Every now and again soccer players talk like soccer fans. It doesn't happen very often -- years in the game see to that, familiarity too -- but sometimes their eyes widen and enthusiasm flows; sometimes, they too look at another player and can't help smiling. There are moments in which even those inside the game offer the simplest of descriptions: "wow, what a player he is."
Two of Malaga's big-name pre-season signings engineered the Spanish club's first win of the new La Liga season on Monday.
Sergio Aguero hopes to take Manchester City to another level, the Argentina striker revealed after completing his big-money move to the English club on Thursday.
It's the final of the Champions league in the Rosaleda and Málaga are playing. A man dashes into the stadium, looking for somewhere to sit but the place is absolutely jam-packed. Suddenly, he sees a solitary empty seat out of the corner of his eye. As he approaches, the woman next it says: "you can sit here if you want." The man is grateful, but confused. After all, how did the seat come to be empty? "It's OK," the woman says, "it was my husband's."
Getafe became the third Spanish football club to pass into foreign ownership on Thursday after signing a deal with Dubai's Royal Emirates Group.
French footballing legend Zinedine Zidane has been appointed as "presidential advisor" to Real Madrid's first team, working alongside head coach Jose Mourinho.
Real Madrid suffered another Copa del Rey embarrassment as they were held goalless by third-flight Murcia in their fourth round, first leg tie on Tuesday night.
Last year, reaction to Real Madrid's decision to spend more than a quarter of a billion dollars, described by some as club president Florentino Perez's Galacticos 2.0 project, was mixed. There was no doubting the quality -- at least on paper -- of the new signings, from Cristiano Ronaldo to Xabi Alonso, from Kaka to Karim Benzema, without forgetting valuable "foot soldiers" like Raul Albiol, Alvaro Arbeloa and Esteban Granero. At the same time, the moralizers had a field day over the sheer amount of money spent while others weren't sure whether Manuel Pellegrini could meld all the big egos into a cohesive unit.
Jose Mourinho revealed that he will take time to learn about Real Madrid before deciding to make any major changes, as he was unveiled as the Spanish club's new coach on Monday.
So, it's official: Pellegrini out, Mourinho in. Bet you never saw that one coming, eh?
Real Madrid have fired Manuel Pellegrini as manager, paving the way for Jose Mourinho to take over.
Lionel Messi scored his 33rd and 34th goals of the season as Barcelona crushed Valladolid 4-0 to retain their Spanish Primera Liga title by three points from Real Madrid, who were held 1-1 at Malaga on Sunday.
The battle for the La Liga title between Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid will go down to the last day of the season, after wins from both teams on Saturday insured the Catalan's slender one-point lead over their rivals at the top of the division was maintained.
Barcelona and Real Madrid have both played down suggestions that Saturday's "El Clasico" showdown will decide the Spanish league title.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain each scored twice as Real Madrid beat city rivals Getafe 4-2 on Thursday to move back above Barcelona at the top of the Spanish Primera Liga table.
Beleaguered Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini has received a vote of confidence for the club's director-general Jorge Valdano despite their disastrous Champions League exit to Lyon on Wednesday night.
Real Madrid made amends for their midweek Champions League defeat in Lyon with a 6-2 rout of Villarreal in the Bernabeu on Sunday night.
French club Lyon kept up their hoodoo over Real Madrid with a 1-0 win on Tuesday night as the Spanish giants face the prospect of exiting Europe's premier competition at the last-16 stage for the sixth successive season.
Cristiano Ronaldo netted twice on his return from a ban as Real Madrid cut the gap on Spanish leaders Barcelona to two points with a 3-0 victory at bottom club Xerez on Saturday night.
Spanish club Villarreal will wait until the end of this season to appoint a permanent new manager after deciding to give reserve coach Juan Carlos Garrido the reins on a short-term basis.
Villarreal have sacked coach Ernesto Valverde following Sunday's 2-0 Spanish Primera Liga defeat at home to Osasuna.
Spanish champions Barcelona extended their league lead to five points after rivals Real Madrid suffered a shock defeat on Saturday night.
Real Madrid missed the chance to leapfrog Spanish league leaders Barcelona as they were held to a disappointing goalless draw at Osasuna on Sunday.
The latest round of Champions League matches finds a string of top European managers on the verge of being dumped out of the competition - a failure that could cost them their job.
Real Madrid took a step closer to the last 16 of the Champions League after easing past Zurich 1-0 thanks to a first-half goal from Gonzalo Higuain.
Big-spending Real Madrid have crashed out of the Spanish Cup in the second round for the second year in a row after failing to overturn a 4-0 deficit against third-tier club Alcorcon.
European heavyweights AC Milan and Real Madrid fought to a 1-1 draw in the San Siro on Tuesday which leaves them level on points at the top of Champions League Group C.
Real Madrid reduced Barcelona's league lead to one point after returning to winning ways with a 2-0 victory against Getafe on Saturday night despite having a man sent off.
Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini is under intense pressure after his side's humiliating 4-0 defeat to third-flight minnows Alcorcon in the Spanish Cup.
Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini has confirmed that winger Cristiano Ronaldo has been ruled out of his side's La Liga clash with Sevilla on Sunday with an ankle injury.
The exit remains open, its doors flung wide, but the entrance to the Santiago Bernabéu has been closed and bolted.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored two free-kicks on his European debut for Real Madrid, who opened their Champions League Group C campaign with a 5-2 victory away to FC Zurich on Tuesday night.
World-record signing Cristiano Ronaldo scored on his debut as Real Madrid kicked off the Spanish football season with a shaky 3-2 victory at home to Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday night.
Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini believes his squad is now "complete" and ready for the challenge of a new Primera Division campaign.
After an off-season of big-money transfers and endless speculation in Spain the focus finally turns to matters on the pitch. The first round of La Liga fixtures kick off this weekend and Fanzone details what to expect from the new campaign:
Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini has been unveiled at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium as the new coach of Spanish giants Real Madrid, signing a two-year deal with the side.
Surely by the time he returns to Spain, Jozy Altidore will be a must-use for his club Xerez, seeing as how he drilled four goals in two hours of action for the U.S. against El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago in World Cup qualifying matches.
Netherlands winger Arjen Robben was on target on Sunday when new-look Real Madrid scored a 1-0 victory over Villarreal that left them 12 points behind Primera Liga leaders Barcelona.
Real Madrid can claim a 31st Spanish title success this weekend if they beat Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona and Villarreal fail to win.
Barcelona once again failed to capitalize on the latest Real Madrid slip-up, with a 0-0 draw against Getafe on Sunday keeping them seven points behind the Primera Liga leaders.
Take a look at the current Primera Liga table and it's no surprise to see the traditional top two, Real Madrid and Barcelona, setting the pace.
Ronaldinho scored two trademark free-kicks as Barcelona beat Real Betis 3-0 to move within a point of leaders Real Madrid at the top of the Primera Liga table.
Argentine international Juan Roman Riquelme has been told that his future at Villarreal is in his own hands, club president Fernando Roig has said.
Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini has signed a one-year extension to his contract to tie him to the Primera Liga side until 2008.
Spanish strugglers Levante appointed Abel Resino as coach on Monday to replace Juan Ramon Lopez Caro, who was sacked earlier in the day following a poor run of form.
Villarreal have left out Juan Roman Riquelme for the second straight game amid reports of continuing differences between the Argentine playmaker and coach Manuel Pellegrini.
Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini has criticised his players' attitude after they were knocked out of the Intertoto Cup by Slovenian side Maribor 3-2 on aggregate.
An under-strength Villarreal, with their focus on next week's Champions League return against Arsenal, slumped to a 2-0 home defeat to Real Sociedad on Saturday.
Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas is fit for Wednesday's Champions League semifinal first leg against Villarreal at Highbury.
Spanish rivals Barcelona and Villarreal both rest key men for Friday's Primera Liga clash at the Nou Camp ahead of midweek Champions League semifinals.
Villarreal believe that Inter Milan's tendency to go on the attack could give them a chance to overturn a 2-1 first-leg deficit in their Champions League quarterfinal.
Villarreal playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme was named in a 20-strong squad for the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie at Rangers on Wednesday.
Uruguay coach Jorge Fossati has included two injured goalkeepers in his 27-man squad for the two World Cup play-offs against Australia this month.
Real Madrid striker Ronaldo will be sidelined for a month after injuring an ankle in his side's 3-0 Primera Liga victory over Atletico Madrid at the weekend.
Espanyol have signed Mozambique defender Armando Sa from Primera Liga rivals Villarreal.
Villarreal are on course for their first ever Champions League place, as a Diego Forlan treble earned them a 3-3 draw in a thriller at champions Barcelona.
A flash of brilliance by Samuel Eto'o enabled Barcelona to restore their six-point lead at the top of the Primera Liga by beating Albacete 2-0.
Former River Plate boss Manuel Pellegrini will take over as coach of Primera Liga side Villarreal next season, the Spanish club said on Tuesday.
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