FIFA World Player of the World '09 Nominees

The candidates for the FIFA World Player of the Year have been announced! Much like the Ballon d'Or, it is given who has exhibited the most talent through the year, up to December 21 when the winner is announced. Most of the candidates for the World Player of the Year mimic the candidates for the Ballon d'Or, except the Ballon d'Or can only go to a European player.

Last year Cristiano Ronaldo claimed both recognitions. This year the heavy favorite for both is Barcelona's Leo Messi.

Michael Ballack- Germany

Gianluigi Buffon- Italy

Iker Casillas- Spain

Cristiano Ronaldo- Portugal

Diego- Brazil

Didier Drogba- Ivory Coast

Michael Essien- Ghana

Samuel Eto'o- Cameroon

Steven Gerrard- England

Theirry Henry- France

Zlatan Ibrahimovic- Sweden

Andres Iniesta- Spain

Kaka- Brazil

Frank Lampard- England

Luis Fabiano- Brazil

Lionel Messi- Argentina

Carles Puyol- Spain

Franck Ribery- France

Wayne Rooney- England

John Terry- England

Fernando Torres- Spain

David Villa- Spain

Xavi- Spain

Can we just note the absence of Dani Alves? The man is an amazing defender! How some of the nominees are on this list and Dani Alves is not is beyond me.

Pellegrini Given an Ultimatum

After Real Madrid's more than humiliating loss to third-league Alcorcon, trainer Manuel Pellegrini has been given an ultimatum: if Real fails to win against Getafe this weekend, Pellegrini's contract will be terminated and he'll be replaced as head trainer.

In Real's last 5 games, three have resulted in losses (including the most embarrassing to Alcorcon, Sevilla, and AC Milan), one in a tie (Sporting Gijon), and one victory (Valladolid). They're still in 2nd place in La Liga, 3 points clear of Sevilla and 3 points shy of Barcelona. They're tied in their Group for 1st with AC Milan (who they play next week), I can't find standings for the Copa del Rey and I don't know how the rules work for advancement. However, if it's like the CL and the aggregate score is what gets a team through to the next round, then Real will have to score 4 or more goals when they visit Alcorcon on the team's home turf. They are in trouble in that respect.

They were also handed more happy news today. CR9, whom most of Madrid is probably blaming for the recent results Real has suffered, will be out for another week. He won't play against Getafe this weekend, and he won't play against AC Milan next week. Pellegrini had better say his prayers before those games start.

I give Pellegrini until the AC Milan game. I think this team is way too dependent on the Portuguese powerhouse, and as soon as he's in form they'll start winning again. The trouble is, Pellegrini might not be around to see that.

More Copa del Rey Scores

Rayo Vallecano 2-0 Athletic Bilbao

Osasuna 2-1 Xerez

Deportivo 1-0 Murcia

Zaragoza 1-1 Malaga

Getafe 2-0 Espanyol

Hercules 2-1 Almeria

Celta 2-1 Tenefire

Valencia 1-0 Alcoyano

Barcelona 2-0 Cultural Leonesa

There wasn't too much high scoring going on today and yesterday between the big clubs and their lower-league counterparts. I guess in my naivete I assumed that the Primera league clubs would blow away those in the lower leagues. However, the scores of today and yesterday mean one of two things. Either the leagues within Spain are decently matched and those in the lower leagues can contend with those of the Primera league and prevent a blowout, or the big teams sent out their second string players. I know that's what Barcelona did- Pedro, a second-string striker who can't help but score in almost every game he's played in so, scored Barcelona's two games today. We all know that wasn't the case with Real Madrid yesterday, but that was a different story.

Four more games will be played tomorrow before the whole round is repeated next month with this round's home team traveling to the home pitch of the away team.

I See Pellegrini Out Within the Month

The tournament is called the Copa del Rey, or the King's Cup. The tournament is comprised of teams from all four leagues in Spain- the Primera division, where Barcelona and Real play, the Liga Adelante, the Segunda B, and the Tercera division.32 teams will play between today, tomorrow, and Thursday in hopes of advancing and eventually being named the best team in Spain.

There were four matches that were played today, all between a team from the Primera league and a team from one of the lower leagues. Three out of the four had predictable results.

Sevilla defeated Atletico Cuidado 4-2 with two goals from Luis Fabiano, one from Jesus Navas, and one from Diego Capel.

Atletico Madrid got their first win under new trainer Quique Flores with a 2-0 win over Marbella. Troyana provided an own goal and Maxi from Atletico sealed the win.

Sporting Gijon ties Recreativo Huelva 1-1. Candeias from Recre scored first before Bilic of Sporting responded to get the tie.

There was one game, however, that did absolutely positively not go according to plan. Real Madrid, one of the best teams on the planet, who spent $131mil this summer on just one player (don't count the three others they got from other teams) LOST TO A THIRD-TIER TEAM TODAY. I'll let that sink in.

Today Real played Alcorcon, a team in the Segunda B league, two tiers below Real. Alcorcon completely humiliated Real today with a 4-0 win over the Madrid giants. Borja(2), Arbeloa (own goal), and Ernesto all netted goals in what I could consider one of the biggest upsets ever! This is so much bigger than Barcelona's loss to Rubin Kazan. This just shows that Real really needs to get it together. A win like that won't be tolerated by any Real fans.

I see the team with a new trainer within the month. This is their third consecutive non-win, and their third defeat overall. Unacceptable.

2009 Ballon d'Or Contenders Revealed

The Ballon d'Or is one of the biggest accolades a player can receive. It's awarded to the best player of the year as voted by sports journalists, and organized by France Football magazine.

All of the usual suspects are present- last year's winner Cristiano Ronaldo, Leo Messi, and Fernando Torres. In total there are 12 players from the Spanish Premier League(6 from Barcelona alone), 10 from the English Premier League, and 4 from Serie A, along with several other players from league scattered throughout Europe.

Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid)

Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal)

Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)

Thierry Henry (Barcelona)

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona)

Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)

Lionel Messi (Barcelona)

Xavi (Barcelona)

Yaya Toure (Barcelona)

Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)

Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux)

Didier Drogba (Chelsea)

Frank Lampard (Chelsea)

John Terry (Chelsea)

Julio Cesar (Inter Milan)

Samuel Eto'o (Inter Milan)

Maicon (Inter Milan)

Diego (Juventus)

Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)

Fernando Torres (Liverpool)

Ryan Giggs (Manchester United)

Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United)

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)

Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)

Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

Kaka (Real Madrid)

Luis Fabiano (Sevilla)

Edin Dzeko (Wolfsburg)

David Villa (Valencia)

A Step in the Right Direction

The Barcelona that won the treble last season and has gone undefeated in La Liga so far this season made an appearance tonight, crushing Real Zaragoza 6-1. Barcelona controlled the entire game and never stopped creating goal-scoring opportunities. In fact, the team had 3 clear shots on goal in the opening 8 minutes that were saved because of the alertness of Zaragoza keeper Carrizo.

Keita was on fire tonight, netting a hat trick with the help of Messi and Ibrahimovic assisting his goals. Every aspect of Barcelona- the strikers, the midfield, and the defense were on fire tonight. The only slip up, the goal scored by Zaragoza, came under the fault of the defender who left Jorge Lopez wide open in the 78th minute. I think he was Rafa Marquez's mark, but I'll put the blown coverage on the entire defense.

Messi was also able to soundly silence critics in two countries tonight after he performed superbly, netting one goal and being active in several others tonight. Naturally he suffered from multiple-man coverage and cheap swipes at his legs when he was on breakaways, but he had numerous goal-scoring opportunities and no one can deny he played to his highest potential today.

Goals

min. 24 1-0: header by Keita, assisted by a cross from Messi

min. 29 2-0: Ibrahimovic nets a gorgeous free kick from roughly 30 yds out

min. 41 3-0: Keita slides in a cross from Ibrahimovic

min. 56 4-0: Ibrahimovic flicks in a cross from Keita

min. 78 4-1: Jorge Lopez has plenty of room to run and slips a goal past Valdes

min. 80 5-1: Messi lofts a goal above Carrizo's head after a great pass from Iniesta

min. 86 6-1: Keita finishes the scoring with his hat trick, heading in a corner from Iniesta

Liverpool 2-0 Manchester Utd

This was a really tense game for both sides. Liverpool were absolutely not allowed to lose- that would have been 5 losses in a row and Rafa Benitez would most definitely have lost his job. By the grace of God Fernando Torres fired off a shot in the 65th minute after being unable to get off any shots before his goal. David Ngog sealed the win in the 90th minute with an assist from Lucas. Nemanja Vidic was sent of for the third successive game against Liverpool after he received a second yellow for pulling down Dirk Kuyt on a breakaway. Javier Mascherano was also sent off in extra time after charging Edwin Van der Sar. However, neither mattered as 'Pool sealed the win anyway.

Everyone is now saying that Liverpool is out of the rut they've been in, but I think it takes more than one win to decide if they're out of their rut. Yes, they were the better side against Man U, but not for the whole game. There were instances when 'Pool was sloppy, giving up easy passes and making bad decisions in their defensive third.

Plus, I still think Rafa Benitez needs to go. I just don't like him, and he's obviously losing his grip on the team that's supposed to be in the top 4. Luckily this win moved them up from 7th to 5th. Hopefully Benitez can get his team together and keep the wins coming.

Some Weekend Results So Far

Real Madrid 0-0 Sporting Gijon

Real is continuing to suffer due to absence of CR9. This is their third non-win (as in loss or tie) in a row. They lost 2-1 to Sevilla two weeks ago, lost to AC Milan in the Champions League this Wednesday, and now this tie against 7th place Sporting. Something really needs to be done before this trend continues, for the sake of the team. Someone needs to step up and fill in Ronaldo's shoes.

Atletico Madrid 1-1 Mallorca

Another tie for a Madrid team, except this one is a lot more sad and pathetic than that of Real's. 27 minutes into the game Diego Forlan missed a penalty after Mallorca defender Josemi handled the ball in the box and was sent off with a second yellow. Five minutes later another Mallorca player, Ivan Ramis, was also sent off with a second yellow. Forlan was able to net that penalty. For almost 60 minutes, played 9v11, Atletico wasn't able to score again. In the 90th minute Mallarca midfielder Valero's shot deflected off of Atletico's goalie for the leveler. 9v11 and they only tied. Atletico is now in 14th place, with only 1 win in 8 games.

Chelsea 5-0 Blackburn Rovers

Gael Givet (own goal 20'), Frank Lampard (48', 59'), Michael Essien (52'), and Didier Drogba (64') provided the goals in today's thrashing of 15th place Blackburn today. They have moved up to first place for the time being, having to wait until Manchester United finish their game against Liverpool tomorrow to determine if that's where they'll stay.

Stoke City 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur

8th place Stoke was able to surprise the Spurs today and pull off a victory thanks to a goal from Glenn Whalen in the 86th minute. Tottenham are now sitting in 3rd place behind Man U with 19 points.

Weekend Injury Update

As always, there will be several major players out of action this weekend.

Thanks to their friends over at FK Rubin Kazan, Dani Alves will be out for 3 weeks according to club doctors. No word on whether Thierry Henry will make an appearance, but Dymytro Chygrynsky will, according to marca.com. The Ukrainian defender was given the green light to be named in this weekend's roster.

Real Madrid will be without three of their star strikers this weekend- Karim Benzema, Gonzalo Higuain, and, of course, CR9 will not be in attendance this weekend against Sporting Gijon. Manuel Pellegrini just has no luck with injuries. Lucky for him, though, the machine himself and representatives for Madrid estimate that he'll be back in action time for their rematch with AC Milan.

Sevilla striker Adriano has been sidelined for at least a month after sustaining an injury during Sevilla's CL win over Stuttgart.

Poor poor Wayne Rooney, hailed by Dimitar Berbatov as the best player in the world, probably won't see the field against Liverpool this weekend, along with Utd. midfielder Darren Fletcher.

However, Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard are unlikely for the derby as well. This game is huge for Rafa Benitez, who I've never liked and really doesn't deserve to be heading 'Pool anymore. The start of this season has been 'Pool's worst in 22 years and Benitez really needs to get gone already.

"Quique" Named Interim Trainer For Atletico Madrid

Right after I posted yesterday that Atletico Madrid was negotiating with Luciano Spalletti (which every time I type reminds me of spaghetti) to be the new trainer, Atletico announced that "Quique" Sanches Flores was also being approached for the job.

According to marca.com, Spalletti had a pre-existing contract with Zenit St. Petersburg and was not available to train Atletico, so Quique was named the interim trainer. He has a contract until June 2010.

Quique, 44, has formerly trained Getafe, Valencia, and the Portuguese team Benfica.

Laudrup Denies Atletico, Search for Trainer Continues

The big shots over at Atletico Madrid have finally (finally!) wised up and are looking for a trainer to replace Abel Resino, the current trainer.

Resino has succeeded in leading Atletico to their worst season start since 1994, and honestly I'm curious as to why he's being replaced. I mean, being the worst the club has been in 15 years has to be a feat of some sort.

Anyway, Atletico first approached Michael Laudrup. He's a Danish player who's been hailed as one of the best players in history. He played with Barcelona from 1989-1994 with the Dream Team, and then moved to Real Madrid (traitor!). Lately he's been training Russian team Spartak Moscow. Well, Laudrup said 'no' to Atletico when they offered him a training job.

Sources say the club is now in negotiations with Luciano Spalletti. He is a former trainer of AS Roma after resigning in the beginning of this season and currently without a club to train.

As negotiations continue, Resino will continue as trainer of Atletico until a replacement is found. Thank god he's being replaced. It physically hurts me to see Atletico doing this poorly, even if they're fierce competitors with Barcelona. They're a shadow of the team they were last season and I'd like to see that change.

CL Group A-D Round 3 Results

Today's results were a bit more expected than yesterday, which is good because I wasn't going to be able to deal with another Barcelona or Liverpool-esque upset.

Group A

Bordeaux 3-1 Bayern Munich

Michael Ciani of Bordeaux scored twice- once for his team and, unfortunately, once for Bayern. Ciani's own goal opened the scoring for Bayern in the 6th minute, but ironically, he leveled himself in the 29th. Bayern's Hamit Atlintop returned the favor of Ciani's own goal by providing his own in the 40th, which was attributed to Marc Planus of Bordeaux. The Frenchmen currently lead the group with 7 points, while Bayern have only 4.

Juventus 1-0 Maccabi Haiba

I expected more from Juventus since Haiba still don't have any points from 3 games. However, they pulled off the win and that's all that matters. Giorgio Chellini scored Juve's goal two minutes into the second half. Juve are currently in 2nd place, two points behind Bordeaux.

Group B

Manchester United 1-0 CSKA Moscow

I feel like Big Red is suffering a little in the striking department now that their lean, mean, goal-scoring machine is gone. However, like Juve all that matters is Antonio Valencia was able to net a late strike in the 86th minute. The undefeated United are sitting pretty at the top of the table with a 5-point lead.

VfL Wolfsburg 0-0 Besiktas

Wolfsburg are in 2nd place behind United while Besiktas continue their 100% losing streak.

Group C

Marseille 1-0 FC Zurich

The team that topped AC Milan wasn't able to continue their streak, and lost to Marseille this week. Argentinian international Gabi Heinze scored in the 69th minute and Zurich never responded. This is Marseille's first win and they are now in 3rd place, tied with Zurich.

AC Milan 3-2 Real Madrid

YES!! Yet another loss for my least favorite team. To give them credit, it was a really good game. Raul scored first for Real in the 19th minute. It took Andre Pirlo almost 45 minutes to respond, but he did in teh 62nd. Four minutes later Pato had a goal to pull Milan ahead. Royston "I Break Legs but I'm Cool With It" Drenthe offered a prayer of hope in the 76th with a goal, but Pirlo returned to squash those hopes in the 88th with the death sentence. Both teams are currently tied for 1st place with 6 points.

Group D

Chelsea 4-0 Atletico Madrid

Can we get rid of the head coach at Atletico yet? Because this is just ridiculous and embarrassing for them. Solomon Kalou scored the first two just before halftime and 7 minutes after. Following him was Frank Lampard with a goal in the 69th, and Luis Perea added insult to inury with an own goal for Chelsea in injury time. This needs to sotp, now. Chelsea leads the table undefeated while Atletico is in last with 1 point.

FC Porto 2-1 Apoel Nicosia

A man they call Hulk (I'm not kidding) scored Porto's two goals, in the 31st and 48th minute. Porto came from behind to overcome an own goal from Alvaro Pereira in the 21st. Porto is right behind leaders Chelsea with 6 points while Nicosia is tied for last with Atletico.

Is it just me or were there a mountain of own goals the past two days?

CL Group E-H Round 3 Results. And They're Not Pretty.

I don't even want to talk about some of the games that happened today, but I'm going try and get through this as quickly as possible.

Group E

Fiorentina 4-3 Debrecen

Debrecen actually scored first (Cvzitkovics 2') but then conceded three goals (Mutu 6', Gilardino 10', Mutu 20') Fiorentina. The next three goals leap-frogged between the teams with Debrecen (Rudolf 28'), then Fiorentina (Santana 37') and finally a last-effort strike by Coulibaly (88') of Debrecen. Debrecen remains at the bottom of the group with 0 points while Fiorentina trails leader Lyon by 3.

Lyon 2-1 Liverpool

This was probably not the ideal outcome Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez had in mind. Liverpool took the lead just four minutes before halftime with a goal from Yossi Benayoun. They held strong until the 72nd minute when Gonalons netted his shot. 'Pool's death sentence arrived in injury time when Cesar Delgado scored. Steven Gerrard, who was supposed to be totally healthy for this game, was subbed after only 25 minutes due to more injuries. Fernando Torres, also injured, was not present. Lyon lead the table with 9 points while Liverpool have only 3.

Group F

Rubin Kazan 2-1 Barcelona

This game is entirely too painful for me to talk about and I am more than upset with my boys. Kazan took the lead right away in the 2nd minute when Aleksandr Ryazantsev scored, totally rocking Barcelona, and they never quite recovered although they did have some awesome shots on goal. Ibrahimovic offered a sliver of hope when he equalized in the 48th minute, but Kazan sealed the deal when Gokdeniz ripped the death strike and Kazan ended the game 2-1 in their favor. You want more bad news? Dani Alves is out for 3 weeks with an injury. Lovely.

Inter Milan 2-2 Dynamo Kiev

Inter came from behind twice to tie with Dynamo. Mikhalik (5') scored for Dynamo, and Ferreira Lucio provided an own goal (40'), while Stankovic (37') and Samuel (45') provided goals for their own side. Inter remains at the bottom of the group with 3 points while Dynamo is tied with Barcelona and Kazan in points with 4.

Group G

Unirea Urziceni 4-1 Rangers

Urziceni opened the scoring for the Rangers, with an own goal from Vilana in the 2nd minute. However the Rangers would repay Urziceni twofold- literally. Bilasco (32'), Kyle Lafferty (og 49'), Lee McCulloch (og 59'), and Brandan (65') all provided goals for Urziceni. Urziceni have 4 points, 5 shy of leaders Sevilla. The Rangers remain at the bottom of the table with 1 point.

Sevilla 3-1 VfB Stuttgart

Stuttgart never stood a chance in this game. Sevilla scored three times before Stuttgart even knew what was going on. Squillaci (27', 72'), and Navas (55') netted for Sevilla before Elson (73') responded. Sevilla lead the table with 9 points while Stuttgart moved down to 3rd place in front of the Rangers.

Group H

AZ Alkmaar 1-1 Arsenal

It seemed like Arsenal had this game in the bag. Fabregas scored in the 36th minute and Arsenal held strong-until injury time when Alkmaar was able to slip one past young goalie Victor Mannone. It was a tough draw for the English team. Despite the draw Arsenal is in 1st place in Group H with 7 points. Alkmaar rose above Olympiakos and now have 2 points from 3 games.

Olympiakos 2-1 Standard Liege

Olympiakos came from behind to secure their 3 points today after Igor De Camargo scored for Standard in the 37th minute. Just 6 minutes Mitrogluo leveled for Olympiakos, and Stoltidis snatched the late win in the 90th minute. Olympiakos are one point behind leaders Arsenal while Standard remains at the bottom of the table with one point.

CL Group E-H Round 3 Preview

The third round of Champions League group play is here! Here's a preview of the games taking place today.

Group E

Debrecen vs. Fiorentina

Debrecen is the only team in Group E with no points in two games, while Fiorentina has 3. The Hungarian team will really have to step up their game if they want to make it out of the group stages.

Liverpool vs. Lyon

Liverpool has come under harsh criticism as of late- they suffered another defeat in the Premier League this season, setting them in 7th place overall. Lyon, however, are undefeated in the CL, and just lost their first game of 9 in the French Premier League. If Liverpool wants to make a statement about their capabilities as a soccer team, it will be made during this game.

Group F

FC Barcelona vs FK Rubin Kazan

Barcelona leads the table with 4 points while Kazan have only 1. However, after a weekend draw against Valencia, I'm starting to wonder if Barcelona is starting to run out of steam due to their grueling schedule. A win over Kazan would give them a confidence boost to continue their winning ways.

Inter Milan vs Dynamo Kiev

Inter, while leading the Italian Premier League by 2 points, has only 2 points in the CL, with two draws to Barcelona and FK Rubin Kazan. Inter will definitely be looking to make a statement this round against Dynamo after their poor showings the first two rounds.

Group G

Rangers vs Unirea Urziceni

Both teams have only one point from their last two games, meaning a win for both is absolutely necessary to stay in the running for a future in the tournament. My money is on DeMarcus Beaseley and the Rangers. Hopefully.

VfB Stuttgart vs Sevilla FC

Sevilla is definitely a force to be reckoned with this year. They are 3rd place in the Spanish Premier League, they gave Real Madrid their only defeat of the season (so far), and are leading Group 6 with two wins and 6 points, the max up to this point. Stuttgart has tied twice, and I don't think the Romanian team will be able to compete with Luis Fabiano and Sevilla.

Group H

AZ Alkmaar vs Arsenal

Arsenal, while being ridden with injury as of late, are leading Group H with 6 points, and also sit comfortably in 4th place in the EPL. Alkmaar has only one point in two games. Arsenal should have little difficulty sealing the win.

Olympiakos vs Standard Liege

Both teams have only one point in the standings. This is a crucial game for both to decide who will still have a chance to continue.

Atletico Madrid Needs to Step it Up

Atletico Madrid are in need of some serious help this season. The team, who shares the capital city with Real , is floundering in an embarrassing 15th place right now, after their 3-0 defeat to Osasuna this weekend.

The last two season Atletico sat in 4th place in the Primera League, a serious contender for 1st place at several points throughout the two seasons. Needless to say, no one knows what to make of their awful start to this season- they've racked a lousy 6 points from 7 games so far, and their chances of advancing in the Champions League are looking grim as well.

Strikers Diego Forlan and Kun Aguero, usually a vicious and unforgiving duo, have been silent this season at their posts. Maybe fatherhood is becoming too much for Aguero (he has a son by Maradon's daughter, who he's dating). I don't know. Maybe it's a coaching problem. Abel Resino could find himself jobless in the coming weeks if Atletico continue to perform so horrendously.

Weekend Results

La Liga

Real Madrid 4-2 Valladolid

For a few minutes it looked like the floundering Valladolid was going to make a comeback against Madrid- they drew to within a point of Real before Real sealed the deal with their 4th goal from Higuain(79'). Veteran striker Raul had a red-letter day, netting the first two goals for Real (14', 18'). The in-between goal was scored by Marcelo (45'). Real was without 6 of its starters, but not without Kaka- at least for the whole game. The Brazilian made an appearance in the 72nd minute, taking Van der Vaart's place. I'm pretty sure all talk of "Ronaldo-dependency" can safely be put behind Real after this win.

Barcelona 0-0 Valencia

I hate to say it, but to me it looked like Barcelona was outplayed today. Although the game stayed scoreless, Barcelona stayed on the defensive for most of 90+ minutes. Messi, Pedro (Bojan 77') and Iniesta did not get much action up front. Barcelona was lucky that Valencia striker David Villa stayed on the bench, or they would have been in serious trouble. However, David Silva wreaked enough havoc for the both of them. The midfielder was on fire today, creating opportunities and almost scoring on several occasions. Ibrahimovic did not enter the game, and I'm wondering if he's injured from WC qualifiers. Barcelona looked tired and they definitely need to rest up before their mid-week CL matchup with FK Rubin Kazan

Deportivo La Coruna 1-0 Sevilla

It seems that my prediction was incorrect. Alvaro Negredo, hailed for his two goals with the Spanish nation team this week, was not able to work his magic against Deportivo. The team that gave Real Madrid it's first loss of the season is now tied for 3rd place with Deportivo. Juan Rodriguez gave Depor their goal in the 38th minute.

English Premier League

Liverpool 0-1 Sunderland

Liverpool lost a controversial game today- a shot by Sunderland's Darren Bent deflected off of a beach ball on the field and zoomed past Pepe Reina to give Sunderland a lead they wouldn't relinquish. The shot came five minutes in. This is Liverpool's fourth loss of the season, and they were also without star striker Fernando Torres and captain Steven Gerrard.

Manchester United 2-1 Bolton Wanderers

Man U reclaimed the top spot in the standings this weekend with their win over Bolton. Zat Knight of Bolton opened the scoring for Man U with an own goal in the 5th minute, followed by Antonio Valencia of Man U in the 33rd with his first Premier League goal. Bolton responded weakly with a goal in the 75th from Matthew Taylor, but the drive was not enough to silence Man U.

Chelsea 1-2 Aston Villa

Richard Dunne and James Collins scored for Villa this weekend, who came from behind after Didier Drogba netted a shot for Chelsea just 15 minutes in. Chelsea have relinquished their top spot and now sit in 2nd place, just one point behind Man U.

Kaka Is Now Sidelined As Well

Real Madrid's game today against Valladolid just got a little more interesting because Kaka, superstar Brazilian striker, can't play either! That leaves Real without seven of their starting 11.

Let's see how this goes. Hopefully, for the sake and dignity of Real, a hero emerges among their 2nd stringers today. My money is on Esteban Granero. He's young, he's already shown he's a promising player, and he has 1 goal so far this season (with Kaka, Benzema, and CR9 hogging up all of the goals, that's pretty impressive).

Nonetheless, it's going to be an interesting game to watch.

Weekend Preview

La Liga

Barcelona vs Valencia

Definitely one of the higher-anticipated matches of the season sees David Villa and Messi competing for leading goal scorer in La Liga. Messi returned from Argentina late this week and is pronouncing his readiness to play tomorrow. Joining him from the injured list are Xavi and Iniesta, whose presence was doubtful due to injuries sustained in games with the Spanish national team. Not on the roster is Thierry Henry, who was also injured during World Cup qualifiers this week. David Villa of Valencia is not set to play but a hopeful.

Real Madrid vs Valladolid

Despite putting 6 of their starting 11 on the injured list this week, Real Madrid should be able to pull off a win against 16th place Valladolid. With Manuel Pellegrini already having his job threatened by president Florentino Perez, he almost needs to win (although if Real loses to Valladolid then perhaps some drastic changes NEED to be made).

Sevilla vs Deportivo La Coruna

In the unlikely event that Real loses to Valladolid and Sevilla defeats Deportivo, Sevilla would completely leapfrog Real into 2nd place right behind Barcelona. Sevilla has the advantage of striker Alvaro Negredo, who scored two goals in Spain's WC qualifier against Bosnia-Herzegovina. Negredo and Sevilla will have to work hard to overcome Deportivo, who are right behind them in the standings.

English Premier League

Liverpool vs Sunderland

The Reds will have a tough time this weekend, as they'll be missing both Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard. Both sustained injuries while playing with their respective national teams this week. Liverpool, sitting in 6th place right now, will have to seriously step up their game for the remainder of the season if they want to qualify for the Champions League next season.

Manchester United vs Bolton Wanderers

Man U has a chance to reclaim their top spot in the Premier League should Chelsea lose their match this weekend. The might Man U are a mere 3 points behind leaders Chelsea, and should have an easy time against 13th place Bolton.

Chelea vs Aston Villa

Chelsea must win this match to retain their hold on 1st place in the league. Didier Drogba, who just qualified for the World Cup with the Ivory Coast this week, will probably be a force to be reckoned with.

Becks is Back to AC Milan This Winter

Becks, who has made no attempt to silence his unhappiness at the LA Galaxy, is said to be re-joining AC Milan at the beginning of next year on loan again. According to Fabio Capello, head coach of the English national team, Beckham had no chance of playing with the national team in South Africa next summer unless he starts playing European soccer again.

His first game with the club should be their away game against Juventus on January 10.

That's a sad commentary on American soccer when a coach tells a player he can't play American soccer if he wants to be fit enough for the national team. A sad, sad commentary.

Here We Go Again

In their relentless quest for a Champions League title, classless club Manchester City is planning their next move: pull an Inter-Barca-esque swap. City is willing to offer their star striker, Robinho, in exchange for their pick of Carles Puyol, Thierry Henry, Yaya Toure, and Eric Abidal. The big guns at City were denied their original offer- Robinho for Messi, and will potentially pick from the four previously stated players.

Robinho has not been happy at City in the year he's been there- apparently he originally thought he was going to Man United when he was told Manchester had outbid Chelsea, the club he thought he was going to in the first place. Now he's making public statements, much like the last time this possible transfer came up, about how badly he'd like to play with Barcelona and how honored he be to play beside Messi and Iniesta.

I can almost understand this sort of transfer, but I am entirely too attached to Barcelona to see any of them leave for City. Inter is an excellent team and we got a great striker in return this summer so I was ok with the Eto'o-Ibra trade. My problem with this potential transfer is that Robinho seems like a real asshole, kind of like the guy we unloaded onto Inter Milan this summer.

Plus, all four of the players that are potentially going to be offered by Barcelona are vital players! Puyol is the backbone of the defense, Henry composed the Triplet offense of Mess-Henry-Eto'o, Toure is great in the midfield, and Abidal is...a decent defender. My point is that losing them is not worth gaining a shotty striker with the mood-swings of a teenage girl. No thanks.

The transfer, which is right now non-existent and not being acknowledged by either club, is said to take place this winter when the transfer window opens in January.