Where else to start than Real Madrid and Barcelona? Real Madrid, under Jose Mourinho, haven't taken long to splash the cash on new signings. Portuguese left back Coentrao has joined from Benfica for a cool £27 Million, whilst Hamit Altintop has arrived on a free transfer from Bayern Munich and Nuri Sahin has joined from Dortmund for £8 million. Youngsters Jose Callejon and Raphael Varane have also joined the Madrid ranks.
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| Highly creative in the Bundesliga, can Sahin be as successful in La Liga? |
But even with these signings, the great thing to see about Madrid in recent years is that the industrious players that are common in the German Bundelsiga are becoming prominent in the squad. Hard-workers such Khediera, Ozil and Altintop, are players not galacticos, they are no Zidane or Ronaldo, however, you know they will give near enough 100% in every game they play. These are the players that Mourinho needs to play alongside C.Ronaldo to create a successful team to pip Barcelona to the title.
An exciting season lies ahead for Real Madrid, we just have to hope that Cristiano Ronaldo isn't shackled by Mourinho's more defensive tactics and that Nuri Sahin and Mezut Ozil click in midfield. I'm going to put my neck on the line and predict that Madrid win La Liga. Its Mourinho's 2nd season in charge and with Valdano no longer at the Bernabaeu, the Portuguese gaffer can take control of this team without interference from above (hopefully).
As for Barça? There seems to be a different player linked to them everyday. Nasri to Barcelona, Forlan to the Nou Camp, Alexis Sanchez to Barça. The only rumour that stays the same is Cesc Fabregas – and this finally looks like it will be completed this summer.
I can't see Barcelona needing to strengthen their incredible front line, although the departure of Bojan was a surprise, Pedro, Thiago Alcántara and what seems like the incoming Alexis Sanchez will be able to rotate and make up the 3rd player in the attack alongside David Villa and Lionel Messi.
The weakness in the Barcelona squad (yes, there is one!) is the lack of defensive cover. Towards the end of last season Barça finished with Mascherano at centre back and Puyol at right back. Investment in another centre back is critical. Since Marquez and Chyrginsky left the Catalan club, not one replacement has been bought in. Add to that the fact that Milito will probably be sold this summer then Gaurdiola must invest in this part of the team. But, then again, who knows what hidden gem he will dig up from nowhere. After all, who had heard of Sergio Busquets before Pep plucked him from the academy?
As for the majority of the rest..... Sevilla, Valencia, Atlético Madrid and Villareal will all be challenging at the top end of the table again, fighting for 3rd spot.
Sevilla's strong midfield will leave them in good stead for the season, Jesus Navas, Romaric and Diego Capel are all creative and have an eye for a pass. Alvaro Negredo, the clubs top scorer with 20, knows how to find the net and holding on to him will be very important. The ever-green Kanoute will also be looking to build on the 12 goals he scored for the club last season.
Valencia, with all their financial difficulties still have a team that can challenge for the European places in the league. Keeping hold of Juan Mata will be very important as he can score goals and continue to assist Roberto Soldado, who was the club's top scorer with18.
Atlético Madrid have one main priority for the upcoming season, keep hold of their strike force. Forlan and Aguero have been the lifeblood of their success in recent years. This task could prove very difficult with Aguero, who scored 20 goals last season, saying he wants to leave.
The yellow submarine that is Villareal have a squad that although is not blessed with skill and class, always seems to be towards the top of the table come the end of the season. Santi Cazorla, Giuseppe Rossi, Nilmar and permanent signing Borja Valero will, once again be very influential this season.
Malaga will try and break the mould as they are backed by the funds of Sheikh Abdullah Ben Nasser Al Thani. He has backrolled Malaga into some sort of Casino and they are looking to recruit stars to propel them up the table after their 11th place finish last season.
The newly promoted teams of Granada, Real Betis and Rayo Vallecano are going to be in for a tough time in 2011/2012.
Granada came up through the play-offs and are back in the Spanish top division after a 35 year absence and in Spain its the equivalent of when Blackpool got promoted in England, they are favourites to go down as they have a relatively weak squad. A partnership with Italian club Udinese saved the club from bankruptcy in 2009 and allowed the Spanish team to loan youngsters and reserves for free. These players helped the club gain promotion to the second division in 2008/2009 and then the same Italian players again helped the club get promoted, this time, to the top flight. It will be interesting to see what happens with these players from Italy now that Granada will be trying desperately to stay in La Liga.
Real Betis are no longer the force they were once considered and have a lot to prove in the top flight. They came up as second division winners after a 4 point lead over Rayo Vallecano, who in turn finished 8 points clear of 3rd placed Barça 'B' team. It is clear to say that Betis and Vallecano both deserved automatic promotion but they have a lot to do if they want to stay up. Heavy investment, probably through the loan market, is needed for both teams.
La Liga overall is one of the most entertaining leagues in the world, and with the top 2 scorers in 2010/11 scoring 71 goals between them (Ronaldo getting 40 in the league, and Messi scoring 31). there is always going to be goals, goals, goals. And its not just those 2 that get the goals. 9 players finished the season with 15 goals or more in the league and these players were split across 7 teams. Let hope for a similar amount of goals and goalscorers in the upcoming season!
Personally, I can not wait for La Liga to get under way once again
I can't see Barcelona needing to strengthen their incredible front line, although the departure of Bojan was a surprise, Pedro, Thiago Alcántara and what seems like the incoming Alexis Sanchez will be able to rotate and make up the 3rd player in the attack alongside David Villa and Lionel Messi.
The weakness in the Barcelona squad (yes, there is one!) is the lack of defensive cover. Towards the end of last season Barça finished with Mascherano at centre back and Puyol at right back. Investment in another centre back is critical. Since Marquez and Chyrginsky left the Catalan club, not one replacement has been bought in. Add to that the fact that Milito will probably be sold this summer then Gaurdiola must invest in this part of the team. But, then again, who knows what hidden gem he will dig up from nowhere. After all, who had heard of Sergio Busquets before Pep plucked him from the academy?
As for the majority of the rest..... Sevilla, Valencia, Atlético Madrid and Villareal will all be challenging at the top end of the table again, fighting for 3rd spot.
Sevilla's strong midfield will leave them in good stead for the season, Jesus Navas, Romaric and Diego Capel are all creative and have an eye for a pass. Alvaro Negredo, the clubs top scorer with 20, knows how to find the net and holding on to him will be very important. The ever-green Kanoute will also be looking to build on the 12 goals he scored for the club last season.
Valencia, with all their financial difficulties still have a team that can challenge for the European places in the league. Keeping hold of Juan Mata will be very important as he can score goals and continue to assist Roberto Soldado, who was the club's top scorer with18.
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| Will Atletico be needing to find a new strike partnership? |
Atlético Madrid have one main priority for the upcoming season, keep hold of their strike force. Forlan and Aguero have been the lifeblood of their success in recent years. This task could prove very difficult with Aguero, who scored 20 goals last season, saying he wants to leave.
The yellow submarine that is Villareal have a squad that although is not blessed with skill and class, always seems to be towards the top of the table come the end of the season. Santi Cazorla, Giuseppe Rossi, Nilmar and permanent signing Borja Valero will, once again be very influential this season.
 |
| Can Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani millions propel Malaga up the league table? |
Malaga will try and break the mould as they are backed by the funds of Sheikh Abdullah Ben Nasser Al Thani. He has backrolled Malaga into some sort of Casino and they are looking to recruit stars to propel them up the table after their 11th place finish last season.
The newly promoted teams of Granada, Real Betis and Rayo Vallecano are going to be in for a tough time in 2011/2012.
Granada came up through the play-offs and are back in the Spanish top division after a 35 year absence and in Spain its the equivalent of when Blackpool got promoted in England, they are favourites to go down as they have a relatively weak squad. A partnership with Italian club Udinese saved the club from bankruptcy in 2009 and allowed the Spanish team to loan youngsters and reserves for free. These players helped the club gain promotion to the second division in 2008/2009 and then the same Italian players again helped the club get promoted, this time, to the top flight. It will be interesting to see what happens with these players from Italy now that Granada will be trying desperately to stay in La Liga.
Real Betis are no longer the force they were once considered and have a lot to prove in the top flight. They came up as second division winners after a 4 point lead over Rayo Vallecano, who in turn finished 8 points clear of 3rd placed Barça 'B' team. It is clear to say that Betis and Vallecano both deserved automatic promotion but they have a lot to do if they want to stay up. Heavy investment, probably through the loan market, is needed for both teams.
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| His goals weren't quite enough last year, how will CR7 and Madrid fare this season? |
La Liga overall is one of the most entertaining leagues in the world, and with the top 2 scorers in 2010/11 scoring 71 goals between them (Ronaldo getting 40 in the league, and Messi scoring 31). there is always going to be goals, goals, goals. And its not just those 2 that get the goals. 9 players finished the season with 15 goals or more in the league and these players were split across 7 teams. Let hope for a similar amount of goals and goalscorers in the upcoming season!
Personally, I can not wait for La Liga to get under way once again
Dave
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