On Saturday, Barcelona was stunned 1-0 by Malaga at the Camp Nou. The loss snapped Barcelona’s 11-match winning streak and dropped them 4 points behind league leaders Real Madrid. With the league title now out of their control for the time being, just how vulnerable is Barca?
Flash back to 2009: Zlatan moves to Barcelona, plays one season, he and Pep Guardiola get pissed at each other, and Zlatan leaves. Zlatan goes to AC Milan, but Zlatan considered going somewhere else, somewhere no one at Barcelona would have forgiven him for going: Real Madrid, Barcelona's hated rival. And the best part: Zlatan just wanted to go there to piss off Guardiola.
The Academy Awards Ceremony, one of the biggest, most elite social gatherings in the world, is about to take place. The thought of all that impending pomp and circumstance got us to thinking: what would the Oscars be like if they were given out not for the best in the world of cinema, but for the best in the world of soccer?
What match would win Best Picture? Who would win Best Actor? Would you even want to win Best Actor?
As it turns out no, no you don’t...but you’ll find out all about that soon enough.
When Tito Vilanova took over as Barcelona’s manager after Pep Guardiola’s departure, it was a continuation of the home grown tradition that had made the club the most successful in the world at the time. Tito was one of their own, a disciple of the Barca style. He was loved by the club, and was best of friends with Guardiola.
Gareth Bale’s time at Real Madrid has been a far cry from the fairy tale many thought it would be. Somewhere in between his ridiculous solo goal against Barcelona that won the Copa del Rey and scoring the game winning goal in the Champions League Final against Athletico Madrid, Madridistas have found plenty of room to hate one of the greatest players in the world.
Remember Takuhiro Nakai? You know, the 10-year-old who was signed by Real Madrid?
Last year, The18 posted a video of his skills as he embarrassed Barcelona’s U13 team. For those who missed it, here it is:
Well, now that we have refreshed your memories, let's come back to the present.
FC Barcelona has a history of nurturing talent until it explodes into world-beating class, but that doesn’t mean every player that graces the club is a guaranteed success. Plenty of players have crashed out of either La Masia or the adult side, but usually they do so because they lack the talent to succeed. Even talent, however, is no guarantee of success.
Year after year, thousands of photographers take thousands of photographs of hundreds of games. Many of these pictures are never used, fewer end up having any lasting appeal, but some, a select few, end up being photos that define the entire year in the beautiful game. The capacity of a single photo to condense a thousand moments of heartbreak and glory into a single image is one of the most romantic notions in sports, on or off the field, and photographers spend their entire careers chasing photos that capture such transcendent moments.
This past Saturday was picture perfect for Atleti fans. Los Colchoneros spanked intercity rival Real Madrid 4-0 in the derby, inching them closer to the top spot in La Liga where they now stand four points behind their rivals to the North, and three points behind Barcelona. But aside from the perfect result, a fan from India also got to live out his dream and see a match in Vincente Calderon Stadium.
30 is a scary age for most people. Aside from the fact that you now begin your age with a different number for the first time in 10 years, it’s a sign of your inevitable passage into middle age. This is often equated with the end of your life as you know it; no more fun, no more friends, the shackles of marriage and parenthood itch at your feet, and definitely, definitely no more partying. Now imagine on top of all of that, you recently broke up with your long-time girlfriend, and you happen to suffer your worst professional failure of the year the day of your 30th birthday party.