At The End, Real Remain Kings of Europe

And so this year's Champions League final in Kiev came with Spanish giants, Real Madrid, again coming out on top with a handsome victory over premier league side Liverpool.

The 3-1 defeat of Jurgen Klopp's exciting side proved that their hunger for success remains unquenched and insatiable. They may have been disappointing this season in La Liga after finishing a distant 3rd but in Europe, they have always found a way to win.

In just two and a half years, Zidane has won the Champions League trophy 3 times thus surpassing the likes of Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and even the great Sir Alex Ferguson who have all won the the trophy twice. A fantastic achievement.

As for Zidane's opposite number, Jurgen Klopp, it is yet another disappointing final loss. Klopp has now lost six of his seven major finals as a manager. 

While in charge of Borussia Dortmund, he lost 2 German Cup finals, 2 Champions League finals (Dortmund and Liverpool), one League Cup and one Europa League final (both with Liverpool). His sole Cup triumph is the German Cup in 2012.

His critics will consider him a serial under achiever at the biggest stage. In this year's Champions League final loss to Madrid however, it will be harsh to lay the blame on Klopp's game management. 

Even though many have identified the defence as Liverpool's biggest problem this season, an issue Klopp partially fixed with the signing of Dutchman, Virgil Van Dijk, from Southampton in January in a deal worth £75M Pounds. 

He has however, failed to correct the other part of the defence problem which turned out to be their Achilles heel- buying a decent goal keeper. 

Loris Karius' 2 goalkeeping errors in last Saturday's final proved pivotal and turned out to be gifts for a Madrid team who showed their experience and class at this level. A level Karius seemed out of his depth.

The first half was by no means a classic with Madrid wary of the pace of Liverpool's front 3 of Mane, Firmino and Salah. A trio that prior to this game had scored 29 goals in the competition. Madrid were in no mood to afford them the space to wreak havoc and so kept it tight.

The turning point came in the 31st minute when Salah had to come off after he injured his shoulder in a tumble with Sergio Ramos. Prior to his departure, Liverpool had been on top and were the better team. 

But after his exit, Real Madrid grew into the game and had a goal chalked off for offside after Benzema put the ball into the back of the net after Karius had saved well Ronaldo's header. Benzema was correctly adjudged to be offside. 

Benzema would not be denied however, as he in the 51st minute blocked Karius's poor throw with the ball rebounding and rolling agonisingly for the Liverpool faithful, into an empty net.

The lead didn't last long though, as Sadio Mane gave Liverpool hope by bundling home the equaliser after he met Lovren's header from a corner kick. It was his 10th Champions League goal in 11 games. He also became the fourth African player to score in an European Cup Final after Rabah Madjer, Samuel Eto'o and Didier Drogba.

Zidane sent on Gareth Bale in place of Isco and with his fourth touch, scored what is considered one of the best goals if not the best in Champions League finals history. An overhead kick which team mate Ronaldo would have been proud of was how Bale put Madrid back into the driving seat.

It was game set and match for Madrid in the latter stages as Karius came up with another clanger as he failed to hold a speculative 30 yard short from Gareth Bale and the ball spilled from his grasp into the back of the net.

It left the Madrid fans delirious while the Liverpool fans in tears. Klopp was stunned and the Liverpool players unable to lift themselves with defeat surely a certainty at that point.

The final whistle blew and Karius understandably was in tears. Sadly, none of his team mates were in the mood to show him any empathy. He was left alone to cry his heart out. It was the Real Madrid players, Bale inclusive, who finally went to console him. 

Karius humbly went back to the Liverpool fans shortly after in tears, hands raised in apology. How Liverpool fans, who would have been seething at that moment, would take this is left to be seen.

It is difficult to not see Klopp entering the transfer market this Summer to sign a world class goalkeeper. He was 2 goalkeeping howlers away from winning a famous Champions League title. 

A day in which many Liverpool fans believed was going to be a glorious one for the 5 time European Cup winners quickly become a nightmare. The omens were there, they had an entertaining team and they had the best player in the Premier League, Mohammed Salah. Sadly, it was not to be their night.

As for Karius, whether he remains the number one for Liverpool or not next season, he needs to bounce back from this disappointment and not let these mistakes define his career. 

Klopp is a few good signings away from really challenging for the premier league title and taking on Europe again. After this season's adventure, he seems most likely and best equipped to challenge Pep next season.

As for Madrid, a topsy turvy season has ended on another high. They have 3 UCL titles on the spin and their 4th in 5 years in a period that has had the best Barcelona team in generations. 

Zidane becomes the third manager to win the European Cup 3 times but the first to win it in 3 consecutive seasons.

He has a new challenge off the field though. Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo have hinted that they may want to leave the club. If this happens, a lot of rebuilding job would be required to maintain the level they are at the moment. 

Will we see the likes of Salah or Hazard moving to Spain if these noise (which we have heard before) turn out to be true?

 

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Loyalty And Respect Are Dying Virtues In Football

We have apparently come to the end of two transfer sagas involving the exit of Real Madrid legend, Iker Casillas, and Liverpool winger Raheem Sterling as Casillas and Sterling are set to sign for FC Porto and Manchester City FC respectively. Sterling was snapped up by City for 49 million pounds while Casillas' deal with Porto is nearing conclusion.

However, the manner in which both players are parting ways with their former employers is a stark reminder of how brutal and ruthless the modern game has become.

Player loyalty is no longer fashionable. It's  all about getting the best deal possible not minding the fact that, had the club not put faith in the player when he was a nobody in the first place, he would not be in a position to hold the club to ransom.

Sadly, the clubs are getting in on the act as well. Clubs use a player and as soon as there is a hint of a decline in performance they discard the player in a heart beat. The years of service and sacrifice by the player is quickly forgotten.

The fans are not left out either. Depending on how messy the transfer of a star player to a rival team or any other team for that matter is, boos and jeers will be unleashed on the player whenever the star player comes to town. In some extreme cases, fans go ahead to issue death threats and even subject the player to all kinds of abuse.

We have seen it already. Peter Cech's move to Arsenal didn't go down well with Chelsea fans despite having the blessing of Roman Abramovich. Cech, after serving Chelsea for 11 years impeccably was branded a snake by disgruntled Chelsea fans and was even sent death threats.

Pray, what was Cech supposed to do? He lost his position due to no fault of his aside that he was on the wrong side of 30. He didn't go about lamenting to the media about the unfairness of Jose Mourinho's decision to place him on the bench as Thibaut Courtois' understudy.

And as he rightly stated, at this stage of his career, he needs to be playing regularly. So, a move to Chelsea's London rivals Arsenal, makes a lot of sense where he would be number 1.

Reports already have it that Raheem Sterling has been issued death threats already and the police are currently investigating the sources.

This is all coming as a result of Sterling's insistence on leaving Liverpool for a team that will be more competitive than Liverpool for titles. However, the manner in which he has rebelled and forced a move is unjustified and so it becomes understandable why Liverpool supporters are upset.

With the benefit of hindsight, it would have made more sense for Sterling to stall in signing a new contract and hand over a transfer request at the end of the season while acting professionally all the while instead of giving that BBC interview during the past season and then skipping out of pre-season training.

At the very worst, Liverpool would have had to sell him without any pressure from him next year when he would have one year left on his contract to the highest bidder. But Sterling as has become the trend in modern day football has acted unprofessionally in order to force a move to another club forgetting how he started out as a Liverpool player.

Casillas' scenario at Madrid is the direct opposite of  that of Sterling's at Liverpool. After serving Real Madrid for 25 years, 8 of which was at youth level, he is being practically forced out of the club with 2 years left on his contract. 

The fans again were also involved in his forced exit out of the club. He was jeered and booed many times by sections of Madrid fans through out the course of last season. This was no way to treat a hero and captain of the club. A player who has won 5 La Liga titles and 3 Champions league trophies with Madrid.

But his running battle with Florentino Perez, who often has the final say when he has disputes with club icons, was one that would only end this way because of his rapid decline in form. Make no mistake, Casillas is still a decent goalie, but he deserves better than this.

Reports have it that, the official Real Madrid twitter account unfollowed Iker Casillas a few hours after it was announced that he would be joining FC Porto. As insignificant as this seems, it speaks volumes about the lack of respect the Real Madrid establishment has for Iker Casillas.

The only reason the Casillas situation has been ugly is because money is involved. Casillas has been widely reported to have  insisted that a full compensation for the termination of his contract be paid before  he moves on. Madrid's reluctance to do so is what has made this transfer saga stink.

Now, a compromise has been reached in these 2 case scenarios. Casillas can now say his goodbyes and enter a new phase of his career with FC Porto while Sterling now has his 'dream move' to Manchester City. He now has his chance to challenge for trophies at a 'big club' and of course, make more money than he would have ever dreamed of. 

Fair to say however, that loyalty and respect is a dying attitude and value between clubs, players and fans in present day football because of the allure of monetary gain and glory.

5 Reasons Why Gareth Bale is in Trouble

It is no longer news that the world's most expensive player, Gareth Bale, has been having a difficult last few weeks if not months at his club, Real Madrid. He has been criticised mercilessly from several quarters of the media both in Madrid and in the UK for his recent poor performances on the pitch. Bale was practically held responsible for Madrid's loss to Juventus in the first leg of the champions' League semi final by pundit, Roy Keane who said Real were effectively playing with 10 men because of Bale's poor showing on the night which made it difficult for Madrid to get a more positive result.

When you play for a club like Real Madrid and with the tag of being the most expensive player on the planet, criticism for any lame performance is likely to come your way on a regular basis except of course, you are a Cristiano Ronaldo or a Lionel Messi.

But are Bale's troubles entirely his fault? Is he not being made a scapegoat by sections of the Spanish media and Real Madrid for recent collective poor performances of the team? A player who has scored 17 goals in 46 appearances for Real Madrid so far this season playing from the wings surely deserves more respect, right?

This week I intend to look at 5 reasons why Bale is having a difficult time at Real Madrid and why he has not been fully accepted or appreciated by the Madrid supporters.

Language barrier issues

It has been reported that in the Real Madrid dressing room, the lingua franca is Spanish (which is not unusual after all,Real Madrid are a Spanish club) and that is the language Real boss, Carlo Ancelloti uses to address the players and pass instructions. Well, Mr Bale is a Welshman and has not come to grips yet with the Spanish language after nearly 2 years with the club. Spanish must be very hard to learn... 

Anyway, his team mates have complained about this obstacle and it probably affects the way he relates with many of his team mates on and off the pitch. This has left him increasingly isolated. Ancelloti is a good coach but he of all people in my opinion should be able to bend the rules a little and as much as possible translate most of what has been said to English so that Bale could be carried along. After all, he is the club's most expensive player and it is to their advantage that they get the best out of him.

Player power rearing its head

Bale's agent, Jonathan Barnett, has claimed that the Madrid players have not been passing the ball to his client and that he has the stats to prove it which he indeed has. Barnett added that his client could go on to be the best Madrid player if they could pass the ball to him more often so that Bale could express himself, as if we didn't know what Bale can do. Well, what did we expect from his agent? A tongue lashing?

On a more serious note though, if his agent is correct in his claims then the logical question that we need to ask is why are his team mates afraid to pass the ball to Bale? The language barrier thing could be one reason but the paranoid ones amongst us will not rule out the influence of Ronaldo on his team mates since they are heavily dependent on Ronaldo's goal scoring and are always trying to play to Ronaldo's strengths.

Bale is short on confidence

Since Bale's troubles started this year, he has looked short of confidence. He has not been deadly, not taken many players on, and his shooting has not been at its best. These are Bale's strongest qualities. 

And as long as Bale doesn't regain his form and confidence in front of goal, the Real Madrid jury will remain out on him. Bale's admirers know that form is temporary but class is permanent and will expect Bale to return to his best next season.

Real Madrid fans are fickle

Real Madrid fans like most fans around the world who support big clubs are fickle. When you do well, they love and adore you but when you flop or make some mistakes, they boo you and unleash vitriol at your direction till you improve. If you doubt it, ask Bale's team mate and captain, Iker Casillas. 

Iker has been a worthy servant of Real Madrid since he became a regular in the first team squad in 1999. But some high profile mistakes has made the Real Madrid fans turn against him. If you look at Casillas' achievements for both club and country, the attacks on Casillas is shameful. You suspect that if the Madrid fans can do this to one of their own, then Bale a Welshman is fair game. Just imagine if Bale were black...

Being played out of position

This is not the biggest of excuses for Bale's recent troubles after all, he scored 22 goals last season and has already notched up 17 this season from the right wing but it could partly be the reason why we have not seen the best of Bale in a Madrid shirt and his current low confidence levels.

People forget quickly that the reason Bale became such a hot property is because of his performance from the left wing and later on from the centre. Bale is being played on the right because the left wing is Ronaldo's favourite position since he loves to cut in to his favoured right foot and shoot. And of course, it would be ridiculous to play Bale as a central striker where Benzema occupies since he is not a natural striker.

Bale should be allowed to have freedom to roam behind the central striker since it was there he flourished in his last season at Tottenham Hotspur where he scored 24 league goals which persuaded Real Madrid to pay a reported 85 million pounds for his signature. 

The 85 million pound question is, will Carlo Ancelloti upset the present order and allow Bale to play in a more central position or on the left wing where World player of the year, Cristiano Ronaldo, is currently occupying? 

Your guess is as good as mine.

Is the Ballon D'or award really bad for the game?

Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho are hardly the best of friends but they both agree on one issue. And the issue is, they both feel the award for the best player in the world, the Ballon D'or, is dentrimental to the game. 

Wenger earlier this year in an interview published in the Guardian, stated that he was against the tradition of awarding or voting an individual the best player in the world. Wenger added that although he is not opportuned to vote since club managers are not eligible to vote, he would refuse to get involved if the reverse was the case. According to Wenger, football is a team sport and not about the individuals.

Jose Mourinho also agrees with Arsene Wenger's views on the the Ballon D'or award. He believes that even though teams can have an exceptional player, it is unfair for a player to take praise for what was a collective effort. Mourinho's comments were published in an interview with UK based newspaper, The Telegraph. 

Mourinho said: "For me, football is collective. The individual is welcome if you want to make our group better. But you have to work for us, not we have to work for you."

"When the top player arrives, the team is already there. It's not him who comes to discover the team, like Columbus discovering America. No,no, you are coming now to help us be better."

The current player of the year is Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo who won the Ballon D'or award ahead of Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Bayern Munich's goal keeper, Manuel Neuer.

Both managers seem to have valid arguments against the award for the best player of the year but in reality, does it really affect the team as a whole? Messi and Ronaldo for the last 7 years have won this award between each other but have their dominance truly affected their respective team mates? Or even affected football as a whole? Is it possible that the award for the best player of the year affects players or teams in the Nigerian premier league?

If we take a look at Real Madrid this season especially after the winter break, you would notice the petulant reactions of Cristiano Ronaldo whenever team mates especially Gareth Bale fail to pass the ball to him or even score goals he failed to score. The only logical reason for such reactions by Ronaldo is that Ronaldo's personal duel with Messi has made him put his personal interests above his team mates and as a result, if he is not taking the plaudits for the goals scored he begins to throw a tantrum.

Lionel Messi on the other hand, is not exhibiting the same petulant reactions as Ronaldo on the pitch. And it appears Barcelona still plays to his strengths and so there is unlikely to be any tantrums coming from Messi if there was any in him.

It is pertinent to note however, that there have been reports of bust ups between Messi and Luis Enrique at the training ground possibly over tactics and training methods. Only the 'star power' held by Messi could make that happen and still make him get away with it. 

All in all, is there sufficient evidence to suggest that these reactions have affected Real Madrid or Barcelona as a team and their performances?  I think the effects have been exaggerated by Arsene and Jose. One thing, Barcelona or Madrid would probably be affected long term if they had to do without their star men for a prolonged period of time. The team would get a lift and inspiration on the other hand, if they were present cause their team mates are professional enough to know that the star players are key to the team's success.

Overall, every team has a star or top player that gives the team confidence on the pitch. That the star player gets recognised for individual performances should not cause much disaffection in a team especially if the star player is humble enough to recognise the contribution of his team mates when receiving his personal accolades. 

Besides, only one player wins Ballon D'or award on the entire planet.