Early season La Liga review
Here we are into round five of La Liga’s 2007-2008 campaign, and already there’s some interesting twists and turns. The four clubs that presently sit at the top of the table are separated by no more than 2 points. Also, the newly promoted clubs, Almeria, Murcia and Valladolid, have all jumped out of the gate with a bang. Almeria is in the top half of the table, while Murcia and Valladolid are currently in the middle. Of the perennial favorites (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Valencia, Sevilla) the Andalusian club is having the most trouble. Sevilla started off at a good pace, then sort of went flat after their loss to Arsenal in the Champion’s League match. Barcelona, my personal favorite, started in the opposite fashion, beginning the season on a shaky note then exploding into effectiveness as their immense potential began to be realized. And all without Ronaldinho, interestingly enough.
Real Madrid. What can I say about this club? Well, I could say a lot of things (most of it not good), but one has to admit they really are doing well at the moment. Schuster has added a spark to their play that was missing in Capello’s brand of ‘pragmatic’ footbal, and they are playing a more attractive game. The German coach has a good head on his shoulders as well, fully aware that he can go from hero to heretic in the blink of a reporter’s eye. Thus, Schuster appears to take the whole media madness in Spain with a spoonful of salt (not to mention the
boardroom antics in Real Madrid).
Barça. This is my club. Més que un club. If you’re a Los Merengues fan the taste of bile is likely thick in the throat upon reading this, but whatever. Go drink some water, eat a little bread. As stated earlier, the Catalan club started off the new campaign in the same funky form as last season. So much potential was there especially with the new signings of Toure, Abidal, Milito, and Henry. The problem was that it wasn’t meshing, and play remained disjointed. Ronaldinho’s ongoing lack of luster was also an issue. Right about the Champion’s League match against Lyon things started to come together - in a massive way. What made it so apparent was that the star Brazilian really hasn’t figured in it much. The Blaugrana were going into overdrive without the aid of Ronaldinho.
Now, I know there has been a huge furor over Ronaldinho’s situation in Barça. There is talk that he’s been doing too much nightclubbing, and that he’s looking to move to Chelsea or AC Milan. Rumors are that the board members in Barcelona want to off load the Brazilian given his hefty transfer fee and the comfort in knowing that new talent (Giovani and Bojan) can likely fill his shoes. Rumor has even offered financial reasons for Ronaldinho’s possible exit, since his new status as a Spanish citizen means a doubling in the amount of taxes he’ll have to pay now. Personally, I think one has to take the middle of the road with all this, and what I think is Ronaldinho is tired and likely depressed over the fickleness of the public. His resultant attitude has probably affected his relationship with his teammates and his coach to a degree. But, now that the speculation among the public and media has gotten so rampant, everyone who actually has anything to do with football professionally sees what a mess it’s making for a really great player. So, the team is battening the hatches and standing behind Ronaldinho, saying this has to stop. This is good, because Ronaldinho is an exceptionally gifted player, and the footie world will be a better place when this man gets his ‘chops’ back. So, hang in there, Ronnie.
La Liga is an interesting league with its own unique brand of football, a mish-mash of different styles, but always with a sense of ball play. It’s the ball play that anchors me to the Spanish league, more than anything else. With La Liga there’s a definite adherence to the value of running with the ball. Sure, a pass is faster, but without runs passing is predictable. Got to mix it up, and La Liga does that nicely. Here’s looking to another great season.
