Tottenham had the joint-best defence in the Premier League last season, but Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly planning to add to his defensive options for the new campaign. According to Italian journalist Emanuele Giulianelli, who contributes FourFourTwo and La Gazzetta dello Sport among other publications, Pochettino is planning to reignite a proposed move for Valencia centre-back Mateo Musacchio. The Belgian pair of Toby Alderweireld and the fit-again Jan Vertonghen are set to be Pochettino's first choice defensive pairing again this year, but with Federico Fazio joining Roma on loan … [Read more...]
What can be done about Valencia’s defence?
At 32 years old, Javi Fuego is the oldest player in the Valencia squad, the youngest and most inexperienced squad in La Liga. At the end of the 2013-14 season, when some players chose to leave – Juan Bernat, Jérémy Mathieu – and others were told to leave – Ricardo Costa – Javi Fuego remained with the side. … [Read more...]
Valencia v Barcelona: Reasons to be Optimistic (at least, a little)
It looked like a pre-season friendly, a game of little or no relevance, with both coaches opting to rest most of their senior players and give their second-tier players some game time. But, as a Valencia supporter I have to admit that the return leg of the Valencia v Barca cup tie was far more interesting and entertaining than I had expected. No, los che didn’t win, and certainly should have. But the game had a number of positives, and in this season, the worst I can remember, we have to seize the positives whenever they appear. … [Read more...]
Could the threat of relegation actually be good for Valencia?
14th in the La Liga table, only 4 points and the same number of places from the relegation zone, not having won a Liga game for three months, their biggest defeat in any competition for twenty odd years less than a week ago; the figures make sobering reading for any Valencia fan. But the threat, and very real possibility, of relegation to the Segunda may be just what the team needs to drag itself out of this footballing mire in which it finds itself. Anyone who saw the first leg of the Copa del Rey tie against Barcelona could be forgiven for thinking it was a completely different team to the … [Read more...]
Barcelona Probable Lineup vs Valencia: Munir and Bartra to start
Venue: Estadio de Mestalla, Valencia Date: 10/02/2016 Kick-off: 08:00 PM GMT / 03:00 PM EST Match Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen did not have much to do in the first leg against Valencia and with Barcelona currently holding a whopping seven goal advantage; the German goalkeeper can head into the return leg without any pressure whatsoever. Nonetheless, ter Stegen is keen on impressing in each game as he looks to become the number one choice in La Liga as well and the 23-year old will undoubtedly want to keep a clean sheet on the night. Defence At the back, regulars Jordi Alba, Gerard … [Read more...]
Valencia vs Barcelona: Preview, Predicted Lineups and Prediction
Venue: Estadio de Mestalla, Valencia Date: 10/02/2016 Kick-off: 08:00 PM GMT / 03:00 PM EST Match Valencia News The immense pressure on the shoulders of Gary Neville compounded even further as Valencia went on to suffer a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Real Betis in the La Liga last weekend, following their 7-0 humiliation against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey. Now Valencia prepare for the second leg of the Copa del Rey against Barcelona at the Mestalla and although Los Che are virtually already eliminated, it will be of paramount importance for Neville’s men to put in a good show … [Read more...]
Real Madrid’s Worst Three performers against Valencia
Pepe With Raphael Varane back to full fitness, Pepe needed to deliver a good performance in order to keep his place in the starting lineup intact but unfortunately, the Portuguese star did just the opposite against Valencia. Looking very shaky as well as clumsy, Pepe made a host of poor decisions throughout the game and was at fault for allowing Paco Alcacer to grab the equalizer late into the game. While the 33-year old did look impressive with deliveries into the box, he simply did not exude confidence from the back and it would not be a surprise if the veteran is replaced by Varane in … [Read more...]
Real Madrid’s Top Three performers against Valencia
Karim Benzema Putting behind the controversy that has plagued him this season, Karim Benzema seems to have his full focus back on football once again and the Frenchman put in another impressive performance during the 2-2 draw against Valencia. Benzema opened the scoring with a fine goal in the 16th minute and created a host of opportunities for his teammates throughout the clash. Even more impressively, Benzema helped out defensively as well and it was a fantastic all round performance from the Frenchman. As a result, everyone was left baffled by manager Rafael Benitez’s decision to … [Read more...]
Valencia vs Real Madrid: Preview, Predicted Lineups and Prediction
Venue: Estadio de Mestalla Date: 03/01/2016 Kick-off: 7:30 PM GMT / 02:30 PM EST Television coverage: Sky Sports 3/HD; beIN Sports en Español, beIN Sports USA Online Streaming: fuboTV (USA), Sky Go (UK) Match Valencia News Gary Neville’s search for a first win as manager of Valencia continued after his side succumbed to a disappointing 1-0 defeat against Villarreal last time out. The defeat means that Valencia are now languishing in 10th position in the La Liga table and Neville already seems to find himself under pressure at the Mestalla. Things are likely not going to get any easier soon … [Read more...]
The Fight for Survival in La Liga
Almeria, Eibar, Granada and Deportivo La Coruna head into the final day of the La Liga season knowing that they need a result to avoid relegation back to the Segunda Division. Two of those teams will be going down, with just two points separating them and head-to-head records making matters even more interesting. Deportivo face the toughest task and will be reliant on the other teams below them not picking up results. They have to travel away to the Nou Camp to face a Barcelona side ready to pick up the title. However, with Depor requiring a result and Barca players wary of picking up … [Read more...]