El clasico final in Berlin?… to be or not to be?…

How are the chances of having “El Clasico” in the biggest scenario of football clubs, the UEFA Champions league?

We are about to find out, this week we will know which teams will meet in Berlin for the final. The last time I posted about El Clasico, it was the one Barcelona and Real Madrid played in La Liga, it finished with a victory from Barcelona. Although a mix feelings from Real Madrid’s fans, for some the team played with heart, for others a lost is a lost.

The Champions League sometimes can be predictable and sometimes it can surprise us, at this stage the four teams playing the semifinals are European football powerhouses, all have won the title before, some are more favorites than others but any of the four could reach the final.

For the past few CL seasons the idea of a Real Madrid- Barcelona final had been in the air, both teams reached semifinals in the last few season teasing all fans with a possible El Clasico final, but it did not happen, either both were eliminated, or only one of them advanced to the final like what happened with Real Madrid last season.

As soon as both were placed in different sides and facing different rivals this season some fans and the media started to dream with a final between these two arch rivals, let’s be honest that has a possibility of being one of those great and historic finals, but one thing is to dream about it and another one is the reality of both clubs.

So far Barcelona has half of the ticket to Berlin and most probably is about to get the other half in the next two hours, if Bayern can not pull out a comeback. RealMadrid has a complicated second leg on Wednesday after their 1-2 result in Italy vs Juventus. It’s interesting how many people thought that Real Madrid probably had better chances because Juventus were considered among the four semifinalist the one with fewer options, but at the end football can change from one game to another.

Just look at how things have shifted for both Barcelona and Real Madrid, the first one started the season with many doubts and in the middle of a weird relationship between Luis Enrique and Messi, but apparently all that is water under the bridge now, and they are having an incredible end of the season, the players form and their game have set them a part from the rest, they are probably the favorite, the MSN (Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar) are having the best end of the season. That is what could be called, good timing.

Barcelona- Bayern Munich in the papers was probably the match that everyone expected to be very  close and difficult, and it was for most part of the game during the first leg, but in three minutes Messi changed it all, now Bayern needs maybe not a miracle but close to that.

On the contrary Real Madrid went from the best team at the beginning of the season to be in the edge of a non title season. Iker Casillas is getting some heat from some fans, as well as the BBC (Bale, Benzema and Cristiano) not much love for them, specially for Bale and a little bit for Ronaldo, and since Benzema is injured, he is kind of on the safe. At this point, it all depends of what happens this Wednesday, it seems that they have said goodbye to La Liga after Saturday’s result, and now their only option is the Champions League, but Juventus is a tough rival, specially now that they have the result on their favor, they can defend pretty well that’s the Italian style.

Real Madrid seems to be under trouble waters, facing critics after the latest results, their timing couldn’t be worst, important players injured and others criticized by their fans.

Ancelotti needs to come up with a lineup that would cover the injury problems and the players need to have a good game, one of those magical Champions League nights at the Bernabeu, otherwise the dream of the eleventh (Undecima) will banish pretty fast and tougher times will come. Real Madrid is a club where fans expect victory all the time, that is the way it is. They either make it happen in the Champions League or they are heading to a very long and uncomfortable summer.

What is for sure is that we will be watching, many are praying to the Football gods to have that dream “El Clasico” final but for now let’s enjoy the excitement, nerves and nail biting that are Champions League Semifinals!!

Thank you for reading and let me know if you would like to see a Real Madrid – Barcelona final, or would you prefer other option?

Feel free to leave a comment here or on my twitter; @MonikJHerrera.

Pictures thanks to UEFA.com, noticiasaudio.com, ibetimes.com, bleachreport.net, sport.net, Real Madrid official Facebook. 

Expectations, Curiosities, Handshakes, Dj’s and Blankets… It’s all about Football!

Hello ♥!

The weekend is here, I was waiting for it so bad!…  It’s going to be a busy weekend, most European leagues are back after the International break, so the local battles are back too, lots of games and points to fight or defend and for some records to break. It should be interesting and hopefully fun!

Before submerge into the deep waters of the European league – ohh the ocean, with this cold weather I really miss you- but that’s not the point, back to submerge into the deep waters of every league lets look at some curious, funny and sometimes weird images and moments that this International break left us;

The Messi- Ronaldo show…

Let’s start with the highly anticipated friendly between Argentina and Portugal  at Old Trafford, which for everyone it was a Messi vs Crisstiano Ronaldo match, everyone expected them to play at their best, to challenge each other and to try to prove who is the best of the World… They only played one half and for many they weren’t  that impressive, it was one of those “expectations were higher than reality” kind of moment.

Anyhow what was interesting and funny was to see the incredible attention to every detail, move  or interaction both player had before, during and after the match :0, pictures, photos or analysis of how they look at each others, how strong was the handshake, who smile more, and many more things of that nature, it was just crazy but so enjoyable!!

And this story is to be continued…. 😉

The name game, Casillas or Casilla??

I know this is silly but it’s funny too, if for some reason during the match between Spain and Germany you missed the moment when Iker Casillas was substituted by Kiko Casilla you probably would have thought at some point, wait, what happened?, did the commentators are missing the “s” in Iker’s last name, but then you would have look at the TV and at Spain’s goalkeeper and think he doesn’t look like Casillas at all, unless you are familiar with La Liga which most of you probably are, but for the ones that are not, know that there is an Iker Casillas and a Kiko Casilla (no “s” at the end) and both are goalkeepers. Haa!! It can be confusing at times… Or maybe just anecdotic!

The weird note…

Goes to Xabi Alonso and his comments about Neuer being the best goalkeeper by far that he has ever played with,  emphasis in the “by far”, and how he deserves the Ballon d’or because he won the World Cup with Germany and the whole he is the best goalkeeper, comments that have created a big fuss because he just left Real Madrid and the comments are considered for some a direct attack o lack of support for Iker Casillas and Cristiano Ronaldo, of course you can support your new teammate but for many these comments are a little bit out of time or place, but hey he is free to express his opinion I guess, but oh boy he really stir the waters up!

The sad news;

There are many player that get injure during the International break when playing with their national team, so we wish them all a speedy recovery, specially to Luka Modric, he will be out around three-months according to the latest report. Get well soon Luka!

The introduction;

Let me introduce you to the Euro 2016 “Mascot”

Let’s conclude in our side of the pond;

Hard to understand if Mexico players  were getting ready to play or to have a pajama party! haha… They were trying to stay warm in this cold weathers! I like that they are kind of coordinated, and so into plaid! Fashion alert!!

The USA probably needed some blankets after their lost 1-4 vs Ireland, and most probably in need of a serious pajama party after picking the ball up from their goal fourth times! 😦 Ouch!

Let’s closed it with a famous DJ!! David Guetta wearing the Colombia national team jersey, a gift from James with an Instagram messages included!

I’m bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away…

I bet you started to sing… I did! 🙂

By the way if you are planning to watch the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the last race of the Formula 1 season and the battle for the championship between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg enjoy and I’ll probably be tweeting  during the race, I’ve been following F1 for some years now, but this season I’ve been so involved, that I am nervous  to know who will be the champion :O and I love it!!

Thank you for reading and stopping by, feel free to leave any comment. What do you think about the whole Xabi Alonso comments situation? or Who is the best Messi or CR7? Ha… Also we can talk on twitter, you can fin me @MonikJHerrera…

Have a great weekend!!

Besitos ♥!

Pictures thanks to As.com, Marca.com. Deportestelemundo.com, Univisiondeportes.com, goal.com and BBCSport.com

Hand full… of emotions at the World Cup.

Hola!!♥

Sunday football!!!

The fourth day of actions at the World Cup has ended, so far it has been an incredible tournament, full of great football stunning moments and surprises. Overall great first days, and this is just  the beginning,

Group E and F made their debut this past Sunday, first it was Switzerland vs Ecuador, then France vs Honduras and we ended the day with  the marquee match of the day; Argentina vs Bosnia-Heregovina. And that led us to one of the big questions; Is Messi ready to be the star of this World Cup?

We would find out in the next four weeks! But before talking about Sunday’s games, it’s time to review some of the events of past days…

“Oh My God”, this is the expression that I’ve been using describe the past days. We already covered the Opening ceremony and first day of actions with Brazil wining their game, referee controversy included… So let’s move on.

This is how Day two went down:

If I try to find words that would describe  what happen on day two of the World Cup, these are very appropriate to what we witness: Incredible, Unbelievable and Surprising.

Good Vibes

Mexico left good vibes in their first match, a lot of people expected them to struggle more base on the awful qualifying process they had, remember they made it to play-off only thanks to that U.S goal, and barely made it to Brazil’s plane. Miguel Herrera Mexico’s head coach has done a great job, the team not only  looked good on the pitch but they also score and won their game, even when the referees had a different plan for them. Two disallowed goals for the Mexican team, both were legal and should have counted in the final score.  Well the good thing for Mexico was that they didn’t let those bad calls impact their game and concentration, into the second half Oribe Peralta scored the 1-0 for them and somehow fix the embarrassment that were the referees decisions.  Final result. Mexico 1-0 Cameroon and the 3 points. They closed Group A actions.

This is how this Group looks after first Matches.

The Debacle;

Later that day it was time for the defending champions to take the pitch in the debut of Group B,  and Ohh. My. God!!!!  You wouldn’t believe what was happening unless you were watching it, it was like being in a parallel world.  Spain vs The Netherlands, a rematch of 2010 World Cup final, Holland a chance of revenge from their  2010 final defeat.  People say revenge is better served on a cold plate, well that’s how the whole Spanish team and country felt after the final whistle, Frozen, and not we couldn’t Let it Go… 😉

Spain started well, playing like Spain, they were controlling the midfield, the pace and possession, they were awarded with a penalty kick after Costa felt inside the box, a bit controversial nonetheless but anyhow Xabi Alonso scored to put La Roja up 1-0 and at that moment it was business as usual and nobody even imagined what was coming; the Debacle… It all started with Robin Van Persie’s flying header, a play that has earned him a new nickname “The Flying Dutch” 😉 hehe… It was an incredible goal, and so far the best in the tournament, and on top of that it was a game changer for The Netherlands.  We went into half time thinking oh boy Van Persie and Van Gaal needed to practice the high-five, or avoid it at all…

Fail High-Five hehe

The teams came back to the pitch to start the second half and then the most surprising thing happened; The Spanish Meltdown, it was hard to watch, first Robben scored a nice goal and left the Spanish defense in confusion, and apparently they couldn’t get out of that stage, what a revenge from Robben, we all remember he missed two good chances in last World Cup final, and one of those misses could have given them the championship, a hard feeling to overcome, but I guess four years kind of give you the time to not only overcome those moments but to come back and crush your  rivals.

The third  goal was the beginning of Iker Casillas’ nightmare and worst performance in his career, the goal came from a fault that Stefan Vrij finish with a header,  he missed  it on the air, ok we can argue he was fault by Van Persie which I think he was, but anyway Vrij scored, then the fourth was an awful mistake, those that you never thought Casillas was capable of doing, but he is human…

I meant he made a hugh error in the Champions League final , we all saw it, it was bad but it was kind of bad decision to go on the air, but the fourth goal in this match, he just gave the ball to Van Persie, completely out of focus and bizarre, like one of those football bloopers we have seeing before from other less experience goalkeepers, I felt so bad, I am softy and he has been an incredible goalkeeper, for many years he was the best and his resume is more than impressive, so seeing him in that .situation was so  sad and incredible weird. Robben made the fifth goal to kill the Spanish team, Worst lost of a current Champion in World Cup history.

 Spain have been in this situation before, they lost their first game on 2010 World Cup, but this time was different, not only they lost the match but they lost it  by five goals and the way they play that second half it just impossible to explain, they couldn’t respond when they were down and couldn’t find an answer or a way to come back, awful defense, Ramos and Pique were completely lost, and the whole team was slow and without that hunger to fight until the last-minute.

All the media in Spain are still trying to find out the answer to the million dollar question, what happened?

Some of those answers go from this is the end of an era, it’s time to renew the team and make some big changes, some players already hit their national team clock, or they have won everything that they might not have the same desire to keep wining, to the less football relate answers like it was the climate, training in a cold weather and playing in hot conditions, among other not relate answers.

The truth is that they play bad football (soccer) in that second half,  lack concentration, tiredness, less hunger or whatever you want to called it, it was a humiliating lost for them and it would be interesting to see if they can comeback from this defeat, I certainly would like to see it, for the good of their legacy, you can’t end an era in such an awful way.

On the other hand, The Netherlands got their revenge even if they said they didn’t want that, you can see it, they really wanted to change the image they left in that final (I called them ninjas in my 2010 World Cup final post) and well…. Mission accomplished, they left a good impression, very organized, great strategy from Van Gaal and great performance from their team powerful players, Van Persie, Robben, Sneijder and company.

As expected, not so much;

Last match of day two, was Chile vs Australia, the result was according to what people expected but it wasn’t an easy win for Chile,  the Socceroos as the Australia national team are known, gave them a good fight, Tim Cahill who plays for the NY Red Bulls scores the goal that equalized the match before Chile took the advantage, not before struggling with some plays from the Australian team. Final score Chile 3-1 Australia, wasn’t as easy as the result might reflect. This match closed the actions of group B.

This is how Group B looks after first match.

Overall it was a day full of emotions, believe me I was exhausted at the end and still in disbelief of what had happened to Spain but happy for an incredible tournament,  this is why we love the World Cup, crazy and surprising things can happen at any time, dreams are accomplish and sadly some are crush. To think that these are only the first matches is very promising and we all hope that the level of the competition will only  increase…

What do you think about Spain, what can the do to fix this, Del Bosque should bench Iker or what changes he needs to do, if you have any idea let me know in the comments, or on twitter @MonikJHerrera  I like to tweet a lot haha. ;0 my secret weakness…

Thanks for reading! I hope you are enjoying this World Cup as much as I am haha, I am loving it so far, a lot of quality, lots of goals, emotional games, celebration and colorful stadiums… we can not ask for more, or maybe 😉

I leave you with some of the curious, funny or weird pictures of the day two of the World Cup!

See you soon!

Besitos!♥

Pictures thanks to Marca.com, FIFA.com, and random pictures on Twitter and Tumblr.com

From the dream to the Reality of LA DECIMA!

   Hello hello! ♥

The day has arrived!! Wohoooo…. Yes you know what I am talking about, The World Cup,  just the freaking best tournament of the whole world!!

As you can see or read I am more than happy, thrill, excited… I can go on with all the emotions that every human being that love this sport is feeling at this moments. It’s a matter of hours and then Brazil will kick off!

But before getting into the most amazing tournament, I feel I have to close some open topics in this blog. First I am the worst blogger in the world (probably… I still love myself hehe) I’ve been absent from the blogosphere for a long time, I didn’t realize how long I haven’t written in my blogs until a couple of weeks ago, times flies people, specially when you are facing some challenges and some re-organization in your life… hand up that’s me.

I have so many ideas and new projects but before come up with those I went thru  sickness back to health and  personal stuff that needed my attention and also distracted me for blogging… I felt the need to let you  know why this long absent.

Anyway back to what is important in this world; “Futbol” “Fpotball” ” Soccer”

Let’s start!

Pictures speak louder than words… or something like that haha

The picture below was posted on Iker Casillas’s official Facebook  on April 30, 2013, it represented the sentiment of that day, Real Madrid was left out of the biggest scenario at a Club level, they were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League in Semifinals for the fourth consecutive season.

The tears from Iker Casillas and Ramos from that day were of sadness and disappointment.  But then just a season later on May 24th 2014 ohh boy how things changed, in the pictures below the tears were of relief at first and then total happiness!!

Totally understandable after  the most crazy if not the craziest game in terms of emotions… The nerves were at the highest level,  Atletico de Madrid were wining the match  up until the 90 minute, even the players on the bench or at the stands were getting ready to celebrate, then  the referee added five more minute of stoppage time, which for a lot of people was too much,  for others was appropriated, but controversy aside, back into the game at the 2:50-3:00 minute mark the miracle for Real Madrid happened in the name or more to say in the head of Sergio Ramos, with an incredible header goal that brought Real Madrid back to life and allowed the game to go on extra time…

Half of the stadium went crazy, it was insane for Real Madrid fans who thought that La Decima was slipping away, but Ramos brought back  the most amazing feeling for a football (soccer) fan, insanely special happiness, they were alive again and they had 30 minutes to change the course of the match…

In the other side for Atletico was the worst that could happened to them, they were almost lifting the Cup and suddenly after all the effort it was now back to starting point, but  with tired bodies and legs and they just simple couldn’t keep it up…  The fans were in disbelief and the sadness, tears were starting to show up in some faces. The dream of accomplish an epic deed, two titles La Liga and The Champions League was now far way, from heaven to hell in one minute, once again the Champions League just couldn’t happen for them.

Real Madrid were obsess with La Decime even if they were trying to diminish the feeling everyone knew that being that close made it all more real and the obsession was at the highest, all Real Madrid fans had been dreaming for the past 12 years, yeap that’s the time between their last Champion League title. Most young people below let’s say 15 or 16 years had never celebrated a Champions League and for them it was  more like an urban story until that minute when Di Maria the best of the Match, hurtled into  Atletico’s penalty area and shoot but Thibaut Courtois palmed it to the back post where Gareth Bale was waiting to seal the deal with another almost impossible header to make. An at that moment the craziness in one side were over the top, La Decima was there in their hands it was going to be just about minutes to make it official.

Remember the summer transfer drama with Gareth Bale, Real Madrid paid millions, the most expensive player and this is how he made it all about football.

Base on how tired Atletico’s players were and what this goal meant for them we all knew it was over… Atletico just couldn’t hold it, the effort was huge during the 90 minutes and they just couldn’t answer at all, it was sad to see that side of a final the other team.

But for all Madridistas, all Real Madrid fans this was the dream, the obsession becoming a reality. Marcelo with a very emotional goal for him made it 3-1 and then Cristiano who after wining the Ballon D’Or had an incredible season, but with some difficulties at the end of the season due to an injury that kept him away from the pitch for a few games, but he wasn’t going to miss this game, he play and forced a penalty that he also converted in the fourth for Real Madrid, La Decima was a reality, minutes later the final whistle sounded and then tears of happiness and completely excitement was the emotions for the new Champions!

 

And yes ladies he had to take his jersey off.. why not it was the Champions League final, what the heck… and I can guess some of you were more than happy, I have to give it to Ronaldo 😉 haha

Finally after a long 12 years LA DECIMA was a reality. Watching Casillas lifting the cup was very interesting, after all the suffering and doubts he had at the beginning of the season,  as you probably remember he was the center of the other drama, he was benched by Mourinho in the previous season and it was a whole soup opera drama at it best, but this last season with Carlo Ancelotti everyone thought he was  going to be back to be the number one goalkeeper and then we learned that he was going to play only Copa Del Rey and the Champions League… Real Madrid lift both Cups and he still has that angel, that Santo level, it wasn’t his game during the final, he made an awful mistake that gave the first and only goal to Atletico, and later he made all Madridistas suffer with another close call type of mistake. But after all they wouldn’t have made it to the final if it wasn’t for his saves in that incredible road to Lisbon that they had.

Congrats to Real Madrid for wining the UEFA Champions League for the 10th time, La DECIMA!!

Then it was time to offer the Cup to the goddess La Cibeles

More on the celebration later. (Upcoming post)

Congrats to Atletico it was an amazing run for them, lots of effort and over all a great season, La Liga Champions, and Champions League finalist.

I leave you with this video, I think it kind of recap the feeling and atmosphere of the looker room! During Ancelotti press conference some members of the team led by Ramos and Marcelo interrupt Ancelotti to chant kiss their Coach, the Mister!

 

Thanks for ready I know it’s kind of out of time, but I like this recaps, and I relive the whole thing while doing it. hehe

Let me know your thought on Real Madrid’s 10th Champions League Title!! Fee free to leave a comment 🙂

 

Besitos! ♥

 

Pictures from Iker Casillas Facebook official page, and Real Madrid’s Facebook. Video from Skype on Youtube.

 

 

 

The number 1 drama…

Hello all!

It’s Monday… and the only good thing about it, it’s that we had more games today!! lol

Yeah the weekend was not enough for most leagues, their schedules are adapted to be able to finish on time for World Cup 2014, Brazil!! That make me so Happy!!

Being so close to the World Cup, can impact some players in different ways, if some of them have very good season and are active with their teams, that secures them a spot in their national team, but for other this can change their possibilities to be in Brazil next summer…

That is why some dramas unfolding in La Liga are giving so much to talk, being specific the Iker Casillas case;

Iker was benched today too in Real Madrid second game of the season, so far nothing has change for him, the captain, goalkeeper of Los Blancos and their number 1, ended up last season in the bench and he started this season the same way, it seem that the question of who will be the starter for Real Madrid is somehow uncertain, as far as what Carlo Ancelotti said, it’s still not defined but two games into the season it looks like Diego Lopez might has been the chosen one…

There has been a lot of buzz about this, not only for the decision of who is the starter but also because this could impact his possibilities for the WC, and push him to make surprising decisions. The rumors about the possibility of Iker leaving Real Madrid have started, his situation is weird, he is the Captain of Spain National team, he is a symbol in his club, now some fans are a bit upset with him for many rumors about leaking information to the media, or being protected by the media, which I think it does not matter, I mean he has so many years in the club and I don’t think what is the point of him leaking information, I think the fact that he is dating a sport journalist made people think that everything she said is because she has some inside info, which I honestly don’t know, but again don’t see the point…. I think what hurt him the most was what happened with Jose Mourinho, the way he ended the season, but he is a symbol of the club nonetheless.

The situation with Iker is that if he doesn’t play all season or if he is not the starter in his team his participation in the World Cup could be in danger, it would be hard for Spain’s coach to take him when he is not playing many games…

Some rumors are wild, they have even said that Barcelona fans wouldn’t mind having him on their team, which is unreal to think about it, base on the rivalry but you never know, others reports talk about the options he might find in the English Premier League, according to many, wherever he goes he will be the starter goalkeeper which is amazing in some kind of ways .

In my humble opinion, I think competition is good, having two good goalkeeper challenging each other is good, but I think the team needs to have a defined starter, that gives confident to the back line, to the defense, and I think even if Iker started late his pre season, I think base on what he has done, and base on what I think he can still do with all respect to Diego Lopez, I think Iker should be the starter. But I’m not the coach, and let’s see what Carletto will decide. I think Iker deserves it, he has earned at least having the chance to prove that he still can be at the highest level, and if during the season, they realized that he is not at that level anymore, well you take decision but that’s just my opinion….

Anyways it is what it is… at least so far Real Madrid has 6 point out of 6 with two victories good start for Carlo Ancelotti and his team!

In another note Serie A, the Calcio in Italy started this weekend, now all leagues are up and running in Europe!

Bale case is closer to be over, he is just waiting to sign apparently and the amount of money that Real Madrid will pay is still insane! Not clear yet but is between 88 to 133 millions, I have gotten confused if those are euros or dollar, but whatever currency is still is insane….

Thanks for reading, I’m planning to post more this week, I have comments about the tribute to Raul Blanco the forever 7 of Real Madrid, which I will post soon!

Any comments feel free, what do you think? Should Iker be the starter or he should look for another club… (Just to think about it make me feel so weird…)

Besitos! ♥

Pictures thanks to Real Madrid official Facebook page, Google.

Summer nights, transfers, dramas and Pre-season fun!

What’s up? Hello hello!!

Ahh what a nice summer night… I feel like summer is about to be over and I still haven’t gone to the beach… breaking my record, and that’s not a good one!

Anyhow, at least I am checking up what is happening! Things are moving fast this days!

Let’s talk about Football!!!

Well since things in our side of the globe are actually slowing down, national teams will be back until September for more World Cup Qualifications, let’s catch up with the clubs in the other side of the world, which ironically most of them are jumping to this side of the pond!!

Real Madrid started their pre-season or Summer Tour a couple of weeks ago, they played Bournemout, then they had a real test with O. Lyon and ohh boy, that was not pretty forget their previous result 6-0, this time it was a more competitive team, O.Lyon was already ahead of the whites in their pre-season preparation, so it was a tough game for Real Madrid, they were never comfortable, Ancelotti tried to stablished his strategies, but it seems that the team hasn’t been able to read them or understand them just yet!

They were able to tied the game in the second half after being down 2-0, the final result was 2-2, and a lot of notes for Ancelotti and his coaching team if they want to be as ready as possible.

The next game was vs Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), I missed that game so I can’t say much about it, I know it was Ancelotti’s old team so it was interesting for sure, the result was a 1-0 a win for Real Madrid, base on what the media reported it was somehow a more leveled match, the Whites showed some talent, made some great passes and showed some  ball movement, but PSG also gave them good things to work on… but since I didn’t watch it, I can’t give you my thoughts so let’s move on…

That was the last game they played in Europe before starting their American Tour, the International players, the ones that got extra vacations due to their participation in the Confederation Cup joined the team. Los Blancos started their traditional pre-season tour in the U.S for the four consecutive year, they chose UCLA training facilities as their house for the next couple of weeks, now Ancelotti has all his players together to start their full training…

Well he is waiting for one more… and we are all waiting to know how much money he will cost…. Some transfers are real dramas, the Gareth Bale case it’s a clear example… dramaaaa….  it has gotten to a kind of ridiculous point, according to reports, Tottenham president didn’t want to let him go, even with the player decision and desire to leave the club, so he increased his  price. Latest news were that Real Madrid was willing to pay €85 millions (:0:0:0)  like seriously that is a lot of euros!! A lot of money, but Tottenham president later said that if Real Madrid want him, they will  have to pay €140 million of Euros…. that is absolutely beyond words, they are in negotiations but the numbers are just crazy, 80, 85 or 100 millions that would be the most expensive player since like ever… I mean like holy mother!!!

 

I know he is good, he can play several positions and marketing wise he is consider one of the best and most famous players in the world, he was named last season the best player of the English Premier League (EPL), so his sponsors increased as well, he has not reach Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi o Neymar marketing levels, but he is getting there, so the Club will have that to build up and recover for that incredible holy cheese investment they will do, because even with the presidents of each club still in negotiations, he will end up signing for the White House!  I just think that for that incredible amount of money he has to become a true legend in this game lol…. just saying, to justified that craziness!! Any how that drama is still going on…. we were missing that summer transfer soap opera, as always, they never fail to entertain…

Real’s first game in American soil was vs LA Galaxi, and the final result was a 3-1 victory, Isco is making some difference in his firsts games with Real Madrid, all players need to do their best, getting a starting spot is going to be a competitive thing among them. I think that will be good for the team, they have to reach a good level, not there yet even with this wins there is still a lot of work for Ancelotti, Zidane and Co.!

Below you can see what cities they would play in their USA tour, so if you are there… ohh lucky you!! lol You can go and check what the heck is all the buzz about them!

TOUR 2013 MATCHES
21/07								AFC Bournemouth 0-6 Real Madrid (Bournemouth,Endgland)
24/07								Olympique de Lyon-Real Madrid (Lyon, France)
27/07								Real Madrid-PSG (Goteborg, Sweden)
01/08								Real Madrid-Los Ángeles Galaxy (Phoenix, USA)
03/08								Real Madrid-Juventus or Everton (Los Ángeles, USA)
06-07/08								Real Madrid-(opponent to be confirmed) (Miami, USA)
10/08								Real Madrid-Inter Milán (Saint Louis, USA)

 Schedule Source: realmadrid.com

As it was already a done deal, Pipita is now in Naples with his new team Napoli, that was a very good deal for the Real Madrid, and  I think base on the welcoming el Pipa got when he arrived there, he would be fine, that was an airport full of fans and the stadium showed him a lot of love in his presentation!

I have to bring Sexy David Beckham to the conversation hahaha…. I mean he is a symbol in this game, he might not be the best player in the world, he was great in his position and he definitely gave to this sport a new definition there was a before him and after in Football history, at least in my humble opinion, so for that he deserves a mentioned today! He went to visit his former teammates at UCLA and took pictures with old friends and with new ones. He is retired but is always good to see him!

OK one more gossip mention :/… I know I am in so papo mode… Congrats to the future father to be, Iker and his journalist reporter Sara Carbonero, are expecting their first baby, for sure it will be cute… so that’s it papo (paparazzi) mode off. I am not even going to comment on Messi’s famous scandalous pictures… I’m being a good girl haha

What is going on in Camp Barça?

Well they have been a bit quiet lately, they played their pre-season games vs Bayern Munich,  it was a bit to forget, not their best performance, they look a bit lost, without any direction or style, but it was just a friendly and their new coach was not with them at that time. But now Tata Martino has taken full control of the Team!

Their second game was Neymar debut with Barcelona, and let’s put it like this, he got the chance to wear the jersey, that was pretty much the only news we got after the game, it might be early, he even said it he needs time to adapt to the team and get use to play with his new teammates, so let’s see him in next games. Tata Martino has started to work with the team so we might see a different result… Yesterday Neymar and Messi played together for the first time in the team presentation, and I guess they wanted to make it count, 8-0 vs Santos (Brazil)…

Everything looks so promising!

What is not that promising on another note is how the crisis is affecting some clubs, specially in Spain, I talked about how good their league is, but with the recession and their economic crisis, some clubs are struggling and some are not even able to pay to their staff or players, it’s difficult, some clubs won’t have the money to reinforce their teams, and some other are selling their best players most of them to other leagues like the Premiere, Italy or France, in other to have some incomes from those sales and be able to respond to their employees, something that will definitely impact the league but at the end the saddest part is the people who is affected by this, you know what made this possible is the humans that work hard in all levels of a club…

But I think we have to keep our hopes high, things have to get better sooner or later, at least we can hope, meanwhile we still can enjoy this beautiful game and some of its best performers!!

 Interesting notes!!

I guess blonde is the new trend!!… Do they really have more fun?? I  might consider going blonde lol…  Ramos showed up with his new hair style. What do you think, can he pull it off?

Cristiano Ronaldo was invited to throw the first pitch at a Los Angeles Dodgers game… I think he will stick to Football.

 Thanks for reading!! I hope you are having  nice summer nights!!… And feel free to share your thoughts, what will you do with €85 million that’s like $100 something million of dollars… ahh what I would not do with that… lol!!

Besitos♥

Pictures thanks to Real Madrid official Facebook page, FCBarcelona.com and Gareth from Google images…