Bundesliga Review: Stuttgart, Köln, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim battered by title contenders

Bundesliga Review: Stuttgart, Köln, Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim battered by title contenders
By Samrin Hasib, January 31 2012,

soccer news, football news, football articles, football articles

Bayern continues to lead the way on goal difference in the Bundesliga. None of the four teams which are contenders for the salad bowl dropped points this week.Schalke was on the verge of losing their connection with the top four. Lukas Podolski struck in the fourth minute and Köln took the lead into half-time. Köln actually held on till the hour mark but Schalke found a way. An unlikely source in the form of Ciprian Marica scored the equalizer. Then, Schalke started compounding misery on Köln.

Marica grabbed a second 12 minutes later. Klaas Jan Huntelaar scored from the penalty spot just six minutes after the second goal. Benjamin Höger added one more just four minutes after the third. Now, that is what you call an ‘attacking force’. While their Ruhr rivals aren’t exactly scoring for fun, they are scoring quite a few too.Dortmund has had their difficulties with Hoffenheim in the past. Last season, they picked up only a single point from two games against the Sinsheim club. On Saturday, Dortmund showed no mercy once more and banged in three past Tom Starke. However, they were also greeted with news this week that Mario Goetze will be out for at-least eight weeks.There was also good news for the BVB fans. Juergen Klopp and Michael Zorc, the duo of coach and sporting director, extended their contracts. If Klopp sees out his contract, fans will be seeing him jumping around and yelling on the Dortmund touchline for up to 2016......

Should Leverkusen stick with Robin Dutt?

Should Leverkusen stick with Robin Dutt?
By Samrin Hasib, January 31 2012,

soccer news, football news, football articles, football articles

Disappointment after disappointment; draw after draw- Leverkusen fans are perhaps slightly sickened by their beloved club’s results at the moment. Leverkusen has been associated with one simple word for many seasons in the Bundesliga- ‘talent’. In terms of sheer raw talent, very few teams can get the better of Leverkusen. Currently, the title race in Germany is as close as ever with four teams challenging for the coveted shield- Leverkusen isn’t one of them.

In the previous two seasons, Leverkusen displayed that they were ready to challenge for the title. In the 2009-2010 season, Bayer 04 was the top side for much of the season before being overtaken by Bayern and eventually finishing fourth. Last season, they challenged for the title for much of the campaign and finished second behind Dortmund.Robin Dutt’s success with Freiburg convinced many that he could lead Leverkusen to the top four this season. Every week, Leverkusen seems to fall further and further away from the title challengers. Dutt’s side drew in some games they should have ideally lost.Against Hanover, prior to the winter break, they were lucky to have gotten a point out of the fixture. Against Bremen in the weekend, the scenario was a similar one. Leverkusen was restricted to shots from distance. Their goal came when a scuffle occurred in the penalty area though.Bremen had a very good chance to win the game but failed to do so. The Leverkusen defence has looked vulnerable on more than one occasion this season. The team’s attack hasn’t turned up at times this season. In some games, Leverkusen has displayed their true potential- those games have come few and far between.....

Can Real Madrid win La Liga this season?

Can Real Madrid win La Liga this season?
By Samrin Hasib, January 31 2012,

soccer news, football news, football articles, football articles

Seven points ahead of Barcelona, Real Madrid is poised to win La Liga this season.Barca’s away-day blues is no secret- they have dropped 13 points away from home. With each point they have dropped, they have found Madrid ahead of them bit by bit. Barca has dropped points in seven matches so far this season. Real Madrid has dropped points in just three matches.

Jose Mourinho’s team has been outdoing other sides in style this season. With the exception of two blips at the beginning of the season, Madrid has won every game with the exception of the match against Barcelona. Madrid lost to Levante and drew with Real Sociedad in the other two games where they lost.Jose Mourinho is known to be a brilliant man-manager. When rumours of disagreement in the dressing room broke out, everyone was quite surprised. Mourinho however handled the situation brilliantly. Having been accused by Sergio Ramos of not knowing how to deal with matters as a player on the pitch, Mourinho decided to field a side which the players and perhaps the fans wanted against Athletic Bilbao.Having gone down a goal early on, Real Madrid came back to win 4-1. Yet, the jury was out on Mourinho. Matters would only be fixed if Mourinho managed to hurt Barcelona in the second leg of the Copa del Rey. Madrid came painfully close to a comeback against Barca. In fact, they would have won had a Ramos goal in the second half not been scandalously ruled out by the referee.....

Valencia vs Barcelona Match Preview

Valencia vs Barcelona Match Preview
By Isaac Asante, Jan 31st 2012

soccer news, football news, football articles, football articles

The Copa del Rey semis kick off on Wednesday night for Valencia, as they welcome FC Barcelona at the Mestalla in the first leg of their fixture.Barcelona narrowly edged past Real Madrid in the quarter finals, using their 2-1 away victory to knock out their rivals 4-3 on aggregate. Conversely, Valencia enjoyed an easy qualification into the semis with a whopping 7-1 aggregate win over Levante.

Coincidentally, neither Los Che nor Los Cules were able to grab triumphs at the weekend in La Liga. Valencia shared a point away to Racing Santander following a 2-2 draw, while Barca were restricted to a goalless draw against Villarreal.Both sides sit comfortably in the Top 3 of La Liga, but their additional work in the Primera Division will have to be put on hold for the meantime. There seems to be some injury problems for Valencia coach Unai Emery, with Mehmet Topal and Ever Banega not likely to perform.Adil Rami and Miguel’s unstable form adds to the club’s worries. Barcelona will also be without Pedro and Iniesta, while Villa, Fontas and Afellay join the list of absentees.