Yeah, they did it!!!

 

A few weeks ago, many players from soccer clubs all over the world participated in international matches.  The majority of players from the Spanish national team come from Barcelona, and after the friendlies were over, many of the Barcelona players came back tired and worn out.  Unfortunately, their tiredness showed when the regular league games resumed.  Against Sporting Gijon on the 12th of February, Barcelona was unable to put together a good performance and instead, only earned a draw.  Even more tragic, Barcelona lost to Arsenal in the Champions League just four days later.  Many fans were worried about their team's form, but on Sunday Barcelona showed that they were heading back on track when they won a narrow victory against Athletic Bilboa.   

Barcelona's performance was decent, but far from perfect.  David Villa opened the scoring in just 4 minutes, but in the 49th minute, Andoni Iroala managed to equalize for Athletic Bilboa after the referee granted them a penalty.  Barcelona started frantically pouring forward and giving every effort that they got.  There were many frustrating moments and close calls, the viewers could sense both sides growing tense.  The game seemed destine for a draw, but a late goal from Lionel Messi in the 78th minute was enough for Barcelona to pull through with a victory.  

Hopefully, this win will give them enough confidence for their next league games, and when they play Arsenal again on March 8th!  Good luck!!!!

Champions League Week!

The Champions League is a competition that the best soccer clubs from Europe compete in each year.  This week the first eight teams played in four games, and next week, the remaining eight teams will play in the next four games.

On Monday, the English team Tottenham played against the Italian team AC Milan.  Since Tottenham had not played in the Champions League for a very long time, many had already written them off before the game even started.  Few expected them to progress very far in the competition, especially since they were not playing in their home stadium. 

Fortunately for Tottenham fans, their team managed to surprise everyone with a late victory, when Peter Crouch scored the only goal in the 80th minute.

Both teams had plenty of chances to score, and there were many close moments in the first and second half.  The goalkeepers on both sides were kept busy and made many dramatic saves that night.  Many players were dangerous and created clever plays and made skillful passes; however, the best man of the math that night was perhaps Tottenham's Aaron Lennnon.  On many occassions, his pace helped him to outmaneuver the defenders and terrorize the goalkeeper.  He was also instrumental in setting up the late goal, thanks to his fantastic run from the half-way line and then his inch-perfect pass to Peter Crouch.

Watch video highlights!  http://www.soccerly.com/ac-milan-tottenham-highlights/

France v Brazil 1-0

Since this week was filled with international friendlies, instead of writing about the Spanish league, I want to recap a game involving my favorite national team, France. 

You might have heard about their disastrous World Cup 2010 campaign; in fact, it might have been the worst showing for France in French football history.  One of the players, Nicolas Anelka, was involved in a dispute with the extremely unpopular and unsuccessful coach, Raymond Domenech.  As a result, Anelka was sent home early, and the rest of the French players decided to go on strike and refused to train. 

Many of the players received suspensions, and after France exited the World Cup, Domenech also lost his job.  Laurent Blanc, a former French player, became a new job.  Rebuilding the French team was an extremely difficult task, since France had been struggling to play well since 2006, after its best player Zinedine Zidane retired.

Beating Brazil, a highly-rated team, this week was a sign that the French team is beginning to regain its old form.  Both teams were pretty even in the beginning, but with France creating slightly more chances to score.  In the 40th minute, a Brazilian player was sent off for a rough tackle, and France started to take over.
Benzema scored the only goal for France in the 54th minute.  Brazil had a few chances to equalize, but France was able to hold on to the lead.

Video highlights from the game here.   

What Will Happen to Benzema?

Benzema holds a newspaper reporting his move to Madrid.

Karim Benzema was one of the new transfers last season, along with stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso, and Kaka, when Real Madrid decided to splurge over €200 million on world-class players.  The Frenchman was flourishing at Olympique Lyonnais, the club he had played for since 2004.  Naturally, many had high expectations for him when he joined the Real Madrid squad.  

Benzema in his Lyon jersey

Unfortunately for him, once at Madrid, he struggled to reproduce his old form.  This season he has spent much of his time on the sidelines or as a substitute.  On rare occasions he has showed glimpses of his brilliance.  The most recent example came last week when he scored the only goal to give Madrid a victory over Sevilla.  He also had other good games, such as when he scored three goals against Auxerre in the Champions League and again against Levante in the Copa del Rey.  Most of the time, however, he has been inconsistent and played without confidence.  

For that reason, the coach Jose Mourinho has often left him out from the starting line-up.  This pattern won’t change in the near future from the sign of things.  In fact, Benzema’s situation will probably worsen.  

Adebayor playing for FC Arsenal

Mourinho has been asking for a solid striker for many months now, and with the recent arrival of Emmanuel Adebayor, he finally got what he asked for.  Adebayor has not made his debut yet, but he has passed his medical with flying colors, being described as a “physical marvel.”  Competition could be detrimental for Benzema.  If he fails to play at his full potential, his playing time could be limited even more.  

The future for him is uncertain, and if Adebayor manages to outshine him, then his stay at Real Madrid might be over.    

Watch a compilation of Benzema's best goals at Lyon.