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Saturday

PREVIEW: Barcelona can all but clinch league at Real Sociedad

DPA © Barcelona are planning to leave behind all the sound and the fury of Wednesday's Champions League clash against Real Madrid - and all but clinch their third straight Spanish title.

   If they win at struggling Real Sociedad on Saturday they will stay at least eight points ahead of Real Madrid in La Liga, with just four rounds of matches left then.

   "Tonight was great," said Barca midfielder Seydou Keita after the 2-0 Champions League win in Madrid from Lionel Messi's late double. "But now we need to start thinking again about the league."

   Barca coach Pep Guardiola is likely to rest several regulars after their exertions in Madrid, with the May 3 semi-final second leg in mind.

   Veteran captain Carles Puyol will probably be given a well-deserved rest after heroically slotting in at left-back in Madrid, despite not being 100 per cent physically.

   Ibrahim Afellay, who made an immediate impact after coming off the subs' bench on Wednesday, is likely to start, alongside fellow youngsters Thiago and Jeffren.

   Barca's injury victims at the moment are Eric Abidal, Adriano, Maxwell, Andres Iniesta and Bojan Krkic.

   Real Sociedad, who made a good start to the season, are now in 12th place and only three points aboved the relegation zone.

"It doesn't really matter much what kind of team they (Barcelona) put out, because they are all players of high quality," said Sociedad defender Ion Ansotegi.

   Sociedad will again be without injured main striker Joseba Llorente. In the 13 matches that the San Sebastian side have played without him, they have picked up just 13 points.

   Earlier on Saturday, Real Madrid will be at home to lowly Zaragoza.

   The same as Guardiola, real coach Jose Mourinho is likely to rest several of the men who played on Wednesday, in an attempt to keep them fresh for Tuesday's second leg.

   This will open the door for the likes of Gonzalo Higuain, Karim Benzema and Kaka, all of whom looked sharp in last Saturday's 6-3 romp at Valencia.

   Saturday's other game will see Deportivo La Coruna, who are still not out of trouble, at home to Atletico Madrid.

   On Sunday, third-placed Valencia will be at Osasuna and fourth-placed Villarreal receive Getafe. Sevilla visit Almeria, Levante take on Sporting Gijon, Malaga host Hercules and Mallorca travel to Santander.

   Monday's game will bring together Espanyol and Athletic Bilbao, two clubs keen to return to Europe next season.




Del Bosque's Spain concerns over Real-Barca conflict

DPA © Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said on Friday he was worried that the deepening conflict between Real Madrid and Barcelona might affect the ambience within the national team.

   "We have a problem," said Del Bosque.

According to sports daily Marca, the Spain coach then talked, off the record, about the "possible damage" being done to the national team by the bitter conflict between the twin giants.

   There are eight Barca players and four Real players in Del Bosque's Spain squad, and the manager is clearly concerned as to how this conflict might damage the harmony within the world champions that he, and predessor Luis Aragones, worked so hard to build up.

   Aragones led Spain to triumph at Euro 2008, Del Bosque guided La Roja to World Cup glory in 2010.

   On Wednesday Real and Barca played out a stormy Champions League semi-final first leg, which Barca won 2-0 with late goals from World Player Lionel Messi.

   There was an unsightly scuffle at half-time between the players, in which Barca's reserve keeper Jose Manuel Pinto was sent off.

   Then Real had midfielder Pepe sent off for an ugly foul on Barca's Dani Alves. Real coach Jose Mourinho was ordered out of the technical area for protesting Pepe's red card, then furiously accused Barca of receiving "special treatment" from UEFA's referees in an explosive post-match outburst.

   On Thursday UEFA opened an investigation into the allegations of Mourinho, who seems likely to receive a three-match touchline ban and a heavy fine.

   Barca then announced an official complaint to UEFA about Mourinho allegations.

   Real, for their part, have filed a complaint to UEFA claiming that the Barca players, in particular Alves, behaved "in an anti-sporting manner."

   On Friday, Madrid papers Marca and AS said that Pepe had not actually made contact with Alves in the red card incident, and openly accused Alves of play-acting.

   The headline in Marca was "Cheat!" with a picture of Alves. Marca commented that "it was very strange" to see Alves leave on a stretcher - then return to the match in "perfect condition."

   Mourinho said on Friday that "the pictures speak for themselves, I have nothing more to say about this."

   Del Bosque, for his part, is clearly worried about the Real-Barca conflict getting even worse when the Big Two meet again - for the fourth time within 18 days - in Tuesday's semi-final second leg.




Thursday

Majestic Messi leaves Barcelona well placed to reach final

DPA © Barcelona are well placed to reach their third Champions League final within five years after beating Spanish rivals Real Madrid 2-0 on Wednesday in an ugly, bad-tempered semi-final first leg.

FIFA World Player Lionel Messi scored two late goals for Barca after Real's defend-and-counter plan had gone up in smoke thanks to the harsh sending-off of Pepe.



Real coach Jose Mourinho was then sent off for protesting, and furiously lashed out afterwards at German referee Wolfgang Stark.

"Congratulations to Barcelona," said the Portuguese coach, "but I just do not understand why Barcelona always receive the help of the referee. All my life I will be asking myself this question, and one day I hope to receive an answer."

Mourinho then raised eyebrows by saying: "We were hoping to finish 0-0, but the sending-off (of Pepe) gave them an open road to beat us. Now it is Mission Impossible for us."

The Portuguese coach finished by saying: "I am not too sad, I have a great family. But I don't understand why Barcelona have this power. It happened two years ago to Chelsea (in the 2009 semi-finals), almost to my Inter last year, and also to Arsenal this year.

"Why do the opponents of Barcelona always have a man sent off? Where does this power come from? Maybe it is to give more publicity to UNICEF, maybe because of the power of (Spanish federation president Jose Angel) Villar in UEFA."

Real's general director Jorge Valdano, for his part, said: "The decision to send off Pepe was crucial, it was the only thing in the match more important than Messi.

Valdano added that turning the tie around in Barcelona "is not impossible, because of the personality and history of this club."

Real midfielder Xabi Alonso also said "the decision (sending-off Pepe) was decisive, it changed everything. I know I am not impartial, but it was not a direct red card...This is a real pity"

Barca coach Pep Guardiola refused to respond to Mourinho's outburst.

"We have played a very good game," said Guardiola, "with a lot of control and balance. We also had aggression. I am very pleased with my players."

At half-time Barca's reserve goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto had been given a direct red card for scuffling in the tunnel with the Real players.

All in all, referee Stark waved five yellow cards and three reds, including the ones for Pinto and Mourinho.

Barca enjoyed 71 per cent possession, with Real content to defend in depth and play on the break. This strategy had served them well in the April 20 Spanish cup final - won 1-0 by the whites - but failed badly this time.

Barca went out onto the Santiago Bernabeu pitch complaining about the long grass and at Real refusing to have the pitch watered. This was part of Mourinho's strategy to slow up the Catalan's famous smooth rhythm.

David Villa almost gave Barca an early lead with a left-foot drive from the right. Then Messi set up Xavi for a low shot that was well saved by Real keeper Iker Casillas.

Real defender Sergio Ramos was booked for hacking down the determined Messi and will be suspended for the second leg along with Pepe, who was given a harsh direct red card in the 61st minute for an ugly foul on Dani Alves.

With the hosts down to 10, the one-way traffic became even more intense, and Casillas again had to be at his sharpest to keep out Villa.

There was little that the Spain keeper could do 13 minutes from time, however, when Messi broke the deadlock with a close-range volley after sub Ibrahim Affelay had centred perfectly from the right.

Three minutes from time, Messi broke away in trademark fashion, skipped past four Real defenders and made it 2-0 with a calm right- foot finish.

On Tuesday, Manchester United took a giant step towards the final, which will be played in London's Wembley stadium, when they won 2-0 at Schalke 04 through goals by Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney.





Wednesday

Real Madrid – Barcelona Preview

@ goal.com : Real Madrid – Barcelona Preview: Chance for Pep Guardiola's side to exact revenge for Copa del Rey loss in Champions League semi-final
The momentum is with the hosts approaching the third of a series of four Clasico encounters, with Jose Mourinho's men beating their eternal rivals in cup competition just last week

PROBABLE LINE-UPS

Real Madrid (4-2-3-1):
Casillas; Arbeloa, Ramos, Albiol, Marcelo; Pepe, Alonso; Ronaldo, Ozil, Di Maria; Adebayor


After rotating his side to great effect at the weekend against Valencia, Jose Mourinho will stick largely by the players who provided so much success in the Copa del Rey final. In comparison to that encounter, Raul Albiol can feature and will therefore start in the heart of the defence, while Sami Khedira is injured.

Ricardo Carvalho is banned.

Barcelona (4-3-3):
Valdes; Alves, Pique, Puyol, Maxwell; Xavi, Busquets, Iniesta; Pedro, Messi, Villa

Barcelona potentially have real issues in a defence, where Maxwell and Gabriel Milito both picked up problems at the weekend. Both are doubts, and Carles Puyol isn’t certain to start either.

Maxwell’s doubtful status is particularly worrisome as Eric Abidal and Adriano – two other potential left-backs – are already ruled out along with Bojan Krkic.

DID YOU KNOW?


- Real Madrid have twice beaten Barcelona at the semi-final stage en route to lifting the European Cup, in 1960 and 2002.

- Madrid, who have won the competition nine times, are aiming to reach a 13th European Cup final in what is a record 22nd semi-final appearance.

- In 211 previous meetins between the sides, Madrid hold the upper hand with 86 wins compared to Barcelona's 82. On 43 occasions the fixture has ended level.
Cristiano Ronaldo headed a famous winner when the club’s met in the Copa del Rey final in Valencia one week ago. That match required extra-time to separate the sides, with the decisive goal coming in the 103rd minute.

- Ronaldo's goal on matchday 10 was Madrid's 900th in UEFA competition, making them the first team to reach that milestone.

- Wednesday's fixture will mark the 51-year anniversary of Madrid's 3-1 win at Barcelona in the second leg of their 1959-60 European Cup semi-final. That success, ensured a 6-2 aggregate win for the capital club, who went on to lift the trophy by beating Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3 at Glasgow's Hampden Park.

- The following season, this time in the first round, Barcelona caused something of a stir by eliminating the previously invincible Madrid. A 2-2 first leg draw was followed by a 2-1 win in the second match.

- When the clubs last met in the semi-finals, Real Madrid eliminated Barcelona 3-1 on aggregate before going on to beat Bayer Leverkusen in the final, which was again at Hampden Park.
Barcelona don't have a great semi-final record, having won five and lost six of their previous 11 visits to this stage.

- Pep Guardiola’s side have only won two of their five away matches in the competition, but Real Madrid thus far have a flawless home record.
Lionel Messi's goal in the second leg against Shakhtar Donetsk was Barcelona's 300th in the UEFA Champions League.

- Messi, who has a record 50 goals for the season, is the competition's leading scorer with nine goals. Boasting 26 shots on target, he also leads that category.




Thursday

Real Madrid return to glory by winning Spanish cup

DPA ©Real Madrid won their first trophy since 2008 by beating favourites Barcelona 1-0 in the final of the Spanish King's Cup on Wednesday in Valencia.


Cristiano Ronaldo guided Real to their first Spanish cup win since 1993 by heading in an extra-time winner to break the tense satalemate.

The final whistle in Valencia provoked euphoria and delight in Madrid among fans who have had to endure Barcelona's domination in recent years.

Real coach Jose Mourinho's counterattacking strategy was completely vindicated, as the whites soaked up all of Barca's pressure - and hit them lethally on the break.

The crucial goal came 12 minutes into extra time. Marcelo and Angel Di Maria played a clever one-two down the left, and the latter centred perfectly for Ronaldo to get above Adriano and break the deadlock with a powerful header.

A euphoric Ronaldo said: "I am very happy because the club has gone many years without winning the cup. Mourinho has been very helpful in this. He has given us positive energy."

Real's new hero finished by saying: "Barca played well, but in football, who scores wins."

Di Maria said that "this is due to the strength of our unity. I knew that we could win this title."

Real captain Iker Casillas, who had to make two sharp saves in the second half, called the outcome a "triumph is for the fans, because they have had a difficult time of it in recent years."

Casillas, who accepted the trophy from King Juan Carlos, said that the team must now turn attention to the Champions League.

Real face Barca in the Champions semi-finals on April 27 in Madrid and on May 2 in Barcelona.

Real President Florentino Perez called it a "vibrant game" and "a demonstration that Spain leads the world in football."

The club's general director, Jorge Valdano, praised "a heroic effort from our young team."

As expected, Barca enjoyed 70-per-cent possession. What was not expected, however, was that they would be unable to break down an excellent Real defence.

The Catalans failed to create many clear chances. The closest that they came to scoring was in the 69th minute, when Pedro had a goal correctly disallowed for offside.

Before then, all of the chances had been for Real, despite their lack of possession.

Ronaldo forced a low save out of Barca keeper Jose Manuel Pinto in the 36th minute. Just before half-time, the imposing Pepe - used by Mourinho in midfield instead of defence - headed an excellent centre from Mesut Oezil against Pinto's post.

Barca improved in the second half, and Real keeper Iker Casillas had to save low down from Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta.

Real almost won it at the end of normal time, but Pinto did well to keep out a high shot from Di Maria.

Then came extra time, and Ronaldo took centre stage. He came close to breaking the deadlock with a low drive on the break, then scored a winning goal that was celebrated wildly in Valencia and Madrid.

Real were reduced to 10 men in the last minute when Di Maria was sent off for a second bookable offence, but the advantage came too late for Barcelona to capitalize.

Barca coach Josep Guardiola sportingly congratulated Real: "Now we will just have to pick ourselves up and get back to work."

It was the first final that Guardiola had lost since taking over Barca in 2008, and the first time that he had lost to Real in seven games.

Barca President Sandro Rosell also congratulated Real.

"I am proud of our players, coach and fans," he said. "It was a good final, very emotional. A goal could have fallen to either team."





Wednesday

Take care of your heart, its Clasico time

DPA © The Spanish Society for Cardiology (SEC) issued a warning on Tuesday about the risk of heart problems during the upcoming Clasico matches between Barcelona and Real Madrid.

The twin giants, who played out a tense 1-1 league draw on Saturday, face each other again on Wednesday in the final of the King's Cup - then in the semi-finals of the Champions League a week later.

SEC's warning, which has been published on various websites, warned that the risks of suffering a heart attack "increase considerably during football matches of high tension."

According to SEC, "in moments of emotional stress, such as during a football match of this kind, the production of adrenaline increases, which makes the movements of the heart stronger and faster and narrows the arteries."

The possibilities of suffering heart problems, announced SEC, "increase greatly" during decisive matches, and when such matches are repeated over a short space of time.

SEC cited a German study carried out during the 2006 World Cup finals which showed that cardiac emergencies increased by 300 per cent for men when the German national team was playing - and also doubled for women.

The SEC statement quotes doctor Julian Villacastin, the institutes' general secretary, as saying: "Emotional stress is one of the factors which contributes to cardiac episodes.

"There is always tension during a Real-Barca clash, and this is especially so if they play three decisive matches against each other within two weeks."

Villacastin added: "Studies have discovered that the final result of a game is not so important. What is important is the intensity, the emotions and the expectations generated during a game. A dramatic finale, such as a penalty or a goal in the last minutes, are factors which could provoke heart attacks."

According to Villcastin, "the profile of the person susceptible to suffering this kind of cardiac incidents is a male over 50 years of age, diabetic, smoker, hyper-tense, with a high level of cholesterol, possibly obese and with a sedentary lifestyle.

"Other characteristics of candidates for cardiac episodes are people who have difficulty controlling their emotions, people who are passionate and who have a low tolerance level for frustrations."




Sunday

10-man Real Madrid battle out controversial late draw

DPA © Real Madrid were relieved to get a controversial late 1-1 draw Saturday at home to Spanish leaders Barcelona, in the first of four Clasicos to be played within 18 days.

The draw leaves Barca eight points ahead with six matches left, well placed to clinch their third straight league title.

However, the draw will put Real in good heart for Wednesday's King's Cup final against Barca - and for their clashes in the semi- finals of the Champions League.

It was the first time that Real had avoided defeat against their old enemy since Pep Guardiola took over at Barca in 2008 and was achieved with 10 men, because defender Raul Albiol was harshly sent off when committing the penalty from which Lionel Messi gave Barca the lead.

Real keeper Casillas said: "Our aim was to win and reduce Barca's lead. We didn't do that, but the draw is not a bad result, in the circumstances."

Barca defender Gerard Pique said: "We are annoyed at how this game slipped away from us. We should have finished it off earlier."

Real coach Jose Mourinho raised eyebrows with a cautious lineup, putting defender Pepe in midfield. As usual, Barca controlled possession from start to finish, obliging the whites to defend in depth.

Messi was twice foiled by Real keeper Iker Casillas in the first half. In the 26th minute, Casillas seemed to have pulled down David Villa for a penalty but was reprieved by the referee.

Real only created danger from set-piece situations. Just before half-time, Barca left-back Adriano did well to clear a header from Cristiano Ronaldo off the goal-line.

Four minutes after the restart, Ronaldo - who has never scored against Barca - hit the post with a low free-kick.

Two minutes later, Albiol clumsily failed to control a bouncing ball, then pulled down Villa for a penalty - and was given a harsh direct red card.

Messi calmly put away the penalty, taking his league total to 30, one more than Ronaldo.

Barca captain Carles Puyol, back from injury after three months, was stretchered off with a pulled muscle, and the Catalans started to look vulnerable in defence.

Even so, they missed clear chances to put Real out of their misery.

Eight minutes from the end, the hosts were given a controversial penalty when Dani Alves pulled down fellow Brazilian Marcelo. Replays clearly showed that Alves touched the ball before the man.

Ronaldo made it 1-1 from the spot, and the Estadio Bernabeu heaved a collective sight of relief at their team having avoided another Clasico defeat.

Earlier Saturday, Valencia took another step toward clinching third place in the Spanish Liga with a 3-0 romp at bottom team Almeria.

Roberto Soldado, Marius Stankevicius and Jordi Alba scored the goals for Valencia, all in the second half, taking advantage of some sloppy defending from the hosts.

Unai Emery's team now have 63 points from 32 games, nine more than fourth-place Villarreal, who host lowly Zaragoza on Sunday.

If Valencia clinch third place, they will obtain direct entry to the Champions League, in which they reached the round of 16 this season.

Almeria, in contrast, have a doomed, resigned look about them. They have just 26 points, four less than Hercules and seven less than Malaga and Zaragoza.

Also Saturday, Malaga improved their survival chances by thrashing Mallorca 3-0.

Sebastian Fernandez gave Malaga the lead, then fit-again Brazilian Julio Baptista started to pay off his massive pricetag with two handsome goals.

"I am delighted to finally be able to help Malaga," Baptista said. "This club has invested heavily in me, and I will do my best to help it."

Getafe edged Sevilla 1-0 thanks to a goal 14 minutes from time by Venezuelan striker Miku, after being played through by man-of-the- match Dani Parejo.

The defeat leaves Sevilla in fifth place, eight points behind Villarreal, with their chances of returning to the Champions League in tatters.

Getafe, for their part, moved up to 12th, safely above the danger zone.





Saturday

REAL MADRID - BARCELONA: Countdown to a Classic (Part 1 of 4)

@ ibtimes Perhaps the two best teams in the world meet in four upcoming matches as Real Madrid and Barcelona start things off in a La Liga match at Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday
On Wednesday, the two face each other in the Cop del Rey final, and then meet twice more in Champions League action on April 27th and May 3rd.

In fact, Saturday's match is probably the most meaningless of the four.

Real Madrid are down by eight points to Barcelona in the La Liga standings, and a Los Galacticos victory would only cut the deficit to five points with six games remaining.

Pride won't allow Real Madrid to not give all four matches a 100 percent effort, especially after Barcelona gave Real Madrid a 5-0 thumping at Camp Nou.

But despite Jose Mourinho likely having his heart set on avenging the November loss, he might consider saving the best tricks up his sleeve for the Copa del Rey title match. While not over-working his players on Saturday, Mourinho could also tinker with his lineup, to see what would work on Wednesday.


Such strategy is probably needed. Barcelona has been a dominate force this season, and game-planning with an outside-of-the-box mentality might be the only way to beat Barcelona.

Mourinho, a former Chelsea manager, might look back at his former London foe Arsenal to observe how the Gunners were able to beat Barcelona 2-1, back on February 16th.

Indeed, Barcelona has been so dominant that the club has only two other losses, and they came against Real Betis on January 19th and Hercules on September 11th.

Pep Guardiola employs a dizzying passing game that thrives off of time of possession, and which throws off opponents' rhythm.

It's also hard to not be dominant when Barcelona has the best striker in the world in Lionel Messi, a steady goalkeeper in Victor Valdes, as well as a collection of players who starred for the 2010 World Cup Champion Spain squad.

That's not to say Real Madrid will be intimidated by Barcelona's extraordinary talent, because Mourinho has plenty of elite players himself. Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Ozil, Angel Di Maria, Gonzalo Higuain, and Iker Casillas would be centerpieces on nearly every club in the world.

Real Madrid will face a Barcelona squad that continues to be without Eric Abidal. However, central defender Carlos Puyol might be back in action.

Said Guardiola: "He'll travel with us and tomorrow we'll decide" if he plays. "It's a question of seeing how he progresses but the last three or four days the pain has gone away."




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Real Madrid vs Barcelona El-clasico
Barcelona will play against Real Madrid on 2015 at PM GMT at a home match in Spain La Liga Primera. Real Madrid vs Barcelona live stream. Stay tuned here for a live coverage of the match including preview, preparations, predictions, bets, news, live score, result, comments, highlights and goals from youtube, and recaps and watch replay of Real Madrid vs Barcelona from video streaming sites. So don't miss this great match between Barca and Real Madrid that is today 2015: