Tag Archives: La Liga

On Monday night, Cristiano Ronaldo bagged his first Serie A hat-trick as Juventus defeated Cagliari 4-0 to remain top of the table. With his treble, Ronaldo became only the second player to score a hat-trick in La Liga, Serie A and the Premier League. The Portuguese forward has now scored hat-tricks for Manchester United in England, Real Madrid in Spain and …

Ireland U19 international Jonathan Afolabi has been attracting interest from a host of clubs in England and abroad following his impressive displays at the European Championships for the Boys in Green. Tom Mohan’s side reached the last four of the tournament in Armenia with Afolabi grabbing a goal in the group stages against the Czech Republic and catching the eye …

Leeds United midfielder Samuel Saiz is reportedly one of a number of footballers in Spain who have been arrested over suspicions of forming a criminal organisation dedicated to match-fixing. According to Spanish publication El Pais, Saiz, who spent the last half of the season on loan at La Liga side Getafe, is one of the players involved. The report also outlines …

With the January transfer window closing on Thursday evening, Pundit Arena picks out some of the main deals to go through around Europe on deadline day: ENGLAND – Newcastle United have signed Paraguay midfielder Miguel Almiron from MLS Cup winners Atlanta United, reportedly for a club-record fee. The 24-year-old penned a five-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee believed to be …

Ghanaian forward Kevin-Prince Boateng is on the verge of joining Barcelona in a shock loan move from Italian side Sassuolo, according to media reports in Spain on Monday. Catalan daily Sport reported that the leaders of La Liga had agreed a deal to take Boateng on loan until the end of the season with an option to make the move …

It’s now six straight La Liga wins for the current title holders. An upset defeat to Levante in the Copa Del Rey occurred on Thursday, but Barcelona bounced back in style at home against Eibar. Lionel Messi made history in the 3-0 win, scoring his 400th La Liga goal with the second strike of the evening. Lionel Messi's 400th La …

Lionel Messi scored his 400th goal in La Liga against Eibar on Sunday to extend his record as the division’s all-time top scorer. Messi collected the ball off Luis Suarez and drove it into the bottom corner in the 53rd minute at Camp Nou to give Barca a 2-0 lead over Eibar and notch his quadruple century after 435 matches. …

Real Madrid may not even challenge for the title let alone win it as a shock 2-0 defeat at home to Real Sociedad on Sunday left them even further adrift in La Liga.  Barcelona, already seven points clear, could extend the gap over their fiercest rivals to 10 by beating Getafe later, while Atletico Madrid and Sevilla both gained on …

Mario Mandzukic scored the only goal for Juventus to dump further hurt on crisis club Roma and keep the champions unbeaten and on track for an eighth straight Italian league title. The Croatian World Cup runner-up headed in the winner 34 minutes into the match in Turin to put Juventus back eight points clear of Napoli. The defeat could have …

Lionel Messi continued his sublime form by netting his 31st La Liga hat-trick as Barcelona thrashed Levante 5-0 on Sunday to regain their three-point lead at the top of the table. The 31-year-old Argentinian arrived in Valencia having scored two free-kicks in last weekend’s derby thumping of Espanyol. He took his goals tally for the season to 20 after a …

Streaming service, Eleven Sports, is reportedly at risk of closure in the UK after just four months due to ‘poor distribution and growing losses’.  The streaming service currently holds the broadcasting rights for La Liga and Serie A and were due to begin exclusively streaming UFC fights in Ireland and the UK from January 2019, however, the promotional company has …

It appears as though Brazilian great Pelé isn’t the biggest fan of Barcelona’s Lionel Messi. The legendary striker and three-time World Cup winner hit out at comparisons between himself and Messi claiming that the five-time Ballon d’Or winner only has “one skill” and that he was a much better all-around player than the Argentine. “How can you make a comparison between a …

Sunday night’s game between Barcelona and Real Madrid in La Liga will be the first El Clásico to feature neither Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo since December 2007. Messi is out of the game with an arm injury, while Ronaldo completed a £100 million move to Juventus last summer. Ahead of the clash at the Nou Camp, pick your combined …

La Liga president Javier Tebas on Tuesday claimed that resistance to the controversial plans to hold a Spanish top-flight game in the United States is “cultural”. The match between Girona and Barcelona on January 26 is scheduled to be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, despite strong opposition and fears that the Catalan giants would effectively be gifted an …

Real Madrid failed to capitalize on Barcelona’s defeat at Leganes as both clubs lost league matches on the same day for the first time since January 2015. Barca’s 2-1 loss to relegation fighters Leganes was the greater shock but Madrid’s beating was more emphatic, blown away 3-0 by Sevilla after a torrid 39 minutes at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. For …

Pundit Arena’s Cheat Sheet summarises the weekend action from Spain, Italy, Germany and France, including Cristiano Ronaldo’s first goal for Juventus.  Barcelona fought back from a goal down to win 1-2 away to Real Sociedad to maintain their 100% start. Two quick-fire goals from Luis Suárez and Ousmane Dembélé in three second-half minutes ensured Barca picked up all three points. French …

Former Brazilian striker Ronaldo has taken control of Real Valladolid after buying 51 percent of the La Liga club’s shares, it was announced on Monday.  At a press conference held in the city’s town hall, Valladolid president Carlos Suarez said: “Today is a starting point. Ronaldo personally acquires 51 percent of the shares of Real Valladolid.” “He is an idol …