La Liga talking points: Complexity and chaos in Spain so far
Monday 26 September 2016 15:00, UK
La Liga's top three may have a familiar look, but the start of the season has been far from normal.
Defending champions Barcelona will need to plan for life without the injured Lionel Messi, Zinedine Zidane has given Cristiano Ronaldo a taste of his future by substituting him for tactical reasons, and James Rodriguez has made an unlikely return to favour despite seeming destined for the Bernabeu exit.
And it's certainly not just the top of the table where there's intrigue.
Minnows Eibar, Las Palmas and Alaves have all defied their critics to make strong starts to the season, while Valencia and Sevilla will provide plenty of interest over the course of the campaign.
Sky Sports' La Liga presenter David Garrido goes through the big talking points from the Spanish season so far...
Layers of complexity
There is so much more to La Liga than the big three, and I think that'll prove the case even more this season. Sure, the cream always rises to the top, but we've already seen Barcelona, Atletico and Real Madrid suffer little stumbles.
Barca were beaten at home by Alaves, Atleti were held in their first two games (against promoted sides) and Real in their last two, and perhaps only one of those results was even slightly expected.
Roughly €400m was spent by Spanish top-division clubs this summer, and there have been some fascinating recruits. Already Kevin Gameiro, Nicola Sansone and Luciano Vietto are proving their worth, and there's plenty of value for money further down the league.
Some teams have undergone wholesale changes, a couple have done very little in the transfer market, but almost half of them have changed coach. Evolution, revolution, consistency, chaos. La Liga has it all this term.
Getting rotation right
This season, the issue of rotation will be greater than ever. The conundrum is clear: how do you give your top players enough rest when they're playing games every three days, and still produce the best results?
Although they signed six other very decent players this summer, the issue of Barcelona's over-reliance on Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar persists - it was no surprise that MSN scored 10 of the 12 goals in the two games that followed the Alaves defeat.
The real test comes now with Messi's injury, how it's managed and how quickly the likes of Arda Turan and Paco Alcacer can learn and fit together in that front three while he recovers. The BBC are back at Real Madrid, but not exactly firing - especially Cristiano Ronaldo, who was taken off in the 2-2 draw at Las Palmas, perhaps for the first time in his Real Madrid career as a tactical substitution when the result was still in the balance.
It's not just about managing energy levels here, it's managing egos too. Both are equally challenging.
Questions of identity
With new coaches trying to shape new teams in their image, we're getting some interesting results. And none more so than at Sevilla, where the difference in styles from one era to another could hardly be more stark.
Unai Emery's concept, based on a strong work ethic, has been succeeded by something altogether less ordered as Jorge Sampaoli puts his ideas into place. The attack-at-all-costs philosophy that we saw in their La Liga opener against Espanyol now seems to have evolved, for the time being, into a more cautious approach. However, you look at Sevilla's summer business and you wonder whether Sampaoli has the players to deliver that, especially having failed to adequately replace Grzegorz Krychowiak who followed Emery to PSG.
Guillem Balague and I discussed it in our last show when they played Athletic Bilbao - one of the teams in La Liga who are most associated with the concept of identity, and who make it work to their advantage. A few Sevilla players have admitted how demanding it is to adapt to Sampaoli's principles, so expect a few more bumps in the road, such as Salvatore Sirigu's red card in Bilbao, until things settle down.
La Liga's little guys
Our guest Marcelino said on matchday two that he feared for Eibar, that they'd already peaked in La Liga, but their character should guarantee their own survival and give some of the bigger teams a bloody nose.
They had a fair bit of luck in their victories over Valencia and Real Sociedad, but you could say they earned it back by fighting to win at Granada with 10 men and draw at home to Sevilla with nine. Ipurua will always be an uncomfortable place for visiting teams, so if Eibar can make the most of their tiny ground, keep that spirit up but cut out the red cards, they should be okay.
Admittedly, next up is a trip to Real Madrid, but Las Palmas have already proved they can hold their own against the European champions. Last season, it took the Islanders 15 games to get three wins, this time they managed it by matchday four. Again, home form will be a crucial baseline for Quique Setien's side, making that round trip to the Canaries seem even longer for the opposition.
And then there's Alaves, who have already made their mark by taking a point at Atletico and all three at the Nou Camp. But they only scored 49 goals in 42 games when they won promotion, hardly prolific, and that remains their problem. One thing's for sure, they'll make life difficult for you.
New refereeing rules
We've had a number of questionable decisions on the pitch and heated discussions already in the Spanish football studio about how referees are penalising fouls and handballs in particular. Some have been harsh (Aritz Elustondo for Real Sociedad at Eibar), others have been spot on (Sergio Ramos for Real Madrid against Villarreal), and some have not been given at all (Ramos again versus Espanyol).
The main issues centre around denying goalscoring opportunities, whether the action was deliberate or not and the resulting situation, but you have to feel for Elustondo in particular, suffering triple jeopardy: penalty, red card and suspension.
It'll take a while for it all to settle down of course, and there's the very individual notion of interpretation, which can muddy the waters - but I'm sure the actions of the men in black will contribute a few subplots to the overall narrative. It certainly adds to the intrigue in any case.
Embrace the crazy
There are very few clubs in La Liga where the situation is settled and the atmosphere calm. If we're just talking about matters on the pitch, we've already mentioned Sevilla, and Real Sociedad have a talented squad but are infuriatingly inconsistent. Then again, that's why we love them.
But what about in the boardroom and in the stands? At Espanyol, there are demanding new Chinese owners, likewise at Granada, but they might take a while to enjoy the kamikaze style of Paco Jemez as head coach, or they might just run out of patience.
As for Valencia, their Pako ran out of time after four straight defeats, Ayestaran sacked and good old Voro in caretaker charge once more. But the issues are deeper than the results; are they becoming a selling club again with owner Peter Lim's link with Jorge Mendes? The tensions that are bubbling away with fans' groups are all concerning.
The best thing is, these aren't just snapshots, they're situations which will evolve and develop. Six matchdays down, 32 to go. This season could be one to remember.
