Oh My God, It's Here

There are really only two days out of the year that I ever look forward to. One of them is happening today. It's been called the biggest soccer rivalry in the world, and I believe it. If I discover that someone I know supports Real Madrid, I seriously consider whether their other traits can outweigh that fact.

Today should absolutely live up to my expectations, and remind me yet again why I love soccer so much. To watch both of these teams play is awesome. Both are extremely talented and possess amazing individual talent beyond their team.

Barcelona vs Real Madrid will be the game to watch today. Forget about Sunday football or boring sitcom reruns.

Also, both teams are suffering a minor handicap. Cristiano Ronaldo just returned to action for Real, and did not make a huge impression in their game against FC Zurich on Wednesday. Although he's telling the media he'd like to score 10 or 20 goals against Barcelona, I can't see that happening. He couldn't do it with Manchester United in last year's Champion's League fina (despite being set up with a penalty kick, which he missed horribly), and he couldn't score against FC Zurich. Somehow I can't see him scoring 10 goals against the best team in the world.

Swedish international Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be out for Barcelona, with ankle problems. However, unlike Real, who floundered without their star striker, Barcelona is still undefeated, even winning without both Messi AND Ibrahimovic last week (Pique and Pedro provided the goals).

I'm saying Barcelona wins 3-1. I'll give Ronaldo his goal.

CL Group A-D Round 5 Results

Group A

Bayern Munich 1-0 Maccabi Haifa

A 62nd minute goal by Ivica Olic put Bayern ahead and Maccabi was never able to respond. The Israeli soccer team remains pointless after 5 rounds while Bayern is in 3rd place, behind Juventus and Bordeaux.

Bordeaux 2-0 Juventus

Two second half goals gave Bordeaux the win over Juventus and a stranglehold on 1st place in Group A with 13 points. Menegazzo (54') and Chamakh (90') scored for Bordeaux. Juventus are currently 5 points behind Bordeaux and need to win their last game in the group stages to advance.

Group B

CSKA Moscow 2-1 VfL Wolfsburg

Moscow came from behind to snag the win from Wolfsburg, who pulled ahead when Edin Dzeko scored in the 19th minute. However, Moscow scored two goals in 8 minutes in the second half to clinch the win and 3 points. Tomas Necid (58') and Milos Krasic (66') led Moscow to the win. The two teams are tied in points (7), though Wolfsburg is in 2nd place with more goals scored and less goals against them.

Besiktas 1-0 Manchester United

Much like Barcelona was upset by Rubin Kazan several weeks ago, so Manchester United was soundly defeated by the Turkish team Besiktas. Acutally, United was kind enough to give Besiktas their first win. Rodrigo Tello had the honor of scoring against United in the 20th minute. Personally I'd like to name this man as one of my favorite strikers of the tournament. The English giants are still in 1st place with 10 points with Wolfsburg and Moscow breathing down its neck. Besiktas now has 4 points.

Group C

AC Milan 1-1 Marseille

Although Milan was able to draw ahead 10 minutes in with a goal from Marco Boriello, Marseille responded six minutes later with a goal from Lucho Gonzalez. Milan is still one point behind Marseille in the standings (8 to 7), but Milan has to win their final game in the group stage in they want to advance in the tournament.

Real Madrid 1-0 FC Zurich

This was supposed to be CR9's big return after a month and a half out due to injury, and it was not the comeback the public expected, but at least the striker is fit and healthy again. It was actually Gonzalo Higuain who scored for the Spanish superteam, in the 21st minute. Real is still in 1st place with 10 points, two ahead of AC Milan. There's little hope for Zurich, who only has 3 points from an upset win against AC Milan.

Group D

Apoel Nicosia 1-1 Atletico Madrid

Mirosavljevic pulled off a quick score against Atletico 5 minutes in to pull them ahead. Luckily Simao was able to level in the 62nd to scrape together a draw and a point for Atletico, who will see an early exit from the tournament this year. So will Nicosia, who only have 2 points in 5 games.

Chelsea 1-0 FC Porto

Nicolas Anelka gave Chelsea the win in the 69th minute to clinch 3 points for Chelsea, who remain at the top of Group D. They are a solid 4 points ahead of 2nd place Porto who have 9 points. Both teams are guaranteed to continue in the tournament.

CL Group E-H Round 5 Preview

Group E

Liverpool vs Debrecen

The last time the boys from England played Debrecen, it was a 1-0 result in favor of Liverpool thanks the a goal from Dirk Kuyt. I have no idea what the outcome of today will be. Fernando Torres is out, and Ryan Babel and Daniel Agger exited the field in the early minutes of the first half in Liverpool's game against Manchester City this weekend. Debrecen has yet to win a game and Liverpool is 5 points shy of 2nd place Fiorentina. Hopefully they can pull out a win today and shorten that lead to 2 points.

Fiorentina vs Lyon

Should Fiorentina win, they will leapfrog Lyon into first place with a 2-point lead. If Lyon wins, they will strengthen their lead to 4 points. Lyon topped Fiorentina in their last meeting 1-0 with a 76th minute goal from Pjanic. This is a critical game for both teams- there is always a (small but possible) chance of Liverpool making a late comeback in the group stages to proceed, and both teams have to make sure they get the maximum amount of points out of their remaining games.

Group F

FK Rubin Kazan vs Dynamo Kiev

Kazan's only loss thus far has come from Dynamo, who defeated them 3-1 during their last meeting. That win was also Dynamo's only win in the tournament. Kazan is in 2nd place tied with Barcelona, while Dynamo is in last with 4 points, only one behind Kazan. If Dynamo is able to recreate their success against Kazan, they will replace Kazan in 3rd place, and possibly move higher depending on what Barcelona and Inter Milan do in their match today.

Barcenola vs Inter Milan

The press has yet again been making a huge deal about this match, which ended in a scoreless tie the last time the two titans clashed. Lionel Messi is a doubtful for today after an injury he sustained this weekend, along with Abidal, Toure, and Marquez, who are all ill. Samuel Eto'o will definitely be looking to score this time against his former club after Victor Valdes viciously denied his attempts the last time. Inter leads the group by one point with 6 while Barcelona is in 2nd place with 5 (they beat Kazan head-to-head).

Group G

Rangers vs VfB Stuttgart

The Rangers were able to level with Stuttgart during their last meeting to pull off a tie, but they desperately need a win if they have any hope of progressing in the tournament. With only two points to their name, the Rangers have to hope that Sevilla beats Unirea Urziceni (a likely outcome) so as to at least be tied in points.

Sevilla FC vs Unirea Urziceni

Sevilla currently has a stranglehold on 1st place in Group G, with 10 points to Urziceni's 5. A win for Sevilla is likely- they've already defeated Urziceni once with goals from Renato and Fabiano. They have basically qualified to progress in the tournament.

Group H

Arsenal vs Standard Liege

Two goals in 5 minutes seemed to seal Standard's win against during their last meeting, but three 2nd half goals from Bendtner, Vermaelen, and Eduardo rescued the points for Arsenal. Arsenal has 10 points, first place in the group, while Standard has only 4.

Olympiakos vs AZ Alkmaar

Alkmaar has only accumulated two points in the tournament so far, while Olympiakos has 6. A late strike from Torosidis gave Olympiakos the win when the teams last met, so hopefully the Greek team can recreate their success.

Wigan Refunds Fans

Sunday, November 22, 2009 will definitely be a day to remember for Wigan Athletic of the English Premier League. On that day the Tottenham Hotspurs unleashed hell on the Latics, crushing them 9-1, which included five goals by Jermaine Defoe alone.

The Spurs tied the record for number of goals scored in a single EPL game yesterday against Wigan.

Now Wigan, wholeheartedly embarrassed by the show that their fans witnessed, are personally reimbursing any fans who demand a refund for the hellish game they witnessed.

The Latics are optimistic that they can overcome this massive failure and look forward to the coming games.

"It was unacceptable and unexpected. The way we defended in key moments was not good enough. I was embarrassed as it's a result we don't want to be associated with. We have to move on quickly and give a good reaction to the next game," said Wigan manager Roberto Martinez of the game.

Hopefully Wigan will be able to put this behind them.

Injuries and Illness Ravage FC Barcelona

The days leading up to the game on Saturday were not good at all for FC Barcelona. Fullback Eric Abidal was diagnosed with swine flu, while Yaya Toure and Rafa Marquez started showing symptoms. None participated in the game on Saturday, which left Pep Guardiola few options in the fullback positions.

Despite the tie this weekend, the good news is that Marquez does not have swine flu, while the bad news is that Toure was diagnosed definitively with the illness.

Despite being cleared of swine flu, Marquez is not certain to start against Inter Milan on Tuesday, nor against Real Madrid on Saturday.

Marquez joins Messi and Ibrahimovic on the list of uncertainties in both games. Messi was injured in this weekend's game and had to be substituted out while Ibra is still nursing a previously sustained injury. Both Messi and Ibra are doubtful starters against Inter and Real.

This is just lovely. Barcelona absolutely needs a win against Inter Milan to establish a lead in their Champions League group, and a win against Real would give them a two-point lead in La Liga. So of course two fullbacks, a halfback, and the two most valuable strikers are either definitely discarded or seriously doubtful for both games.

If Barcelona can pull out wins for these games with five starters missing, they will have definitely established themselves as one of the strongest teams in the league this season. I will never doubt them, but missing five regular starters and pulling off a win is quite a feat.

The Weekend in Review

Real Madrid 1-0 Racing Santander

Real has successfully stolen the lead in the Primera League from Barcelona with a win over Racing this weekend. Gonzalo Higuain netted a shot 22 minutes in and Racing was never able to respond. Real now has 28 points, one more than Barcelona, while Racing are in 16th place with only seven. This was a crucial win for Real, because Ronaldo was not there, showing that they could indeed successfully win a game without the Portuguese powerhouse.

Barcelona 1-1 Athletic Bilbao

Dani Alves didn't open the scoring against Athletic until the 54th minute. However, only nine minutes later Toquero leveled with the Spanish giants, and the former leaders never recovered the lead. Barcelona was without Abidal, Toure, and Marquez, who all have or are showing symptoms of the swine flu, so it's no wonder the seriously depleted defense allowed the goal against 8th place athletic.

Liverpool 2-2 Manchester City

Manchester City makes me so angry, and I was terribly upset that Liverpool wasn't able to top them. But then again, who has LIverpool beaten recently? No one. Manchester City was no excuse. Actually, LIverpool came from behind to tie this. Martin Skrtel's goal was cancelled out by City's Adebayor. City took the lead when Stephan Ireland scored in the 76th minute but 'Pool responded within a minute when Benayoun responded. Pool was without Torres, Daniel Agger, and Ryan Babel. The latter two had to be subbed out within 20 minutes due to injury, the first is on a 3-week treatment program for a groin injury. City and Liverpool remain in 6th and 7th place respectively.

Manchester United 3-0 Everton

US national team goalie Tim Howard couldn't do much to stop the onslaught of goals from United this weekend. Darren Fletcher (35'), Michael Carrick (67') and Antonio Valencia (76') all scored on the 6'3" titan. Actually, this has not been Everton's season. They are currently in 14th place, while United is battling with Chelsea for first place, which Chelsea currently holds.

FIFA Denies Rep. of Ireland

Just like Giovanni Trappatoni foresaw, FIFA has denied the Republic of Ireland's request for a rematch with France after Thierry Henry handled a pass that led to a goal by William Gallas.

FIFA released this statement concerning the refusal:

"FIFA has today, 20 November 2009, replied to the request of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to replay the 2010 FIFA World Cup play-off match held on 18 November 2009 between France and the Republic of Ireland in Paris.

In the response, FIFA states that the result of the match cannot be changed and the match cannot be replayed. As is clearly mentioned in the Laws of the Game, during matches, decisions are taken by the referee and those decisions are final."

So even though there's video footage of the handball and Henry admitted to handling the ball before crossing it to Gallas for the goal, FIFA still won't allow a rematch because the referees, Martin Hansson and his sideline assistants, didn't see the handball.

A lot of the soccer world, Arsenal manager (and Frenchman) Arsene Wegner included, are saying that France should be embarrassed with how the qualified, relying on a cheap last-minute goal to get them through to South Africa next summer.

"For the sense of justice it is quite embarrassing to see," he (Wegner) said. "I think even France is embarrassed. We didn't play well at all and we won the game and won the qualification with a goal that was not a goal."

I absolutely believe Henry and all of the French national team should feel some embarrassment in regards to this game. I lost a huge amount of respect for Henry after that handball.

I know sometimes handballs happen- some are unavoidable and unintentional. However, if you watch the footage you can see Henry physically reach for the ball with his left hand before passing it off to Gallas. Henry always struck me as a classier player than that (despite being a cry-baby when he first moved to Barcelona) and I didn't expect this from him.

My hope is that France is eliminated as quickly as possible next summer to hit the point home that they do not belong there because God knows if they go all the way they won't deserve it.

Henry Admits to Handball, Ireland Challenge Goal

Yesterday was a crucial game for both France and Ireland- the winner would qualify for the World Cup next summer, along with several other teams battling it out to claim their spot in South Africa.

Well, if the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) has any say in what happened yesterday, there will be a rematch between the two teams. The FAI is protesting a blatant handball by Thierry Henry, which allowed him to settle the ball and pass it off to William Gallas, who tied the game for France. The tie gave France two total points in two games to Ireland's one, scored by Robbie Keane.

Henry has already admitted he handled the ball, but is redirecting Ireland's intense hatred for him toward the referees, who allowed both the handball and goal.

The formal complaint to FIFA was lodged by the FAI following the game and FIFA confirmed today that they received it and would put it under review.

The manager for the Irish national team, Giovanni Trappatoni, has already conceded that he doesn't believe a replay will be allowed, which would be absolutely ridiculous on the part of FIFA. If they allow the goal to stand then they are basically supporting it, and cheating as well.

The video for the handball is above.

I Have to Post this Since Nothing Else is Going On

My best friend Cristiano Ronaldo is returning to action next week, after passing a fitness test today. He has received the ok to start training with Madrid on Friday. The goal is to name CR9 in the roster for the CL game against FC Zurich on Tuesday and have him play the full 90 minutes in El Clasico against Barcelona on Saturday.

Despite loving the fact that Real Madrid has suffered greatly during his absence, I will now have a reason to actually watch Real Madrid. Fernando Gago never plays, Sergio Ramos annoys me almost more than CR9, and I can't stand to look at Casillas for an extended amount of time.

Ronaldo, however, always provides entertainment for me when I watch Real. Be it the theatrics when he is "pushed," the waterworks when he misses a shot or a penalty kick, or even the occasional botched move that provides more looks of anguish and defeat. He never fails to put on a show. To be fair, he is also an amazing player- I just prefer to concentrate on his flaws (as a Barcelona/Liverpool fan, I am allowed to do that).

I'm also ready to see what will happen if (when?) Real starts winning as soon as Ronaldo is back on the roster. There was a huge amount of press concentrating on the string of losses that occurred as soon as the Portuguese diva injured himself. Will they beat FC Zurich on Tuesday if he makes a small appearance? Will he be able to work his magic against Barcelona and draw their first potential defeat of the season?

Time will tell. For now, CR9 has reentered our world after a month and a half of injury. Welcome back, kid.

And Here's #3

My favorite little (and I say that with the highest regard for his size, but he's 5'7- short for a soccer player) striker has won yet another award this year. This time it's the "Onze d'Or," which is an award given out by the French Magazine "Onze Mondial," to the best player of 2009.

Obviously, the next awards in line for La Pulga (means "the flea" in Spanish) are FIFA World Player of the World and the Balon d'Or.

Maradona Hit with 2-Month Coaching Suspension

It's no secret that no one in Argentina, press or public, thought that Maradona was going to lead their national team to World Cup qualification without a playoff game. So when Argentina beat Uruguay at the last moment, thanks to a lucky strike from Mario Bolatti in the 84th minute, obviously Maradona was in the mood to say 'I told you so.' The entire country wanted him out of the managerial position.

However, Maradona went a little farther than "I told you so," and he's paying the price for it. After the game, Maradona completely lost it in front of a group of journalists and reporters, apparently using sexually explicit and derogatory language to tell off the doubting journalists.

I'm not sure if the tubby little coach thought he would be able to get away with this since he's Diego Maradona, but that was clearly not the case. After reviewing the incident, FIFA hit the Argentinian with a two-month ban on all "football-related activity."

He will be allowed to return to managing his team on January 16, 2010, but will miss his side's friendly match against the Czech Republic on December 3. Maybe that means Argentina will actually win this time, or maybe this will serve as a wake-up call for the AFA (Argentina Football Association) to get him out of the managerial position!

This isn't Maradona's first brush with FIFA- oh no. Back in 1994 he fired a rifle at a group of journalists, injuring four people. He was given two years in jail and 10 months probation.

I think some of that should be taken into consideration.

Spain 2-1 Argentina

Spain continued their international winning streak with a win over Argentina yesterday, during a weekend of international friendly matches.

Xabi Alonso capitalized on a deflected shot from David Silva and a penalty kick. Leo Messi scored from the penalty spot as well, though it proved insufficient for the South American side. Iniesta, Villa, and Villa filled in the striking positions, in front of Busquets, Xabi Alonso, and Xavi, with Puyol, Sergio Ramos, Pique, and Joan Capdevila on defense.

Argentina started the game with Messi and Higuain up front, followed by Mascherano, Angel di Maria, Maxi Rodriguez, and Fernando Gago. The defense was composed of Coloccini, Demichelis, Ansaldi, and Gabi Heinze, with Sergio Romero in goal.

All in all Spain dominated the game, but were unable to capitalize other than Alonso's two penalty kicks. Romero and Casillas showed solid goal-keeping, though the former was the much more tested of the two. David Silva and David Villa both had numerous close-range shots on goal that either went slightly wide or were easily collected by Romero.

This game didn't count for anything, but it did bring into harsh light how much work still has to be done with Argentina before next summer, which is the same amount of work they've had to do during their entire qualification campaign. Spain showed some rough patches but overall had a much smoother game than Argentina, who mostly had to play catchup with Spain's lightning-quick passing.

Spain-Argentina Friendly Preview

The Spanish international team will take on the Argentinian national team in a friendly today (you can watch it on ESPN360.com starting at 2:30 EST).

This match is critical for Argentina national coach Diego Maradona, who's taken a lot of heat because of his side's mediocre run during the World Cup qualifying rounds, which almost didn't see them qualify.

The Spaniards, however, look to continue their winning streak, despite the loss of Fernando Torres to injury. The official lineup has not been posted, but it is being released the Arsenal striker Cesc Fabregas will be in the starting 11, and that coach Del Bosque will play a 4-5-1 alignment. I'm quite curious to see who will get the lone striking position. My money is on David Villa.

This game will also mark Spanish keeper Iker Casillas' 100th game with the national team. Casillas will have the task of allowing fellow Real Madrid teammate Gonzalo Higuain and international superstar Lionel Messi silent throughout the game, though neither of them have made huge impacts with Argentina this year.

All in all it should be a very good matchup, and I look forward to seeing it.

Enke Death Ruled Suicide

Robert Enke, 32, died two days ago after throwing himself in front of a train at a crossing near Hanover at around 6pm. Police ruled the death a suicide.

Ekne was a former goalie for FC Barcelona and Tenerife before settling in at Hanover 96 in Germany in 2004. He was also on the roster for the German national team, and was in the running to be named the starting keeper.

After his death it was revealed that the keeper had been struggling with depression and had been seeing a psychiatrist since 2003, as revealed by his wife.

He lost his two-year-old daughter in 2006 to a rare heart condition.

There will be a public service held on Sunday followed by a private funeral service for close friends and family.

My thoughts and prayers are with Enke's family.

Messi Receives Trophy No. 2 Today

Today Leo Messi will be awarded his 2nd trophy of the season, the 2nd edition of the Di Stefano Trophy, awarded to the player voted by marca.com as the best player in all competitions (Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League, international competitions, and Spanish Supercup).

Messi beat out 50 other players nominated for the award including Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Diego Forlan, and Raul Gonzalez, who won the first edition of the trophy.

The 2008-2009 season was Messi's season.

With 38 goals in all competitions, a treble win, and the goal that clinched FC Barcelona's Champion's League win, Messi led the team in every way.

He's further solidified his position as the best player in the world with the stellar duo performance that has evolved between him and former Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimociv, who joined Barcelona this season.

However, there has been controversy of late, springing from Messi's mediocre performances with the Argentina national team during the World Cup qualifying round.

Although Argentina finally qualified in their last game against Uruguay, there was serious backlash against Messi, who only scored once during the qualifying rounds.

Those who wish to see Messi win the upcoming FIFA World Player of the Year might rest easy in knowing that Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo performed just as poorly this summer.

In fact, Ronaldo, who has been injured for over a month, can not even help his country in their playoff qualifying match this coming week.

Both Ronaldo and Messi exploded at the beginning of the season for their respective clubs, but if the '08-09 season is also taken into account, even just the second half, Messi supporters should rest easy.

His coronation as FIFA World Player of the Year is imminent.

Barcelona and Atletico Continue Through, Real Madrid Done

Barcelona and Atletico Madrid crushed their opponents today in the 4th round of the Copa del Rey.

Atletico, playing like a bat out of hell, demolished Marbella today 6-0, thanks to a goal from Jurado (11'), Sinama (16'), and four total from Maxi Rodriguez (21', 30, 46', 62'). I'm not really sure what possessed Atletico to play so well and to score so many goals, but something tells me that after the Real Madrid game head coach Quique worked with them on improving their defense.

Hopefully the goal-scoring mood will transfer over to La Liga and help Atletico to move out of relegation zone.

My team also happened to crush their opponent into the ground today, although until about 10 minutes into the second half it looked like the game might remain scoreless.

That is, until my favorite striker ever Bojan Krkic scored two goals in two minutes, giving los cules a very comfortable lead. Ten minutes later Pedro followed suit, followed by Messi (who came in for Puyol in the 61st minute) literally two minutes later with a gorgeous chip over the goalie's head. Xavi finished off the scoring in the 75th minute, heading in a cross from Pedro.

On a different note, Real Madrid fans present at Madrid's 1-0 victory over Alcorcon were calling for Pellegrini's replacement during the game. According to marca.com the fans started chanting "Pellegrini quit!" while the coach was subbing out Lass for Marcelo. Real is officially out of the Copa del Rey tournament after they failed to outscore Alcorcon.

Rafael Van der Vaart scored the only goal of the match, which only came in the 81st minute; which basically means Real was lucky to get the win anyway. There are clearly some issues that team has to work on, and one of them is getting CR9 healed and fit as quickly as possible.

Messi Receives "Champions No. 1" Trophy

This year, the online components of the magazines Marca (www.marca.com) and La Gazzetta dello Sport (gazzetta.it) created an award for the most valuable player of the Champions League season of the previous year. The general public votes on who they think should be given the award and the player with the most votes wins.

Of course, it's only practical that in it's first year of existence, Leo Messi won the award, or "Champions No. 1" Trophy. He received 214,000 votes to win between the two websites.

The most important thing about the award is that it's a peoples' choice award. Unlike the awards given out by journalists and coaches, the general public gets to have their say in who was the true MVP of the Champions League.

Receiving this award will definitely help Messi's PR stance, and probably also serve as a confidence booster for the Argentinian.

Hopefully it's only one of many awards to come *cough*fifaworldplayeroftheyear*cough*.

Copa del Rey Sweet Sixteen: Barcelona- Cultural Leonesa

The second round of the Sweet 16 of the Copa del Rey will commence tomorrow, at the home field of the team who played "away" last round. So Barcelona, who played in Leon last round, will host Cultural at the Camp Nou in Barcelona tomorrow.

Two goals from Pedro led Barca to victory last round, but tomorrow could be a little more difficult. This round of the Copa conflicts with the playoffs of the World Cup qualifications that are happening next week, so players are leaving for their home country to prepare before the games.

As such, Dymytro Chygrynskiy, Thierry Henry, Eric Abidal, and Yaya Toure will be with their national teams until next week, taking them away from the Copa game. Additionally, Ibrahimovic will be out for 4-6 days with injury, and Keita is ruled out for roughly 10 days.

That still leaves a multitude of awesome players for Barcelona to start, but there will definitely be some gaping holes in the striking positions with the absence of Ibra and Henry. However, after Pedro's sudden arrival on the goal-scoring scene and Bojan back to full health, the youngsters will be expected to step up to the plate.

El Derbi: Real Madrid 3-2 Atletico Madrid

Again, the highlights reel for the Real Madrid-Atletico Madrid game is in Spanish.

For the first 64 minutes, Real seemed to have no problem controlling the game. Kaka scored a gorgeous shot from about 25 yards out 5 minutes after the opening whistle, followed by Marcelo 20 minutes later, and then Higuain got his turn in the 64th minute.

Two minutes after Higuain's goal, the tide turned in favor of Atletico. Sergio Ramos was handed a straight red card for tackle against Kun Aguero on a breakaway. 11 minutes Diego Forlan had a goal, and Kun Aguero added on 2 minutes later. Despite having several more chances to tie the game, the 3 points went to Real.

Thinking about how much worse this game could have been, I definitely see los Rojiblanco (the nickname for Atletico, meaning 'red and white' in Spanish) improving. Even if they scored two goals against a 10-man Real, goals are goals. Both teams most definitely have to strengthen their defense, though. Higuan's goal came at the expense of a defender fooling around with the ball and losing it, and (with the exception of Kaka's strike, which was impossible to defend), all of the other goals scored by both teams could have easily been defended.

Barcelona 4-2 Mallorca, Day 10

Above is a highlights video I found for the game yesterday. The commentary is in Spanish, so if you don't speak Spanish, simply mute the sound and watch in awe.

Despite having Messi, Iniesta, Javi, and Bojan on the bench, Barcelona played extremely well. There were several chances created by Ibrahimovic before one of the most beautiful passes I've ever seen in my life set up Pedro for his first goal in the 11th minute. Roughly 8 minutes later Mallorca captain Nunes scored off of a corner kick with a diving header. Five minutes before half Mallorca keeper Aoate blocked 3 point-blank shots before Pedro was able to net a shot, his 3rd league goal of the season. Immediately after, in the 42nd minute, Henry produced a beautiful diving header that put Barcelona up 3-1.

When Ibrahimovic was tripped in the box on a breakaway Messi got his chance to shine, netting the ensuing penalty kick. However, 2 minutes into injury time Keita scored himself an own goal, leaving the score at 4-2 in favor of Barca.

Overall, Mallorca had several chances to score that they either overshot, or were saved by Valdes. The entrance of Messi for Pedro, Xavi for Sergi Busquets (who had an awesome game), and Iniesta for Henry didn't do too much, since Messi's penalty was the only goal scored in the 2nd half.

Barca still lead the league with 26 points overall.

Real Madrid-Atletico Madrid Preview

Commonly referred to as El Derbi, this game is usually a huge deal, because usually both teams are serious contenders to win the game. However, that's not the case this year. Despite Real's recent setbacks that include a disastrous 4-0 defeat to third-league Alcorcon in the Copa del Rey tournament, they still have 22 points in the league, boasting a 7-1-1 record.

The same can not be said for Atletico. They had their worst season start since 1994, and have already replaced coach Abel Resino with Quique Flores. They are in 17th place out of 20 teams, with 7 points and a 1-4-4 record. They are, however, making strides with Quique now in charge. They tied Chelsea 2-2 in this week's Champions League game, which saw Atletico's Kun Aguero and Chelsea's Didier Drogba net two goals apiece.

So although an Atletico win is unlikely (they haven't beaten Real in 10 years), there's definitely the possibility that the game won't be a complete massacre, especially with Ronaldo still injured and asshole midfielder Guti on the bench after cursing off Manuel Pellegrini following the Alcorcon defeat.

Real has released their starting lineup, which is as follows:

Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Arbeloa Pepe, Garay, Lass, Xabi Alonso, Marcelo, Kaka, Benzema, Higuain.

Barcelona-Mallorca Preview

For the first time all season, Pep Guardiola has all 20 of his starters to choose from for tomorrow's matchup against Mallorca.

Dani Alves, who came out of injury a week early and participated in the midweek Champions League match against Rubin Kazan, is included in the 20, having no further problems with the thigh muscled he ruptured against Rubin Kazan two weeks ago.

Dymytro Chygrynsky will also be on the roster- he's not able to play CL games because he's not registered to play.

Barca is one point clear of Real Madrid after an unfortunate injury-time own-goal from Gerard Pique ripped the three points from Barca's grasp.

Mallorca has also made an impressive run so far, sitting in 5th place with 17 points in 9 games.

If Barcelona wants to retain their lead on the league, they have to win this game and hope that Real loses, in order to give them some breathing room in terms of points. After their tough tie against Rubin Kazan on Wednesday, the team really needs a win to restore morale.

No word yet on the starting 11 for either team

Disclaimer: He's Not Actually a Machine

Ronaldo is being ruled out of action for anther two weeks minimum- the medical team at Real Madrid and Dutch medical specialist Van Dijk are saying a month, since the striker decided against surgery and will instead undergo more physical therapy in Madrid. In two weeks time he'll return to Holland for a follow-up exam by Van Dijk to check the progression of the injury and hopefully give a more definite time for his return.

Right now the projected date of his return is before November 28, which is the Clasico with Barcelona.

Here's the kicker- Portugal, who were able to clinch a qualifying game to qualify for the World Cup (how confusing is that?) plays Bosnia in two weeks, on the 14th and 18th. They are putting Ronaldo on the roster, expecting him to be ready to play!

President of the Portuguese Football Federation Gilberto Madail, says that Ronaldo wants to play in two weeks, and that he will be examined by the doctors for the national team to decide if he can actually play (which he can't).

I can in no way see Real let this happen. Playing with Portugal is what messed Ronaldo up so badly in the first place- he aggravated the ankle injury on October 10 trying to secure Portugal a play-off spot to qualify for the World Cup.

No way is Real going to let him play before he's actually ready to play and risk inflicting more serious damage on his ankle.

Plus, the man is not actually a machine. Yes, he pumps out goals like no other human being (maybe Messi), and he seems superhuman, but in reality he's just like everyone else. He needs time to recover from injuries, and in this case his ankle isn't healing as expected.

Portugal should be thinking of the health of their best player and rethink using him in their games.

Who Knew He was so Fragile?

After originally being slated to be sidelined for a month, then a month and a week, Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo is receiving even more bad news. According to the medical team at Real, he could be out for several more weeks because his ankle isn't healing as planned.

Ronaldo injured his ankle during a game with Real Madrid, but exacerbated the injury during a World Cup qualifying game with Portugal, and has been on the bench ever since.

The Madrid camp is talking about sending Ronaldo to Holland to see a specialist, Van Dijk, who has operated on the Portuguese striker before.

As much as I hate on Ronaldo, I do hate that he's been sidelined for so long. He was enjoying a lot of success in the beginning of this season, and it's almost like he was punished for wanting to help his country qualify for the World Cup (which they did).

I wish him a speedy recovery- it's no fun to talk smack about Real when he's not on the field.

Plus, in all honesty, he's an amazing player and I like to watch him occasionally.