Braithwaite’s Barcelona dream turning into a nightmare

There’s been an awful lot going on at the Camp Nou just lately, with the Lionel Messi situation and the vote of no confidence for president, Josep Maria Bartomeu and his board hogging the headlines.

Everywhere you turn there’s something else for Barca’s long-suffering supporters to get hot under the collar about.

However, there’s one player that’s kept his own counsel. Continue reading

La Liga: Best 11 Players of Matchday 3

It’s officially the 3rd week of the Spanish season but this was the first game that Barcelona were involved in and they didn’t disappoint as they swathed aside Villarreal 4-0.

Champions Real Madrid came back from a losing position to stun Real Betis and win 3-2 in a very entertaining game. But the man taking all of the headlines will be Luis Suarez, who scored 2 goals for his new club Atletico Madrid as they crushed Granada 6-1.

Let’s take a look below at the best 11 players this past weekend, did any of them make your team?

Formation: 4-4-2

Goalkeeper: Norberto Neto- Barcelona 7pts

Credit need to be given to Norberto Neto who usually doesn’t get much game time for Barcelona. He joined last season but this was only his 3rd game for the club. Barcelona were clearly the superior team as they demolished Villarreal 4-0 but Neto still had a job to do and kept composed and got his clean sheet.

Defender: Jordi Alba- Barcelona 7pts

Jordi Alba was part of a defence that kept a clean sheet as Barcelona easily beat Villarreal 4-0 at home. Alba also assisted in Barca’s first goal of the game, and their first of the season and it was another solid game for him.

Defender: Xabier Etxeita- Getafe 5pts

Xabier Etxeita earned 5pt as he helped keep a clean sheet for his club Getafe as they drew 0-0 with Alaves, he is valued at just 3m and could be a bargain pick if he can keep up his performances throughout the season.

Defender: Clement Lenglet- Barcelona 5pts

Lenglet was criticised last season in an overall poor season that his club Barcelona had. Of course this wasn’t all his fault and the defender put in an assured performance as he helped keep a clean sheet in Barca’s win over Villarreal which they won 4-0.

Defender: Ruben Duarte- Alaves 5pts

Ruben Duarte put in a good shift at home as Alaves were able to pick up a point with a 0-0 draw against Getafe. It wasn’t the best of games but Duarte showed his qualities and made a few very good interceptions during the game. Because he was in minus points before, these 5pts have helped him and he now has a total of 4pts.

Midfielder: Angel Correa- Atletico Madrid 8pts

Atletico Madrid were superb in beating Granada 6-1 and Angel Correa was at the heart of the action in midfield. Correa assisted in 2 of the six goals and was a constant threat in his position. He is valued at 7.5m.

Midfielder: Unai Lopez- Athletic Bilbao 8pts

Unai Lopez had a great game in midfield for Bilbao and scored both of their goals grabbing the three points as Bilbao beat Eibar impressively away from home by 2-1.

Midfielder: Portu- Real Sociedad 6pts

Portu had a solid game as he opened the scoring for Real Sociedad and made brilliant use of possession in midfield. Sociedad went onto beat Elche 3-0 at the weekend. Portu is valued at 8.5m and has an overall score of 8 points so far this season.

Midfielder: Marcos Llorente- Atletico Madrid 6pts

A brilliant game for Marcos Llorente in midfield who scored Atletico’s 4th goal in their 6-1 win over Granada. He was all over the pitch- in a good way and it was no surprise in the end that he also assisted in another goal.

Striker: Luis Suarez- Atletico Madrid 10pts

What a debut for Luis Suarez who signed from Barcelona just a few weeks ago. Not only did he see his new team score 6 goals in their first league game of the season, he scored a brace. What made his debut more impressive is that he only came on for the last 20 minutes. He is valued at 15m.

Striker: Anssumane Fati- Barcelona 8pts

Anssumane Fati seems like a striker worth keeping an eye on, he had a very decent last season and has started this one in great form. He scored 2 of Barcelona’s 4 goals against Villarreal and they were the opening two goals which effectively killed off the game. At just 5m Fati looks a steal for a great bargain.

Player of the weekend: Luis Suarez- Atletico Madrid 10pts

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Koeman silences the doubters but bigger tests await Barcelona

It was, perhaps, one of the most keenly awaited debuts in La Liga for many a year.

After such a disastrous end to their last campaign, the football family wanted to know how the ‘new’ Barcelona would fare under Ronald Koeman.

It’s fair to say that the team did everything asked of them by their coach, and then some. Continue reading

La Liga: Best 11 Players from the Weekend: Matchday 22

Real Madrid beat Atletico in the Madrid derby to move 3 points clear of Barcelona who got a nervous win over Levante. Atletico have been underwhelming and this weekend looks to have put paid to their title. It’s a two horse race now between Real and Barca.

Let’s look at the 11 players who performed the best in La Liga at the weekend.

Formation: 4-4-2

Goalkeeper: Thibaut Courtois- Real Madrid 7pts

Only a few goalkeepers achieved 7 points at the weekend but our vote goes to Courtois because he was able to keep a clean sheet in the very important Madrid derby against a quality side.

Defender: Damien Suarez- Getafe 8 pts

Damien Suarez is having a very good season and he had a great game at the weekend as his side beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0. He kept a clean sheet and also scored a goal for a perfect weekend. Suarez would cost 7.5m to bring in.

Defender: Sergio Ramos- Real Madrid 5 pts

Sergio Ramos what more can you say about the quality of his defending. He kept a strong head too as he usually gets sent off in Madrid derbies and he help to keep a good clean sheet in 1-0 win.

Defender: Raphael Varane- Real Madrid 5 pts

Varane has a great chemistry with Ramos and it showed again, these two are world superstars and keeping a clean sheet ensured that Madrid are now top of the table. You can add Varane to your team for 8.5m

Defender: Djene- Getafe 5pts

Djene is doing very well at the back for Getafe keeping another clean sheet and also that is his 8th of the season and he is valued at just 5.5m so seems a real bargain.

Midfielder:Carlos Soler- Valencia 6pts

Carlos Soler was the highest scoring midfielder in La Liga in a strange weekend that saw few points for the midfield maestros of the league. Soler got the only goal as his side Valencia beat Celta Vigo 1-0.

Midfielder: Santiago Carzola- Villarreal 5pts

Cazorla earned 5 points and had a great game as Villarreal won their match 3-1. He assisted for the opener and then scored the 2nd goal through a penalty. But he dropped some points as he was booked late on.

Midfielder: Nabil Fekir- Real Betis 4pts

Betis drew 1-1 with Eibar and Betis have to thank Fekir for the goal. He has become a firm favourite with the fans, even if he is having a mixed season but maybe this goal will ignite his form and he may be worth taking on?

Midfielder: Ruben Jimenez-Villarreal 4pts

Ruben Jimenez earned another 4 points and he now has 13 in total and would cost only 5m, and could be a bargain if he has a strong finish to the league campaign.

Striker: Anssumane Fati- Barcelona 8pts

When Lionel Messi is not the hero for Barcelona someone else has to be and Fati has been superb this season, a real find. Barca beat Levante only by 2-1 but it was Fati who grabbed both goals. His value is sure to go up soon but he is currently just 5m.

Striker: Carlos Fernandez- Granada 6pts

Carlos Fernandez scored a goal and assisted in one just like his teammate so it was hard to split the players. But at the end of the day it was Fernandez’s goal that settled the game and won it 2-0 for Granada so he gets the nod. He has scored 4 goals this season.

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