focused, and live off of their base cities team FCBarcelona. On the other hand, you can also find news on FCBarcelona on the front page of the Venezuelan sole sports newspaper, “Meridiano.” Any type of story, whether it is a scandalous night out from a famous player, or a brand new sponsorship deal between a famous club and company, or even a fake transfer rumor, can provide the daily bread for many media sources world wide.

Top Player’s Fight with the press is a huge Hypocrisy

The world of football is full of fake transfer rumors, one quarter of the year the media is full of rumors that Messi is leaving FCBarcelona, and by the end of the season he is signing a renewal. Around a story related to a top player like Messi, you can find many parties with opposing views looking to capitalize on the rumors surrounding the player . Messi himself benefits from the increase in publicity, media share, and it also serves as way to pressure either his home club to give him a better contract, or for the opposing team to increase their offer. Newspapers, can either support the rumor, or deny it in order sell papers, and both franchises can pressure their local media to deny or promote said rumors. People usually do not look underneath the head lines, and gossip, and realize that there is always an ulterior motive. In this season, the big rumor that is selling papers, is the rumors surrounding young media superstar Neymar JR. Neymar left FC Barcelona, to play at French top club Paris SG, but Spanish media is full of stories saying that the player regrets his decision to leave Spanish club. Both journals based in Madrid, and Barcelona are releasing stories that promote these rumors, hoping that the young star will return to Spain. Meanwhile in France these rumors are mostly denied, although the Brazilian star is criticized by many french journalist. Neymar himself is playing both fronts, one week he is posting pictures all over Paris expressing his love for the city, and the next he visits his old teammates in Barcelona. Players are highly critical of journalist and the stories they release, but meanwhile all parties are benefiting. Expert readers know, that only official statement by the franchises are valid proof of a transfer, everything else serves as a sells strategy.

Next Week we will go back to reviewing the Champions League, as we start to get a better picture of who will be heading into the knockout rounds…

A Historical Rivalry

This weekend we were treated to one of the most famous events in all of sports. Many of these legendary showdowns have rivaled huge spectacles such as the world cup final, the hundred meter dash final in the Olympics, and the Super Bowl in terms of viewership and media attention. “El Clasico” is the top match in terms of club football, where the two top teams in the world FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid face each other in the biggest rivalry in all of sports. Rival cities and their respective teams meet at least twice a season in Spanish league matches. These two games are critical in the hunt for the title, and have been the difference between champ and runner up in multiple  Spanish league seasons. The rivalry goes back by more than a century, “Real” was the best team in the 20^th century and grew to be the dominant one out of the two clubs. However, “Barca” was blessed with its golden generation in the late 00’s right at the social media boom. Barcelona was able to gain some ground in both results and market share. For this season’s first “El Clasico”,  Madrid traveled to the Camp Nou in the hopes of turning their bad start of the season around, but they would not expect the nightmare result at the end of the 90^th minute.

An end to the Three Time Champion 

It was a Beautiful Sunday evening in Barcelona this past weekend, and the best players in the world where ready to step on to the field, and show the world why they play for the best two teams in the world. Unfortunately, the weeks leading up to the match where anything but glamorous from “Los Blanco’s” perspective. Barcelona was the clear favorite to win after earlier that week they showed incredible skill against Inter Milan in the Champions League. While on the other end, Madrid struggled in their match against Viktoria Pilsen in their 2-1 victory. After weeks of struggle, Madrid’s Manager Lopetegui’s job was practically sentenced, unless he was able to pull off a win at the Camp Nou. As the starting whistle blew, the game quickly favored Barcelona, and in their traditional style they kept the ball the majority of the match. Barcelona scored two quick goals in the first half, and it was evident to see that Real was only going to drop deeper into their abyss. However, Madrid was able to fight back with a Marcelo inside the box goal, and give Madrid a fighting chance. Luck would not be on their side, as they missed two key chances to tie the game. Barcelona would take advantage of Madrid’s poor run of  form, and striker Suarez would end up scoring two more goals, followed by a cap off header by Arturo Vidal. The game ended in an embarrassing  5-1 defeat, the crisis in Madrid only grows deeper and they announced the sacking of Manager Lopetegui this Monday Morning.

The European season has started out with some of the tightest competition we have seen in years. Contrary to last season, when the top 5 leagues had a clear favorite, and predictable champion; this season big teams are struggling to dominate their domestic leagues. Last year’s champs are having a hard time matching the results that had them on top of their respective leagues by this point in the season. FC Barcelona (2017/2018 Spanish Champion) is currently in 2nd place with a 4-3-1 record. Manchester City (2017/2018 English League Champion) is in a three way tie for 1st place with both Chelsea and Liverpool. In Germany last years champion Bayern is struggling in 6th place with a 4-1-2 record. Meanwhile, in both Italy and France usual champions Juventus and PSG, have both won all their domestic league games with records of 8-0, and 9-0 respectively.

Spanish Capitals Under Siege

Spain is home to the best football league in the world, at least in terms of the game’s quality, and the talent that they have. This is mostly attributed to the success of the two most recognized football clubs in the world, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. Both Spanish champs have collectively won 10 out of 20 champions league titles in 20 years. The Spanish league is known for the monopoly both these clubs have on the league title, with a few exceptions since the the start of the 21st century (Real Deportivo in 2000, Valencia in 2004, and Atletico Madrid in 2014). This year both Real and Barca have started the season on the wrong foot. Barcelona is struggling defensively and has not won a league match in four fixtures, and Real Madrid is having mayor struggles all over the field and are desperate to escape their current losing streak. Other clubs like Sevilla, and Atletico Madrid have taken advantage of the situation to keep the race for the Spanish League tight and competitive. However, if you are a Barcelona fan you shouldn’t worry to much, despite them not being able to keep a clean sheet and defense having trouble reaching top level; their offense is scoring plenty and as long as they fix the defense the team will surely be on top of the league by December. Meanwhile, I wouldn’t be too optimistic about Real Madrid, they too are having trouble in the back, but the difference is that Real cant seam to score, and that reflects that there are problems all over the field. This promises to be one of the most exiting seasons in Spain as both top two clubs are struggling, and smaller teams are finding ways to beat bigger clubs any week of the season.

The Premier League is back to being The Premier League

The English league has always been known for being the most competitive league in Europe. Historical underdog stories like Leicester City’s title glory in 2016 and Blackburn Rovers title in 95 has kept English giants humble, and made the Premier a highly competitive and anything is possible type of league. However, all that changed last season when a bald headed bad tempered genius secured 100 points in his teams league title season. Manchester City, was completely dominant over its competition, thanks to its world class roster, and world class manager Pep Guardiola. They broke the record, for the best result in English league history. Much of the excitement that the Premier league brings, comes from the fact that any club can beat any club any given match day. Despite, bigger clubs like Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Tottenham having an advantage in quality over other clubs in the English league. The overall quality and game style gives any team a shot at the title. However, the bigger clubs are getting bigger, and the competition is starting to heat up at the top. Both Chelsea and City have won titles in the last two seasons, and are both tied for first with Liverpool. Liverpool have been close to ending their Premier league curse in the last few seasons, securing a spot in the top 4 in the last couple of seasons. Tottenham as well have been close to winning the title, but have fallen just shy of the title in the last few seasons. Meanwhile, both Arsenal and Manchester United who were top of the league in 00′ are having a hard time rebuilding their respective teams, and bringing them back to their former glory. The English league will always surprise us and keep us at the edge of our seats, hopefully the dominance shown by City last year will not be a usual thing.

Tyranny in France, Italy and …  Oh wait, what is going on in Germany?!!

All three of these nation’s domestic leagues complete the list of the top 5 European football leagues. Historically, all three leagues have competed and presented championship winning teams that have taken down both Spanish and English juggernauts. However, all three leagues struggle to keep up in terms of popularity and European success with the English and Spanish league teams, respectively. The French’s La Ligue 1 is the smallest of all top five leagues, and is dominated by Parisian club PSG. PSG is heads above any other French club, and is always favorite to win every year, with only Monaco to give them some competition, but they are nowhere near the Oil financed super team. In Italy, there is more competition and a higher quantity of top level clubs; teams like Inter Milan, AC Milan, Roma, Napoli, Juventus, and Lazio have historically kept the Calcio A competitive. However, since 2012 it has been dominated by only one team, Juventus. Juve has won the league title 7 years in arrow, and are not expected to stop their run of success any time soon, especially not this season after the arrival of CR7 and a 8-0 record to start the season. Meanwhile, in Germany a similar story has been going on with giant Bayern Munich. Bayern has won 7 league titles since 2010, including 6 in arrow in the last few season, this power house team is always favorite to win. However, the rest of the German League has had some great teams throughout the years, Wolfsburg, Borusia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Mochengladbach, Bayern Leverkusen, have kept the league competitive, and in years that Bayern have struggled they have taken advantage to make a run at the title. This year Bayern is having a hard time keeping up their usual dominance, with an ageing team and new manager at the helm they will have a hard time reaching top level. Meanwhile, Dortmund, and other German elite clubs are taking advantage an are leaving Bayern behind at 6th place. The question is will this last the whole season.

Tune in next time as we take a break from reviewing clubs, and focus in on a list of top players as they travel to their home countries for the International team break…

Group Stages 2nd Fixture (Spain)

As we head into the second match date in the Champions league, two huge teams will be looking to get out of their current rut. The Champions league stage has been known to bring out the best in struggling teams. However, both Real Madrid, and FCBarcelona will have to face tough opposition away from home in this coming fixture.

Bad luck in “La Casa Blanca”

Real has been struggling to find good form since the beginning of the season. Offensively they are facing big problems, as the strive to compensate for the loss of Ronaldo’s fire power. Manager Lopetegui is struggling to make this team work, and add the fact that main offensive players like Gareth Bale, and Isco are injured and may be out for a few months; things do not look good for Real. For the upcoming match in against CSKA Moscow, Real will have to substitute players all over the field. Their starting defensive right side is out on injury, including captain Sergio Ramos, and regular Marcelo. Dani Ceballos who has been struggling to find first team minutes, will have a huge test in Russia. In offense, losing Bale who was one of the few players that seemed to be at top form in this last weekend’s 3-0 away loss against Sevilla, is an even bigger hit to “Los Blanco’s” chances in this match. However, the talent is there, but whether or not they make it work would have to wait until game day. Hopefully new signings and young prospects, Mariano and Vinicius Jr will be able to fill in Madrid’s offensive struggles. These young players, have to see it as a chance to make a name for themselves on the team, on the pitch, and on the biggest stage in European Football.

The Return of the Messi “Dependencia”

No matter how good your starting line up is, the difference between having Messi on or off the pitch is impossible to go unnoticed. Whether you are watching a Barcelona match for the first time, or for the hundredth; “La Pulga’s” effect on the game cannot be missed. However, Barcelona’s dependence on this player is a double edged sword. As he has grown older, Messi cannot sustain the same amount of matches he used to when he was in his early and mid 20’s. There are moments in the season when he must be benched, or left out of the match in order to save his energies for the important part of the season. However, in his time at Barcelona, the team has tended to under perform in his absence, something that presents a big problem as he grows older. “Los Cules” have had a hard time finding a way to play at top level without their main superstar on the pitch. As they fly to London to face Spurs in their second match in the Champions league, a big question mark is hanging over their heads. What will they do if Messi is injured? Whether he gets hurt or not is unpredictable, and depending only on him to lead the way is a huge risk. In the last couple of matches, Barcelona players have struggled to create clear chances without the involvement of Messi. Other big names on the pitch like Luis Suarez, are being pressured by the media to step up their game. Suarez hasn’t scored away from home in the Champions League since 2015. Hopefully a win at Wembley Stadium against Spurs, will get them back on the right path.

 

Tune in next week as we review the results from this weeks Champions League games, and look into another top team’s chances of becoming Europe’s Next king…

“THE BEST”

Well its official the world has spoken, the number one football player for the 2017/2018 season is… (Drum Role please) …Luka Modric!!! La “Bruja” who is both the number 10 for Real Madrid, and the 2018 World Cup runner up Croatia, has been crowned “The Best” which is FIFA’s official title for the best player of the season. Saying that the Croatian did not deserve the title is unfair. Many coaches, and top players have come out to say that Lionel Messi was the true winner of the title, due to him being the top scorer in Europe last season, winning both the Spanish league and cup titles, his skills, and his contributions to Barcelona during the season. However, failing to reach the Champions Leagues Semi-Finals, and Argentina losing to France in the last 16 of the world cup; resulted in him falling short of the top three players in the world for the first time in a decade. “The Best” is selected by the managers, and captains of every national team in the world, and fans who are registered in FIFA.com can vote for who they think was the number one player of the season. Although, this award has been under heavy speculation due to the fact that many critics, professional players , managers, and journalist agree that the award is not given to the best, or most successful individual player of the year. For many reasons this is true, the first one is that the award is usually biased towards offensive players, a second reason is the pressure that comes from sponsors, and a third an final reason is that the player with the highest stats should be the one crowned as the best, but is not. A counter argument for this point, would be that a player should not only be individually successful, but bring success to his team as well. In Modric’s case he was crucial in taking Real Madrid to winning the Champions league, the Club world cup, and helping Croatia reach the world cup Final. He was crowned the best player of Europe, the club world cup, and the world cup. He was without argument the most successful individual player in the 2017/2018 season.

Yet why do experts insist on Messi, well Leo is by far the most skilled player on any football field, and he had an amazing year. However, he only had success in Spain, and in main events like the Champions league and the world cup he had no such luck despite his great talent and effort. Both Cristiano Ronaldo, and Mohamed Salah who where voted into the top three, had lower stats than Messi, but made it farther into the Champions league, Ronaldo who ended up winning it for Real Madrid next to Luka Modric. Modric had success in every competition he played in, which gives him an overall success rate that is higher than any other player in Europe. “The Best” ends up going not to the player with the highest stats, but to the player who had the highest level of success throughout every competition he played in.

Liverpool Football Club

The “Reds” will be hoping to continue their success trend in the last few seasons, after world famous manager Jurgen Klopp joined the club three seasons ago. The German coach has brought back Liverpool to the top level, reaching both a Champions League Final, and a Europa League Final in the last couple of seasons. As well as, keeping Liverpool in the top 4 teams in the English Premier League for the last two years. Last season fans were treated to a Champions League final, and the famous “You will never walk alone” song, was sung by Liverpool fans in the stands of Cardiff the day of the final. However, luck would not be on their side as they fell to Real Madrid, thanks to a bicycle kick goal from Gareth Bale, and a couple of mistakes from the Liverpool keeper Karius. Despite last seasons disappointing loss to Madrid, Liverpool look as good or even better than last season. Their attacking trio, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, and Roberto Firmino is the fastest counter attaching offense in Europe. Clearly one of the most dangerous sides in Europe, they are a challenge to any team. They recently opened up their Champions league season, beating french giant PSG. However, their problems lie in the defensive side of the field, which caused them problems last year; but if they can stay healthy and with improvements made during the summer; Liverpool can have serious chances off repeating their European success from last season.

Next Week we will be looking at German club Bayern, as well as a special list and short description of the Top 10 players in Europe…

As the starting day of Champions League Football ends, we start to see the first glimpses of what aspires to be an exiting season. Lionel Messi opened up his champions league season with a stunning hat-trick, which helped Barcelona gain their first win in their group stage. Including a beautiful free-kick to open up the score board. The first bar is set, and Barcelona have started off on top level. Meanwhile, French giant PSG were shocked by Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in an exiting 3-2 thriller, last years runner-up seems to be hungry for more glory. In other news, one of today’s top matches between Inter Milan, and Spurs ended with a comeback victory for the Italian side led by striker Icardi. Inter takes the advantage in their race for a spot in the last-16. Knowing Catalan giants  FCBarcelona will be hard to knock out of first place in their group, today’s win against Spurs was crucial. The bonus surprise of the day, was a great response to the drama between Atletico Madrid, and Real Madrid, as “El Cholo’s” team beat french side Monaco. I’m sure “Los Blanco’s” captain wont be happy to see city rivals light up the champions league stage, after his harsh declarations against optimistic French superstar Griezmann. As we wait to see what happens in tomorrow’s games, we continue reviewing the top prospects, and try to predict who will be lifting up “La Orejona” in Madrid.

 

PSG

Paris has become the new world cup capital of football, at least for the next four years. As we all know, France was crowned champion of the world this past summer in Russia, and the city of lights celebrated their second world cup final triumph. Many superstars will be remembered forever after their victory in Moscow. Including, new prospecting legend Kylian Mbappe. The french Gazelle will be hoping to keep his world cup form this season, as he aspires to win his first champions league. Next to Brazil’s superstar Neymar and Uruguay’s striker Cavani, and with a staked team overall, Paris will be hoping to end their champions league curse this next season. For a team that is going to be used to winning week in and week out, considering their quality advantage over most of other French League teams. Today’s last minute loss against Liverpool will be a good lesson in humility, knowing very well that they cannot risk being over confident like last season. The champions league title is won in April not at the start of the season. Last season they were favorites to win, and the press was showering them with praise as they were expected to beat a supposedly struggling Real Madrid in the round of 16. However, things took an unexpected turn, and they ended up falling apart against “Los Merengues”, adding that to the rumors of conflict in the dressing room. This upcoming season we will be hoping to see a more mature version of Neymar, and a united PSG team.

Juventus

The old lady will be hoping to keep up the good work, and as the biggest club in Italy they have been dominant in the local league. However, clubs like Roma, Inter, Napoli, and AC Milan will always give Juve a run for their money. In Europe, they have had success and made it to the final a couple of times in the last few seasons. However, they have fallen to both Barcelona and Real Madrid. Yet nobody could have imagined the incredible deal that they would make this last summer. YES! for the total of 100mill euros, that is about 10% of what his total contract release clause was valued at before the deal. Cristiano Ronaldo was sold!!! To the Torino giants. A huge boost to the teams economy, and the shirt sales have gone through the roof thanks to the arrival of “El Portuguesh”.  Crish will take some time to get used to his new team, but such a hardworking and definitive player will surely benefit the team. Juve is usually really good in the air, an area where Ronaldo is on a standard of his own. His experience, work ethic and leadership will also serve young star Dybala in his quest to reach his top potential. An experienced defense, and a well balanced mid field will surely boost Juve into the last 8 if not more in this upcoming season.

Tune in next time to Arepa Futbol as we analyse the results of the first round of the group stage, and review a couple of the top English prospects for this upcoming season.

 

Who will be crowned Europe’s next Top Club 

TOP 5 Prospects

We are only a couple of weeks ahead of the start of the 2018/2019 season of Europe’s top football (Soccer) leagues. As players are flying back from their home countries after a successful, or disappointing… Croatia cough… Croatia… international team break; fans are exited to finally receive a couple of months of uninterrupted European soccer. With the Champions League group stages starting next week, the race is on to see who will be Europe’s next Champion. However, the top club’s players will have to face what is commonly called the “FIFA virus”, which is the fatigue that players suffer after a couple of weeks playing with their national teams. Europe’s elite especially suffer through this since they employ the best players in the world. Long hours of travel, and in many cases injuries can affect clubs in their pursuit to start of the new season well. Although, they will each have at least on league game, before facing the top tier in the Champions League. The question is, who looks the best at this point of the season to take the gold?Will it be thirteen time raining Champion Real Madrid? (God I hope not). Will it be star packed Barcelona? or one of the oil giants PSG and Manchester City? Or Can Italian juggernaut Juventus finally win a final with their new star man Cristiano Ronaldo… NOUUUU!!!?       …Probably not.

Here is how the top 5 prospects are looking ahead of the start of Champions league football, who will be crowned king of Madrid?

REAL MADRID 

Los Merengues head into a new season after experiencing some very sad (OH YEAAHHH!!!) events during the summer. Not only was the great white giant not able to buy a world class quality player during the summer transfer window, which is customary for “Los Blancos”, but they also received two very big blows to their roster. First, the big man himself, the so called “The Best”, the legendary, the great, the mechanical, unstoppable, remarkable, flippers best friend…  Cristiano Ronaldo!!! Has left the big house, and with not so much as a goodbye kiss from president Florentino. All fun aside, Ronaldo was Madrid’s primary superstar for almost 10 seasons at “El Bernabeu” stadium, and a big loss for Real. Add the fact that their GM for the last three years Zinedine Zidane also left the club, and you are stuck with a lot of problems to fix and no new solutions. However, Madrid fans will be far from unhappy after being crowned Europe’s best in four of their last five seasons, including three back to back to back Champions league titles. New Spanish born GM Julen Lopetegui, who had a successful yet dramatic experience with the Spanish national team, will hope to pick up things where they where left off. You could expect that loosing Cristiano would be severely detrimental to Madrid’s game, but in reality it opens up a world of possibilities. Madrid has staked up on a lot of young talent in the last few years, and if Lopetegui can bring out the best from young superstars like Marco Asensio, Isco, Lucas Vasquez, etc. While hoping that already experienced players, like resent world cup “Balon D’Ore” Luka Modric, captain Sergio Ramos, Toni Kross, Marcelo, can keep their fitness and game level; there is no reason to believe that Real will be less of contender to win their fourth straight title. Their real challenge is in the offensive side of the ball, they will have to depend on resent signings like Mariano, and Vinicius Jr, and super stars Bale and Benzema to try to fill the fifty goal a year whole that Cristiano left behind.

 

FC BARCELONA

There are very few arguments against saying that Barca is favorite to take it all this season. Not only do they have the GOAT, which in my opinion is the only argument you need, they also have worked to build the most star studded roster in Europe. After looking their best last season under manager Ernesto Valverde, if not for the slip up against Roma, they would have probably been favorites to take last years Champions league title home. However, their one weakness was that they relied to much on their starting players, and the players coming of the bench and reserves were not filling in the gaps during the regular season. This resulted in fatigue in the late, and decisive period of the season. They still won both an almost undefeated League title, and the Spanish Cup. Happy but unsatisfied with their results from last season, “Los Blaugranas” made sure to bring in new star signings Arturo Vidal, Arthur, Lenglet, and Malcolm to renew every line on the field. Not only are the new signings bringing fans hopes up, but the entire team is looking very strong, the likes of experienced players like Messi, Suarez, Pique, Jordi Alba, Rakitic, Sergio Busquets will be familiar dependable stars for “Los Cules”. Promising new and young players like Philip Coutinho, Dembele, and Nelson Semedo are now more adapted to Barcelona’s style of play and will surely be a force to be reckoned with this upcoming season. FC Barcelona are looking to be the favorites to win it all, unless of course they mess it up again like last season… Hopefully not, please.

In the next post we will look into JUVENTUS, MANCHESTER CITY, AND PSG…