Not so long ago, Navas was known as much for the panic attacks he suffered on being away from his family as his sprite-like runs down Sevilla’s wing. But having overcome his travel phobia through some sympathetic treatment with the national squad during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, it’s the opposition defenders who now do the panicking when they see Navas galloping towards them with the ball. … [Read more...] about Jesús Navas
spanish football
Sergio Ballesteros
Not many teams beat Real Madrid these days and not many defenders outsprint Cristiano Ronaldo. But Levante and their club captain Ballesteros have managed both this season. Weighing in at 90 kilos (200 pounds), the 36-year-old not only still has his legs, but has also led his ageing teammates on an incredible run, defying pre-season predictions that his team were relegation fodder and topping La Liga for a few heady weeks. And they manage all this on a diet of pizza, beer and paella. Old school, in every way. … [Read more...] about Sergio Ballesteros
Pep Guardiola
He made his name as a midfield general for FC Barcelona in the 1990s. But Guardiola’s true calling, it seems, is getting the best out of players as their coach. In his first season in top-flight football management, Guardiola led Barça to the Champions League, Copa del Rey and Liga titles - losing his hair in the process. In the two seasons since, he has won a pair of league titles and the European crown again, relegating Real Madrid to also-ran status. Few soccer jobs are as intense or demanding, especially when you throw in the fact that FC Barcelona is a flagship for the restive Catalan nation. As a former Barça player and a Catalan, Guardiola knows this better than anyone, making his … [Read more...] about Pep Guardiola
Mourinho’s latest outburst betrays signs of strain
A few weeks ago, Iberosphere put forward the theory that José Mourinho’s recent controversial outbursts had been due to a combination of genuine anger and calculated politicking. That may indeed be the case, but his latest verbal broadside, launched during a press conference on the eve of Real Madrid’s league game against Málaga on March 3, shows very little in the way of calculated pot-stirring, and a good deal in terms of thin-skinned delusion. In the last few weeks, the Real Madrid coach’s obsession has been the league calendar, and how it purportedly favours the likes of Barcelona and works against his team. “The calendar is set by people who know what they are doing,” Mourinho … [Read more...] about Mourinho’s latest outburst betrays signs of strain
Sara Carbonero
To some she is merely the trophy girlfriend of footballer Iker Casillas. But when the British press accused her of distracting goalkeeper Casillas in the 2010 World Cup, and thus causing Spain’s shock first-round defeat to Switzerland, the response was overwhelming. Spanish newspapers, commentators and fans of every political stripe defended the sports journalist in a rare case of Spanish unity. And the Spanish wife of British deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, Miriam González Durántez, sent a stinging letter to The Times in which she called on it to “treat women for who they are, and not simply for what their male partners do.” … [Read more...] about Sara Carbonero
It’s Shakira Barcelona should fear, not Real Madrid
Well no, actually. And I base this assertion not on any scientific data, any drop in the percentage of passes that Xavi Hernández makes per game or, in fact, any decline in Barcelona’s performances at all, really. I base it on one word (well, two in fact): Waka Waka. Yes, Barça’s downfall, if and when it comes, will not be masterminded by Real Madrid’s scheming coach José Mourinho, but rather by the unlying hips of Shakira, the new girlfriend of the Catalan team’s central defender Gerard Piqué. As I write this, I’m listening to Dónde están los ladrones, Shakira’s Andean diva-rock masterpiece, released in 1998 (when Piqué was 12 years old, incidentally). It’s striking because it’s … [Read more...] about It’s Shakira Barcelona should fear, not Real Madrid
2011: Grand Slams, Liga intrigue and drugs
Last year was a pretty remarkable one for Spanish sport, doping scandals aside. With the World Cup win in South Africa the obvious pinnacle, there was glory for Spain in football, tennis, swimming and basketball. But what does 2011 hold in store for the country’s athletes and national teams? In tennis, world number one Rafael Nadal has opened his campaign at the Australian Open, seeking to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slams. Nadal already ranks seventh in the list of overall Grand Slam winners with nine, is one of three players in the open era to hold a Golden Slam, one of only seven in history to have achieved the career slam and the only player to … [Read more...] about 2011: Grand Slams, Liga intrigue and drugs
What’s eating José Mourinho?
“I’m too old to receive messages through newspapers. These little messages don’t reach me. I make the team. The decisions are mine.” We’re used to hearing José Mourinho fire broadsides at his opponents. We’re less used to hear him do it at his own employers. But his above remarks, made on January 19, were clearly aimed at Real Madrid’s Sporting Director Jorge Valdano. Valdano sparked the Portuguese’s ire after a 1-1 draw with Almería when responding to a television journalist’s question about Madrid’s possible signing of a new “number 9” -or striker- in the coming days, something Mourinho has expressly requested of the club. “We had a number 9 on the bench,” said Valdano, in reference to … [Read more...] about What’s eating José Mourinho?
Barça thrashing reminds Mourinho of his Madrid challenge
Had John Cleese’s Basil Fawlty voice been applied to José Mourinho’s post-match press conference after his Real Madrid side was humbled 5-0 by reigning champion Barcelona at Camp Nou, it wouldn’t have sounded entirely out of place. “Humiliation?” asked Mourinho rhetorically. “Not a bit of it… just don’t mention the result.” It was the Portuguese schemer’s heaviest defeat in a glittering career that has made him the most valuable manager in the world by any measure. However straight a bat Mourinho plays when under the cosh, a five-goal thrashing at the stadium of Real’s archrival is not going to sit well with a man used to winning. Unfortunately for Mourinho, he has little time to lick … [Read more...] about Barça thrashing reminds Mourinho of his Madrid challenge
Farewell to football’s crunching tackle?
The debate over bad tackles in football has shifted in recent weeks from Spanish shores to the island where the sport was invented, with a recent spate of incidents eliciting comment from all corners of the game. A man who has played in both La Liga and the English top flight, Mark Hughes, held forth on the matter after one of his Fulham players, American international Clint Dempsey, was scythed down by Chelsea’s Michael Essien, who received a red card for his troubles. “Years ago, I think there were a lot more fouls and it was refereed in a different way,” the former Barcelona, Manchester United and Chelsea forward said. "Certainly in my day, I had the reputation -possibly wrongly, I … [Read more...] about Farewell to football’s crunching tackle?