Our Spanish football expert Guillem Balague looks ahead to another weekend of live La Liga action on Sky Sports - and he answers your email.
Got a question for Guillem? Then send it in here.
Atletico Madrid v Real Madrid The first thing to say about this derby is that it has always been quite unequal. Calderon of fire: Crowd trouble marred Atletico's 2-1 win over Marseille Real Madrid always tend to have a bit of a psychological advantage and, more often than not in the last 10 years, they have had the advantage in terms of quality, too. I remember early goals in recent games by Ronaldo and Raul and Atletico were never able to come back. After international week, I think it is likely that Mahamadou Diarra will not play and Guti will definitely not play but despite the fact that Atletico are becoming much more solid, Real Madrid should take all the points here.
Guillem Balague It's been a very interesting week for Atletico, who have managed to reverse Uefa's decision preventing them from playing their Champions League tie with Liverpool at the Vicente Calderon. It's also been an interesting week for Spanish football as a whole. We have seen our game this week through French eyes and English eyes and I sense that people in Spain are starting to realise there is something wrong. Okay, some Marseille fans were very violent and the actions of the police maybe contributed but there were organisational faults by Atletico Madrid and there was racist chanting. After all the media attention, listening to lots of phone-ins, reading the press, talking to lots of journalists and even players, I think there is finally a realisation that things are wrong. That's the first step to change. Espanyol have surprised me, because they are a young team with a lot of new players. I like Roman Martinez a lot and next to Ivan De la Pena he looks even better! And I believe this year they have a great chance of getting close to the title. I sense there is a psychological strength that hasn't been there in the previous few years. Winning La Liga - or even the Champions League - is possible in the near future. It will be interesting to have Mikel Arteta in the studio on Saturday. There are rumours that Atletico Madrid are keen on him but having spoken to him, I can assure any Everton fans that he's very happy on Merseyside! I went to Bilbao this week and spoke to Joseba Etxeberria: captain, idol and, in my opinion, most talented player to turn out for Athletic Bilbao over the last few years. Etxeberria has made the huge gesture of signing a one-year contact extension until 2010 but he won't charge the club a single penny - not even bonuses - for his services. Watch out for his interview on Revista in the next few weeks. Andres Iniesta's goal for Spain against Belgium was reminiscent of Romario; he's growing in stature on and off the pitch and even Thierry Henry has suggested he should win the Ballon D'Or this year. Iniesta doesn't attract the media attention of Cristiano Ronaldo but he deserves all the accolades he gets; he has become a real leader and a versatile member of the team. Sevilla have serious problems because it looks like Luis Fabiano and Freddie Kanoute will be injured. Luis Fabiano may return, although he won't be 100 per cent, but Kanoute is out for three weeks. Sevilla are still strong without those two and they have improved a lot at the back with Sebastien Squillaci. They're solid but so are Almeria - and the hosts have the added bonus of Alvaro Negredo up front who is in form, scoring goals and on the verge of the national team. It may sound surprising but I actually think Almeria could take the points here. REAL INSULT? BERND BRIDGES NOU CHAMPS OR CHUMPS? Got a question for Guillem? Then send it in here For more from Guillem, visit www.guillembalague.com
Espanyol v Villarreal
Athletic Bilbao v Barcelona
Almeria v SevillaAtletico Madrid v Real Madrid
6.55pm, Saturday, Sky Sports Xtra
It has been an interesting week for Spanish football. We have seen our game this week through French eyes and English eyes and I sense that people in Spain are starting to realise there is something wrong.
Quotes of the week
www.guillembalague.comEspanyol v Villarreal
9.00pm, Saturday, Sky Sports Xtra
Funnily enough, Espanyol tend to get good results against Villarreal but Villarreal are one of those teams that are quietly going to go about their business and be in the top three or four right through to the end of the season. Athletic Bilbao v Barcelona
6.00pm, Sunday, Sky Sports 1 (First half on the red button)
This game is like a cup final for Athletic Bilbao fans and this Barcelona team is playing wonderful football. Almeria v Sevilla
8.00pm, Sunday, Sky Sports 1Guillem answers your questions...
Hola Guillem, do you think Daniel Agger will make a mistake if he decides to go to Real Madrid? Madrid already have a number of good players in central defence; yes, it's Madrid calling but I cannot see him being the number one choice. At Liverpool he is only one injury away from coming into the team. Besides, Rafa seems to rate him highly and he is only 23 years old. Rafa stood by him when he was injured and gave him chance to join one of the biggest clubs in Europe and 24 months down the line he thinks he is too big for the club. Joe Kasolo
GUILLEM REPLIES: It is pretty clear that Agger was never on Real's list of centre-backs. It's true they're looking for a centre-back; don't forget they have already got Garay on loan from Racing for a year. The Agger rumour started in an English newspaper but all parties denied it. I do like Agger; I'm not sure what has happened to him, he probably got a bit frustrated by his injury and the fact that he was no longer first choice when he came back. It's difficult to convince somebody like Rafa Benitez to swap you for somebody who is playing as well as Martin Skrtel or Jamie Carragher have been but now Skrtel is injured, Agger has the chance to become the player everyone thought he would turn out to be.
Hola Guillem, I am a huge Real Madrid fan and wasn't surprised to see the likes of Balboa, Soldado and Baptista leave this summer. One player I was surprised to still see at the club this season was Royston Drenthe, who clearly doesnt have the confidence of Schuster. Did the club try and offload him in the summer but had no takers? Luke Moore
GUILLEM REPLIES: Drenthe is a force of nature - he could run all day - but he has some problems off the pitch. He was caught drink-driving in Madrid when he first arrived and it seems he hasn't been focused enough for Bernd Schuster's liking. I don't think Schuster likes him as a full-back and he definitely doesn't like him on the left side of midfield so I don't think he'll be there for long. Real didn't try to offload him this summer because the squad is too small and they are weak on the left-hand side but I don't think he's going to play much.
Hi Guillem, your column always makes great reading. As a Barcelona fan, I have a couple of questions about the La Liga season so far. Firstly, do you think that Hleb, Keita and Pique will have difficulty in getting into (and staying in) the Barca first team? I don't think, having seen them through pre-season and the start of the season, that they are Barcelona quality, unless standards have been lowered. Pique seems to be the only regular out of the three and I get nervous every time I see him on the ball, especially in the Champions League. Also, what do you make of the decision to plan out fixtures this season so that Real Madrid get the reverse fixture of Barca's from the previous round of matches every time? I don't want to go into conspiracy theories but it feels as though it is a good help to Real since teams will most likely play the same way against both them and Barca. Iain Singleton
GUILLEM REPLIES: Keita will definitely play, he's a great player. In Sevilla he was box to box, often going forward, but at Barcelona he's going to have to be a defensive midfielder, especially because I feel that Yaya Toure will be sold (many teams want him in Italy but I think Arsenal will get him). Pique has been a star for the U21s - so commanding at the back - and having been at Manchester United, he understands what a club like Barcelona is all about. Hleb has been injured but will definitely be an important piece of the jigsaw. He'll have to improve his goalscoring rate but he does play in that Barcelona style and I see him playing regularly. As far as a conspiracy in calendar is concerned, it's all done by computer so there is no conspiracy! It's certainly been a big talking point in Spain, though.
Comments (11)
Sakhile Khanyile (Manchester United fan) says...
Could Ronaldo be moving to Madrid next summer if so yes what are the chances of Man Utd signing David Silva from Valancia i think hes a quality player not someone who wants the celebrity status like the number 7.
Posted 10:53 21st October 2008
Jenni Bredin (Liverpool fan) says...
Iniesta is not on the Ballon d'Or shortlist. In my opinion, thats a shocker of a decision! Barca look a different team without Messi and Xavi.
Posted 20:14 20th October 2008
Daniel Sosa (Wigan Athletic fan) says...
Dear Guillem, I am spanish but have been living in Ireland for nearly 7 years. For the last two I have been an SkySports suscriber through a local network and have enjoyed the fantastic coverage of the spanish league which Sky offers every week. During these time, I have enjoyed greatly your comments and outlook in la liga, and you have always seemed quite unpartial , which is a quality very hard to find in spanish sports media. I have to say however that I am dissapointed with your reflections on the recent incidents in el Olimpico and el Calderon. IIt is true that there are rotten apples on many stadiums in Spain , from Bastion to Boixos nois, there is a large list of organized violent supporters for many spanish teams. These minorities are no doubt guilty for a lot if the ugly incidents which we have witnessed in football over the last few years but I think that implying that the entire country has a problem with violence is totally absurd. If I go back a couple of years in my head, I find difficult to think of anytime that violence such as the one which errupupted in the Calderon was seen in a la Liga game. The spanish fans have never been know for being raicst , let alone violent and we could try and ask any of the police departments on any of the countries home of the last few eurocups or worldcups for their opinion. It seems as if the english media is using these few isolated incidents as a few to turn the attention of the public to somewhere else insteadf
Posted 15:58 20th October 2008
Will Halcrow (Liverpool fan) says...
Hola Guillem,Do you see any sign that Rafa Benitez is getting closer to moulding Liverpool into the formidable side he had at Valencia, if not who do you think we need to strenghten the team?
Posted 16:33 18th October 2008
Sham Ajmer (Liverpool fan) says...
What do you think of Alonso's performances so far this season?According to you , will he stay ? Does Rafa want to keep him ?
Posted 11:46 18th October 2008
Ashley Waters (Chelsea fan) says...
Hi Guillem, I am a Chelsea fan, but that is nothing to do with the question i wanted to ask. I was wondering what your opinion of the whole Newcastle saga was, but specifically I was wondering what your take on the Jiminez signings was. From my perspective Keegan threw his toys out of the pram for relatively little (selling Milner for 12 million is good business in anyones book). Following la liga quite closely for the last couple of seasons as I have, it was clear that Gutierrez and Coloccini are talented players. Ignacio Gonzalez i know is highly rated as well and Xisco is from what i have seen a talented player suited to the "modern game". So has Keegan simply over reacted and done what he has done so many times before? When i reviewed all of the signings that were made, Guthrie who was supposedly Keegan's idea was the only player i had reservations about. I think Caleb Folan will agree.
Posted 01:06 18th October 2008
Eric Paul (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...
Johan Cruyff was laughed at by some parts of the media for saying that Barça played their best football in years after the 1-1 against Racing. Back then it seem like a very bold statement, but now it turns out, Johan was right. They still struggle to win some games, but only because they waste too many clear-cut chances, not because they don't play good. Personally, I haven't seen a Barça side this ambitious and creative since they kicked Chelsea out of the CL in 2006.
Posted 00:17 18th October 2008
Alexander Butterworth (Blackburn Rovers fan) says...
i feel a player that certainly deserves credit for his pure class and maturity is Guti at Real Madrid. i think he has been outstanding over the years and deserves alot of credit im sure you will agree
Posted 23:22 17th October 2008
Pil Pil (Hull City fan) says...
It won't be a surprise if Almeria take all points on Sunday, Guillem. They did the double over Sevilla last season, with Kanoute, Fabiano & Daniel Alves. Besides Sevilla's problems upfront - Kanoute, Kone, Chevanton out while Fabiano is unlikely to be risked ahead of Stuttgart, I feel that it will be at the flanks where Almeria can take advantage. On the left, Capel & Dragutinovic are out but lucky they have Adriano back from injury. On the right, Jesus Navas seems to be suffering home sickness this season & they haven't quite found a capable replacement for full-back Daniel Alves. Almeria's wide men Bruno, Mane, Crusat, Piatti & Ortiz will be pivotal in deciding the outcome of this contest. Majority of Almeria's goals come from set-pieces. Sevilla's rough tactics in a potentially high-intensity contest could favour the hosts. Sevilla keeper Palop punches more than he catches so corners are another area where Almeria can take advantage of. Great opportunity for Almeria to grab all 3 points.
Posted 18:20 17th October 2008
Madan Mohan (Arsenal fan) says...
Hello !! Guillem i wanted to know If Real Will Spend Big In The Summer.................And Will They Go For C.Ronaldo Again !!! Schuster Asked For a Striker Do U think Benzema,Huntlaar or Villa Will Join Real In The Summer ??
Posted 16:42 17th October 2008
George edwards (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...
I live in Barcelona and when they are playing the type of football they are playing now it lifts the city and you can feel the buzz. i thought guardiola would be 3 or 4 games away from the sack but the team is working hard for each other. much improvement from the fall backs as i thought Zambrotta was a liability there. Eto xavi and inesta are key to them winning the title. besides they are a nice break from watching Spurs. i have to say i have complete faith in juande ramos but not the board. comoli is a joke and needs to be sacked. levy is a bussiness man and he sold us well short this summer. we need a football man in charge. who has the clubs best interests.
Posted 15:42 17th October 2008