La Liga’s Good Day, Bad Day - Round 22
Monday 09 February 2009 10:00
GOOD DAY
Mad Sammy Eto’o
“We’re all quite fed up,” complained the crestfallen presenter on Telemadrid’s football round-up show on Sunday evening. “Barcelona keep on winning.”
If their remarkable streak achieves nothing more than annoy the heck out one of the most objectionable TV stations on the planet, then La Liga Loca is more than happy to see Pep’s Dream Boys continue on their winning ways until the end of time.
Sunday’s 3-1 win over Sporting was very much by-the-book and owed a great deal to a brace from Samuel Eto’o who has now racked up 21 goals in 21 games. But so consistently good is the Cameroonian striker that this remarkable goalscoring rate has gone fairly unnoticed.
Business as usual for Barca
Pep Guardiola was complaining during the week that the side’s rhythm had slacked off a little, but that’s no surprise considering the ferocity of their forward play and the constant Copa Del Rey action.
It’s probably a good idea for the side to use their 12-point lead over Madrid to put their feet up by giving the likes of Keita and Hleb a game or two and rest a bit for the Champions League, due to restart at the end of the month.
Juande Ramos
The Madrid press are still up in arms over the general tedium of watching Real these days - let’s just say people are calling for ‘Pay Not to View’ for their games - and Juande Ramos’ ultraconservative ways.
But hey-ho, it’s now seven wins on the trot, no alarms and no surprises and what’s more, it’s just one goal conceded in that period.
Is it time for some mealy-mouthed columnists back in Blighty to start reassessing Juande’s reign over Spurs? Especially in light of Martin Jol’s fairly impressive work at Hamburg.
Gonzalo Higuaín
While most Brit-based pundits will be focussing on Arjen Robben over the next couple of weeks as the Liverpool game inches ever closer, it could well be an Argentinean striker - little known outside of Spain - who could be the big source of danger to the Scousers.
Higuaín is never going to be a Villa-esque 25-goal-a-season mean machine, but he is in fine form at the moment and has produced a bunch of assists and goals (13) since the start of the season.
The one stinky note is that he has yet to score outside of the Spanish capital with 12 of his goals coming at the Bernabeu, and the other one at the Vicente Calderón.
Higuaín’s form is so good, it can even withstand playing next to the less than rampaging Raúl and is keeping the gormlessly-gorky Huntelaar firmly on the bench.
Atlético Madrid
If Javier Aguirre wasn’t in some kind of state of grace on Sunday - or wandering and weeping around Ikea - he’d have been hurling and burling at the television, watching Atleti’s 3-0 win over Recreativo.
After five defeats and two draws in 2009, the rojiblancos decided to both stitch up their former boss and suck up to the new one with a tidy win, thanks to Kun and Forlán getting their act together again.
“How long will this attitude last?” ponders Iñako Díaz-Guerra, just itching to answer his own question with “about a week.”
Back in business: Forlan and Aguero
Jonathan Sesma
Don't know him? He's Valladolid's left winger – in terms of football only, as far as the blog knows.
(Then again, politics and the Spanish sporting press don’t always mix. When Real Madrid’s Miguel Torres started speaking about his hopes for Barack Obama and fears over the global financial situation in an interview with Marca over the weekend, the journalist quickly cut him off to ask him who his best friend in the dressing room was. Iker, in case you are curious.)
Anyway, Sesma. The Canary Islander was by far the best player against Atlético last weekend and popped up with an assist and won a penalty against Athletic in a 2-1 victory on Sunday. He even got Fran Yeste sent off in comedy fashion, by getting shoved to the ground when blocking a free kick.
Osasuna
Before, they were just ugly and brutish. Now, they’re still ugly and brutish. But picking up points. And Hallelujah to that.
Paco Chaparro
On a slow day, the Betis boss is an excitable little fella, but when he leads his side to a victory in the Sánchez Pizjuán for the first time since 1996, then potty Paco is likely to lose his marbles.
And that’s exactly what he did with a fine fist-pumping performance to the home crowd during the 2-1 victory.
“I want to dedicate this win to all the Andalusians who have stoically born the bad results,” said the manic manager after the game.
Salva Ballesta
One of La Liga Loca’s big dreams - aside from getting its internet working again - is to see a forward line of Walter Pandiani and Salva Ballesta. It would be enough to send shivers up the spine of even the toughest-talking central defenders.
The Málaga forward began Sunday’s game against Almería on the bench and watched his team go 2-0 down. In the second half, he was thrown on to the pitch and popped up with two goals to help lead Málaga to an extraordinary comeback and a fine 3-2 win.
BAD DAY
Sevilla
Oh dear. A third defeat in a row for Sevilla and a home loss against Betis thrown in for good measure. “It would not be a lie to say that it all went down hill after the hour,” admitted Manolo Jiménez both on Saturday’s match and La Liga Loca’s general work ethic.
Sevilla sunk by city rivals (again)
Valencia
Hells bells. What’s wrong with this less than dynamic duo? Sunday’s 1-0 loss in the hellmouth of Osasuna was Valencia’s fifth away defeat in a row. And it raises some sneaky suspicions that the club’s less than healthy financial circumstances may have forced the squad onto part-time contracts to make ends meet.
Getafe
A home game. Against Espanyol. Must do better.
Julien Faubert
“Ni fu, ni fa” wrote Marca on the West Ham man’s debut. Quite.
Faubert: “Ni fu, ni fa”
Espanyol, Mallorca
The two bottom dwellers both took the lead in games against Getafe and Deportivo. But they both lost them to draw their respective ties. Espanyol have not won a game since round nine and now face Sevilla, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Villarreal. They could have the finest new stadium in La Segunda at this rate.
Numancia
It was four defeats from four against the teams now being faced by Espanyol. Numancia’s real fight against relegation starts now.
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About Tim Stannard and Simon Talbot
When he isn't fighting the evil forces of flamenco or attracting libel actions for La Liga Loca,
Tim Stannard is building his media empire in Madrid. As well as contributing to Football365 and doing odd jobs elsewhere, Tim also works in the glamorous world of television as a producer, script writer, news editor, coffee boy and stand-in fluffer.
Simon Talbot? Well, he's a man of mystery.