La Liga

[pennywisealfie]

It was a nice win.

The black cat running around at the start was funny. Hopefully it's not a bad omen. Although, everything seemed to go very well in the match, besides Mascherano being sent off, which I believe he deserved. Clear red card.

Messi looked fantastic and I've been waiting for Munir to make his debut ever since I saw the Uefa Youth League final where he scored from halfway. The kid was a class above that day.

 

[Haffa]

This is what happens when you try to build a team of Galacticos...Remember what happened after they sold Makelele?

Alonso looking interchangeable in this scenario.

 

[Big Sam]

Indeed. There's an argument that they've sold the 'heavy lifters' in di Maria and Alonso and kept the showboaters.

 

[Bulldog Force]

:lol: and that's not even the best part. The best part was that they were up 2-0 after only 10 mins :lol:

 

[Tommy Smith]

Madrid have a lot of attacking quality.

They just need a couple of all-purpose midfielders to provide balance.

Anyone reckon they'll look to sign di Maria and Alonso? They both cover a lot of ground and would look great in that midfield!

 

[Bulldog Force]

Madrid have a lot of attacking quality.

They just need a couple of all-purpose midfielders to provide balance.

Anyone reckon they'll look to sign di Maria and Alonso? They both cover a lot of ground and would look great in that midfield!

What do you mean look to sign them? They both just left... why would they return?

 

[Tommy Smith]

Sarcasm.

 

[Bulldog Force]

Sarcasm.

Got it!

Hard to detect on the internet :lol:

 

[pennywisealfie]

They sold Alonso? That's Real Madrid done for a little while then He holds the team together.

 

[Bulldog Force]

A couple of amazing results in the Copa del Rey this morning...

Hercules 2 - 2 Eldense
La Hoya Lorca CF 2 - 2 Villanovense

*Eldense and Villanovense both won their games during penalty shootouts.
*Eldense and Hercules were 1-1 after regular time, Hercules scored in the 100th minute, and with 2 minutes left, Eldense equalised to send it into penalties which they won
*Villanovense were down 2-1, and then had 2 red cards against them. Down to 9 men against 11, Pajuelo scored an equalising goal in the 79th minute. Nothing else happened in regular or extra time, then Villanovense went on to win penalties.

2 teams coming from behind against all odds.

 

[Bulldog Force]

They sold Alonso? That's Real Madrid done for a little while then He holds the team together.

Yep. Greener pastures for him at Bayern!

 

[BunniesMan]

Real Madrid with 2 losses in a row. Including getting beaten by big brother Atletico yet again. Already 6 points behind Barca.

 

[Bulldog Force]

What made that loss for them even juicier was that there only goal came off a Ronaldo Penalty :lol:

 

[Bulldog Force]

Also Barca now the only team 3/3 after 3 rounds.

 

[pennywisealfie]

Not a bad win for Barca. We had lots of great chances to score but got it done in the end. Messis run for Neymars 2nd looked nice.

 

[The Charlatan]

Shit start for Bilbao this year. Looks like it's going to be one of those years where we win f**k all away from San Mames.

 

[BunniesMan]

Catalonia will have an independence vote in November. Could have dramatic repercussions for La Liga. It will weaken both RM and Barca.

 

[Big Sam]

Catalonia will have an independence vote in November. Could have dramatic repercussions for La Liga. It will weaken both RM and Barca.

It's funny when you think you're being an expert on something but end up looking like a pillock.

Indeed, Catalunya will have a vote, and indeed, there will likely be a 'YES' vote of over 60%.

But it makes diddly-squat difference because a. it's illegal under Spanish law, and b. for a referendum to be legal the entire country needs to vote on it and Catalan (and Basque) 'YES' votes will always be outweighed by the 'NO' votes by sheer population.

Scotland's second attempt at a referendum will be successful even before Catalunya has the legal possibility to gain independence (and that is another generation away).

 

[The Charlatan]

Catalonia will have an independence vote in November. Could have dramatic repercussions for La Liga. It will weaken both RM and Barca.

Why will it weaken RM & Barcelona? If anything if it were to proceed and the Basque Country followed suit it would weaken the La Liga as Real Sociedad, Bilbao (and to a lesser extent CA Osasuna,) Barcelona and Espanyol would split. There's four teams that feature in the top ten. Real Madrid would be virtually unchallenged in Spain, save maybe Atletico.

 

[BunniesMan]

It's funny when you think you're being an expert on something but end up looking like a pillock.

Indeed, Catalunya will have a vote, and indeed, there will likely be a 'YES' vote of over 60%.

But it makes diddly-squat difference because a. it's illegal under Spanish law, and b. for a referendum to be legal the entire country needs to vote on it and Catalan (and Basque) 'YES' votes will always be outweighed by the 'NO' votes by sheer population.

Scotland's second attempt at a referendum will be successful even before Catalunya has the legal possibility to gain independence (and that is another generation away).

If Spain doesn't allow it civil war will break out. Catalonia want independence far more intensely than Scotland wants it. We're talking 90+%. They won't allow for that kind of majority to be ignored.

Why will it weaken RM & Barcelona? If anything if it were to proceed and the Basque Country followed suit it would weaken the La Liga as Real Sociedad, Bilbao (and to a lesser extent CA Osasuna,) Barcelona and Espanyol would split. There's four teams that feature in the top ten. Real Madrid would be virtually unchallenged in Spain, save maybe Atletico.

Because their only significant opposition will be gone. No more Madrid-Barca rivalry. Much less interesting. 2 extremely boring leagues instead of just 1 slightly boring league. Their ability to compete in Europe will be hurt. They'll lose their global appeal.

Plus, 2 smaller leagues means it is harder for the 2nd tier teams to make it to europe as both leagues will slide in UEFA's rankings. Which means their already weak 2nd tier will get even weaker.