Play.
Real Madrid won the Super Cup.
Steve McManaman is a former Real Madrid player. There is a time and a place for it.
Real Madrid won the Spanish title over the weekend, but Manchester United had more issues on and off the pitch. There was controversy in the Copa del Rey and wins that moved Manchester City and the other teams closer to the title.
Here are three people who know what you need to know from Europe.
Talking points, top goals, and troubled teams are included.
There are four talking points.
Real Madrid won the Supercopa.
Play.
Real Madrid won the Spanish Super Cup despite Eder Militao's red card and a wonderful penalty save from Thibaut Courtois.
Carlo Ancelotti deserves credit for building a serious team that plays to its strengths and, more often than not, gets, but it's only the Spanish Supercopa and more trophies will be required come the end of the season to consider the campaign a success.
The 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in Sunday's Supercopa final in Saudi Arabia was relatively easy and the players who did the most to deliver the trophy were unsurprising. The goals were scored by Luka Modric and Karim Benzema, and Thibaut Courtois saved a late penalty conceded by Eder Militao, who was sent off.
The team that surprised Atleti Madrid with a second-half comeback never looked close to causing another upset, despite Athletic being a potentially awkward opponent.
After finishing off a lethal end-to-end team move, all quick passes and smart decisions, Modric put Madrid ahead in the 38th minute. It was his first goal of the season and he has been denied many times by the woodwork.
It was Courtois who caught the eye with a penalty stop that was unlike any other in the history of the game, throwing himself to his right and lifting a leg high to his left to keep out a shot by Raul.
Real Madrid won the Supercopa de Espana for the 12th time.
Manchester United is not doing well.
The 2-2 draw at Aston Villa was the latest example of the chaos at the club, and it was one of the reasons why the interim Man United manager was hired.
It was bad enough for the team to throw away a 2-0 lead in the final 13 minutes, but it was even worse because Anthony Martial refused to travel with the team.
This came at the end of a week in which the attitude of younger players was criticized by the player, and United are drifting toward the rocks at alarming speed.
With so many issues coming to the surface, whoever is hired as permanent manager may arrive when all the problems are being dealt with. His time in charge will not have been a failure if his legacy is to end the culture of players under-performing.
The derby in Sevilla was spoiled by an ugly incident.
Play.
Joan Jordan was hit by an object thrown by a fan in the stands and the match was abandoned in the 40th minute.
The highs and lows of the Sevilla-Real Betis tie were extreme even by the fixture's own standards. The result of the game felt like an unimportant one.
A game that began on Saturday night in front of 50,000 fans and produced a thrilling opening 40 minutes was halted when Sevilla's Joan Jordan was hit on the head by a plastic pole thrown from the stands. The tie was finished behind closed doors and the loudest noise came from both clubs' complaints.
There were questions as to whether Sevilla had sought to take advantage of the situation. Victor Camarasa, one of the players from Betis, took to social media to accuse their rivals and Julen Lopetegui of encouraging Jordan to exaggerate his condition.
That sparked a furious reaction from Lopetegui. The Spanish football federation's report called a 50 centimetre hollow bar a "terrible idea", and his counterpart questioned how much harm it could do.
The viewers' guide is for LaLiga, MLS, FA Cup, and other sports.
- You can watch FC Daily on the internet.
Do you not have ESPN? Get immediate access.
Dybala's reaction has people talking.
After scoring an impressive opener against Udinese, Dybala turned around and ran to the halfway line, which led to more speculation about his future.
Dybala has shown his quality, but his inability to perform for an entire season and stay injury-free appears to be a concern.
The Argentina's international's contract expires on June 30 and recent reports have suggested the club's latest offer was lower than previous terms discussed. There is speculation in Italy that the 28-year-old could be on a free transfer at the end of the season.
Simone Inzaghi was asked on Saturday if he would be interested in managing Dybala, though he deftly side-stepped the question.
Three goals are must-see.
Man City won because of De Bruyne.
Kevin De Bruyne has earned the right to be compared to the likes of Roy Keane, Patrick Vieira, Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard, all of whom scored great goals.
The Belgium international received the ball midway inside the Blues half and pulled clear of N'Golo Kante before running towards the penalty area. Then, from 25 yards, De Bruyne let loose a curling right-foot shot that flew beyond Kepa Arrizabalaga and sealed a win that moved the champions closer to retaining their title.
The 30-year-old is a model of consistency, so much so that his quality is sometimes overlooked when talk turns to the best players in the league, but De Bruyne can also do the spectacular.
Kev is coming up clutch.
>
January 16, 2022.
Immobile and Milinkovic-Savic combine for Lazio.
It might have been Ciro Immobile, who set up a comfortable 2-0 win at Salernitana with a cool finish, but the goal will be remembered more for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who continues to show he is a world class player.
The combination of the style of play and the fact that his players are starting to understand it was proof that the players are starting to understand it. Lazio's manager said after the match that he has coached many great players, but that he is one of the best he has ever worked with. His progress over the last two months has been excellent and he can take another step up in quality. He used to lose the ball cheaply, but now he plays with determination.
Ciro Immobile and Manuel Lazzari are featured in the film.
>
La Lazio is pictured.
>
S.S.Lazio is the official account of the S.S.Lazio family.
Fekir has quick thinking.
The incident that caused the derby to be suspended came just seconds after the most important moment of the game, which should have been a celebration of Fekir's new contract at the club.
Fekir was about to take a corner when he spotted Sevilla goalkeeper Alfonso Pastor off his line and whipped a left-footed delivery into the top corner. The goal showed why Fekir and the team are as entertaining as any player or team in Spain.
FEKIR scores directly from a corner.
>
January 15, 2022.
Two teams should be worried.
Genoa turmoil continues as Shevchenko leaves.
Genoa has won more titles than any other club in the league, but it has not won a title in 98 years and the dismissal of Shevchenko after just 11 games shows how far the club have fallen.
When Davide Ballardini's fourth spell in charge of the club ended in November, Shevchenko and his reputation took the first steps in club management. Shevchenko was out after nine winless league games.
Genoa's only league win was way back in September, and with a six-point gap to fourth-bottom Venezia, the club is likely to be demoted.
The title hopes of Benfica are fading.
They might have qualified for the knockout rounds ahead of Barcelona, but they are struggling in the league and their title challenge took a hit with a home draw against Moreirense.
After three-time title-winning manager Jorge Jesus left his position, the Eagles lost their first two games in the Primeira League and then in the Taca de Portugal.
Nelson Verissimo started his tenure with the second defeat. The draw with Moreirense leaves the club nine points adrift of leaders Porto and has all but ended their hopes of a first league title since 2019.
The weekend's MVP.
The man sets more records.
FCBayernEN put FC Koln to the sword.
>
3x
>
2x @esMuellerT.
>
2x @Leroy_Sane.
>
#KOEFCB pic.twitter.com/ss8ss8s9t
>
January 15, 2022.
Robert Lewandowski scores goals with such regularity that even a hat trick, like the one he scored in a win at FC Cologne, barely feels like news. His latest performance restored the six-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga and also set two significant milestones.
This was the 66th consecutive league game that was not blanked, a record stretching back to a0-0 draw with RB Leipzig in February 2020 and a 300th goal for Robert Lewandowski. Even at 33, you can't rule out him catching the legendary Gerd Muller, who leads all scorers with 361.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
