Valdes: “We tried to fight until the end” 9
Barcelona’s match against Almeria was blighted by some bizarre refereeing decisions from Carlos Clos Gomez.
Category Matches
Laporta: “I’m very pleased with the team” 1
FC Barçelona president Joan Laporta stated that he was “very pleased” with the team after the encounter with Almería because “they always stand up despite all the difficulties.”
Guardiola: “The title is not decided in one match” 22
FC Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola claimed that he was not upset with his side’s 2-2 draw with Almeria yesterday.
The Review: UD Almerica – FC Barcelona 2-2 55
The lost passion. The weak personality. The confusion.
The Ratings: UD Almeria – FC Barcelona 2-2 22
Who was the best performer last night? Find out what we think.
Live Match Chat: Almeria – FC Barcelona 35
Almeria – FC Barcelona
(Saturday March 6, 2010 @ 20:00 Barcelona time – Convert to local time)
Chat Link: http://fcbarcelona.hopto.org/
Facebook Application: http://apps.facebook.com/fcbarcelonachat/ (direct chat through Facebook)
Have you ever sat in front of your TV or computer while you were watching a FC Barcelona game and hoped you could share your excitement, feelings, and opinions with other fans LIVE as it happens?
Match Preview: Almeria vs Barcelona 24
Saturday, March 6, 2010,. 20:00 CET – Estadio del Mediterraneo, Almeria
Constantly pursued, losing breath, slowing up and edging forever closer to the inevitable fate of being shackled in and cast aside. This is the current story of FC Barcelona and their pursuers, Real Madrid.
Read more »
Post Match Review: FC Barcelona vs Malaga 41
The story could have gone either way.
Tense moments lived the Blaugrana fans when the Barcelona team conceded a goal 10 minutes before the game was over.
It was not a goal that put Barca behind, it was a bitter goal that made the score tied at 1-1. In the Camp Nou.
The first thing that occurred to my mind was the question of the week: “Is Sergio Busquets good enough?” Those who saw the match against Malaga would directly know the answer. Those who did not have the chance to, the answer would be: If we agree that Busquets is in fact a good midfielder, he for sure is not good enough yet.
Not only did he lose the ball in midfield and cost Barcelona a counter-attack, he also, just like in the game against Atletico Madrid, did not have the wit to commit a foul against Malaga players in the midfield. The question in turn would be: “Is Busquets fit to play as a defensive midfielder?”
The Ratings: FC Barcelona vs Malaga 55
FC Barcelona 2 – 1 Malaga CF
Valdes: Was alert on the rare ocassions that he was called into action. Will be disappointed to have conceded the equalizer late in the game as Valdo put the ball past him in a one on one to get the Andalusians back in the match. – 6
Alves: A solid performance from the full back in his comeback game after having been out for three weeks. Ventured forward, linked up well with Messi and put in some great crosses . Broke into the box and provided Messi with the simplest of tap ins for the winner. Gives Barcelona that much needed width which they have been lacking lately. – 7.5
Pique: He was strong in defense. Made some important interceptions and dealt with aerial balls well. Had a quiet night as Malaga did not threaten much. Brought the ball out of defense and even tried to find Ibrahimovic through some long aerial passes a couple of times. Booked for dissent in the first half. – 6.5
The Result: FC Barcelona 2 – Malaga CF 1 12
Result:
FC Barcelona: 2
Malaga: 1
Goalscorers:
FC Barcelona: Pedro (68′), Messi (83′)
Malaga: Valdo (80′)
Lineups:
FC Barcelona: Valdes,Alves, Pique, Puyol, Maxwell, Busquetes, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro, Ibrahimovic, Messi
Malaga: Munua, Gasper, Stepanov, Welington, Torres, Fernando, Toribio, Juanito, Baha, Duda, Obinna
Substitutes:
Match Preview: Barcelona vs Malaga 15
Saturday, February 27, 22:00 CET – Camp Nou, Barcelona
There are bigger fish to fry in La Liga than the one tonight for FC Barcelona, not withstanding all games are of significance and this game is another stepping stone to achieving the clubs ultimate goal of 2009/10.
Tonight, in the wake of the Blaugrana’s worst run of matches in 2010 wherein Pep Guardiola’s troops succumbed to debilitating results against Atletico Madrid and Stuttgart respectably, Barcelona will take on mid table Malaga CF who, despite their lacklustre squad ‘on paper’, their tendency to under perform against easier opposition and their ‘lower side of La Liga’ tag, have an impressive recent record and have already caused some hassle in the Catalunya camp.
The Estadio La Rosaleda played host to Malaga and Barcelona as the two sides began to enter their stride in the wake of the new season, the pitch may have that day been engulfed in a drenching sunlight, but it wasn’t long before a typhoon of hatred and brutality cast itself over the game as a blood-bath soon emerged between the two sides resulting in a mammoth 7 bookings in total as questionable refereeing saw to it that this number was held lower then could have been possible.
An enraged Barcelona entered the field instantly frustrated as Malaga opted for an aggressive all-out defensive approach as the Boquerones took aim against the Blaugrana players, resulting in Thierry Henrys early departure via a knock, enter Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who made the most of a sublime Lionel Messi chip to make it 1-0 for the Blaugrana, only for Gerard Pique to double the score line before full time despite Malaga coming frightfully close on numerous occasions.
Know The Opposition: A Profile of Malaga Coach Juan Ramón López Muñiz 0
On Saturday in the Camp Nou, FC Barcelona will come up against a Malaga side coached by yet another ex-defender, Juan Ramón López Muñiz.
Muñiz (42) has yet to really make his mark on the coaching world. He took control of the Malaga squad initially for 2 seasons beginning in 2006-07 while the team was still in the spanish second division. The following year, he guided the team back to the first division, but left in 2008 for a job with Racing Santander. The job at Racing lasted just one season, and he accepted an offer to return to Malaga this year.
Like many ex-defenders, Muñiz tends towards tactical conservatism in the way he lines up his team. During the first part of this season, he often switched between an orthodox 4-4-2, a more defensive 5-4-1, and even a 4-4-1-1. In the last nine games, Muñiz seems to have settled on a 4-2-3-1 as his preferred formation.
Antonio Rubinos Pérez to Referee Barcelona – Malaga 4
Madrileño Antonio Rubinos Pérez will oversee Saturday’s contest at the Camp Nou between FC Barcelona and Malaga. Perez (40), a chemical engineer by day, has been a first division referee in Spain since the 2002-03 season. In 2007, he was awarded his FIFA badge and has presided over a number of international UEFA Cup and Europa League matches.
Pérez has a reputation for being somewhat liberal in the way he dispenses justice on the field. Last season he showed 103 yellow cards in 18 matches. This season, he leads the league in red cards, with 8 players expelled in 12 matches; 49 yellow cards have also been thrown in for good measure.
FC Barcelona are no strangers to Perez’s disciplined approach to officiating. He infamously gave Barcelona defender, and Spanish youth international, Marc Muniesa (17) a straight red card on his official first team debut in last season’s home contest with Osasuna, a decision that was met with vigorous protests from players, coaches and fans alike. Perez also recently refereed the first leg of the 2009 Spanish Supercopa which pitted eventual winner Barcelona against Athletic Bilbao.
Four youth players called up ahead of Malaga clash 8
Pep Guardiola called up four youngsters to continue their learning curve by training with the first-team on Friday morning as the squad prepared for the visit of Málaga at the weekend.
The Blaugrana boss added Carlos Planas (18) and Albert Dalmau (17) from the juvenile A side and Oriol Romeu (18) and Ilie Sánchez (19) from Barça Atlètic to add to the 19 regulars for the session. As is the norm the day before a game Barça trained behind closed doors at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper.
Alves bouncing back
