El Clasico battles commence

What an exciting three weeks we have install; Barcelona and Real Madrid will play four times in the space of 18 days which will decide their fates for this season. They are set to play in La Liga, the Copa del Rey final and the Champions League – all the games should be fascinating and should ooze quality.

The first of these four thrillers is the 2^nd La Liga game between the two Spanish giants; the first was won by Barcelona by five goals to nil at the Camp Nou. It was an incredible game which demonstrated the Catalan’s prowess and ability. Since that day Barcelona have managed to open up at eight point gap at the top of the table with seven games remaining. The Spanish league rules state that if sides finish level on points then the overall winner will be the team with the better head to head record.

It has been an incredible season for Barca already; they are on for the treble at the moment which would be their second under Pep Guardiola. They are without doubt the best club side in the world and there is reason to suggest they could be the best side in the history of the game. Three of their players were the finalists in the Ballon d’Or nominations this season which is a testament to their recent success.

Over in Madrid the entire season now hinges on these games. There is still the possibility of them walking away with the double (the league looks unlikely) which would be another feather in Mourinho’s cap. They are through to the semi-finals of the Champions League after an emphatic win over Tottenham in the quarters. The defeat at the Camp Nou will have hurt the Portuguese manager more than he would admit in public. He was completely unable to prevent the rout and he has not been in that position many times in his career.

The first game was without doubt the best game of football I have seen this season and possibly even longer. The levels of skill and technique were higher than anything you see in England and it was a pleasure to watch. Hopefully these four games will live up to expectation – I’m quite sure they will.

Arsenal vs Barcelona - a preview

The game at the Emirates tomorrow night epitomises the term ‘mouth watering’. It will see possibly the greatest club side in history against the most attractive English side around. Last season we were treated to 180 minutes of utterly spell binding football that left everyone who watched open mouthed. There will be no defensive tactics employed – this will simply be a matter of who is the best attacking side.

For me it really is no contest; Barcelona sit at the top of La Liga and are currently the best side in the world. Their side boasts all 3 of the final Ballon d’Or nominees, the best striker in the world and one of the best up and coming coaches in world football. The style of football the Catalans play makes everyone envious and of the many imitations around Arsenal are the closest.

The game at the Emirates last season was the definition of a game of 2 halves. The first half hour was one of the best periods of football in a game I have witnessed in my entire life and the biggest irony of it all was that the much maligned Manuel Almunia kept Arsenal in the game (it could have been ten by half time without him). A rare tactical master stroke from Wenger then saw Arsenal score one and then a 2^nd after the introduction of Walcott; Arsenal could even have won the game at the end which simply did not seem possible after 30 minutes.

This season’s encounter should see Barcelona advance to the quarter finals but Arsenal are such underdogs that I really believe anything is possible. There is always a worry for me when teams are such overwhelming favourites and the team from north London are capable of shocking the entire world. Having said this not one player in the Arsenal squad would get into the Barcelona team although Fabregas and Nasri would certainly come into contention but in reality their counterparts are just better players.

We should see plenty of goals on Wednesday night as neither side would say they are defensively sound. The loss of Puyol for the first leg could prove crucial as Abidal is certainly suspect and Arsenal should look to isolate him at every opportunity. The problem is how you stop Busquets, Iniesta, Messi, Pedro, Xavi and Villa from playing it round you. In truth I just cannot see how Arsenal can win over 2 legs; they may win tomorrow night but I think it will be a question of how many Barcelona score in the Camp Nou.

Ronaldo – El Fenomeno

Whilst weighing up which topic to pick for my hundredth blog something occurred to make any other options futile; the announcement that Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima was retiring from the game. Ronaldo was the best striker of my generation; he had everything – great technical ability, was two footed and was blessed with great strength and speed.

He first caught the eye in an incredible season for Barcelona when he scored 47 goals in 49 games in the 96/97 season. The man was simply unstoppable and completed a move to Inter Milan for £19 million where he enjoyed a successful first season. In the summer of 1998 Ronaldo became known world wide after some incredible performances at the World Cup which saw Brazil progress to the final against France in Paris.

What follows was to remain one of the most debated things in football history, for whatever reason (and there are many varied theories) his performance in the final was non existent; he was there in body but not in mind. On his return to Italy following the defeat to France he picked up an injury against Lecce which saw the beginning of his injury nightmare. He did not feature again regularly again until 2002.

The summer of 2002 saw the World Cup played in Japan and South Korea where a Ronaldo inspired Brazil went on to win their fifth title. El Fenomeno scored 8 goals including 2 in the final to win the Golden boot. The memory of those goals will remain etched in my memory for many years; it was an incredibly fitting way for such a genius to triumph in the face of adversity. Following the tournament he then sealed a move to Real Madrid for €39 million. He enjoyed considerable success but the last memory in this writer’s mind was off him being given a standing ovation at Old Trafford following his hat-trick in 2004; it was an incredible occasion.

Whilst his talent remained his body began to betray him more and more frequently which saw the later stage of his career fade away. In 2009 he returned to Brazil where he played for Corinthians who aided by Ronaldo qualified for the Copa Libertadores. Following elimination from the same competition this year he announced his retirement. It was the end of an incredible career that saw many high points and Ronaldo will be remembered and idolised by many for being one of the true football greats.

Some of Ronaldo’s achievements:

2 time World Cup and Copa America winner

2 time Ballon d’Or winner

3 time World Player of the Year winner

European Golden Boot winner

La Liga top scorer

Serie A player of the season

A career record of 352 goals in 515 games

Clubs represented:

Cruzeiro, PSV, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Corinthians

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2NHqSXftzU