LA LIGA & REAL MADRID

[raul julia]

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I hope Perez will keep Raul.........

[fingolfin]

.......Raul IS Real Madrid .... Perez can have himself assasinated if he does sell Raul to Liverpool.

[Von!-x]

With Raul's dipping performance, and Owen's enthusiasm in finding the net, IMHO, the fans may prefer trophies than keeping Raul.

Perez has to step down. He brought in high-profile players but without the trophies, they are nothing. Sayang-sayang lang! Dugang-dugang lang sa frustration!

[Madeus]

its obviously Raul is madrid.

Morientes was in-form but still Raul was playing. Raul boosts the fans more 'home environment' when they play.

[jamescebu]

Owen wants to reign in Spain - Becks


England captain David Beckham believes Real Madrid team-mate Michael Owen wants to stay at the Bernabeu despite ongoing speculation linking him with a move away from the club.
The 25-year-old striker has enjoyed a profitable first season in Spain, hitting the back of the net 13 times in the Primera Liga despite often being bench-bound and in the shadow of Ronaldo and Raul.


Owen has had to contend with reports of a return to the Barclays Premiership almost from the moment he stepped off the plane in Madrid but Beckham feels he has much more to offer to Real.

He told Marca: 'I think Owen wants to continue at Real Madrid. What is obvious is that he has had a great season and he has scored a lot of goals.

'Michael has an ability to score goals and if you give him a chance, he takes it.'

Beckham was less certain whether England midfielder Frank Lampard could be tempted away from Chelsea to join Madrid.

'Frankie is a great player, but he is at Chelsea who have to let him leave,' he said.

'Personally I don't think they will let him leave after the season he has had.'

Meanwhile the 30-year-old believes he is playing some of the best football of his career and is hoping finally to lift some silverware with Real next season.

Although Beckham has failed to win anything during his two seasons in the Spanish capital since moving in a #25million transfer from Manchester United, the recently-completed campaign was a good one on a personal level.

The arrival of Wanderley Luxemburgo at the club just before the new year saw him return to his favourite position on the right of midfield, and Beckham was one of the outstanding players for Real during the second half of the season.

'I think I am in the best moment of my career,' he continued.

'I took the decision to play for Madrid and now Luxemburgo has confidence in me and he has made me believe I can play good football. You really notice it when the coach gives you confidence.'

The Spanish papers have reported that Madrid could be prepared to offer Beckham a two-year extension to the four-year-deal he signed in the summer of 2003. That would keep him at the club until 2009, when he will be 34.

He added: 'My life is football. At the moment all I am thinking about is playing and ending my career at Madrid, and winning titles.

'We have not won anything this season. We have not won any titles so next season we have to win the league and the Champions League. I want to win all the titles there are.'

[raul julia]

Argentina midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme will remain at Villarreal after the club agreed to buy 80 percent of the player's rights from Barcelona, Spanish radio station Cadena Ser reported on Thursday.

Ser said that Villarreal would pay Barcelona five million euros ($6.1 million) for the rights and that the 26-year-old would sign a new four-year contract with the club.

Neither Barcelona nor Villarreal confirmed the deal.

[raul julia]

Spain's last-gasp 1-1 draw against Bosnia on Wednesday raised new doubts about the team's lack of attacking firepower.
"It's true we are finding it very difficult to score goals at the moment," said skipper Raul, who is the leading scorer in the history of the national side with 41 goals in 85 games.
It was a real shame to let the game slip away from us because we couldn't take advantage of our chances.
"We missed a great opportunity out there but the only positive thing is that at least we still depend on ourselves to qualify for the World Cup."
The draw ended Spain's 16-match run of home victories in World Cup qualifiers but left them top of Group Seven with 13 points.
They are a point ahead of Serbia & Montenegro, who have a game in hand. The two sides meet in Spain in the next qualifier in September.

[raul julia]

Liverpool will be allowed to defend its Champions League title, but will have to begin play in the first qualifying round.
European soccer's governing body announced the decision on Friday after the 14-member executive committee agreed to make an exception for the five-time European champions.
Liverpool, which beat AC Milan on penalty kicks in the final in Istanbul last month, had failed to earn an automatic spot in next season's tournament.
Under UEFA's rules, the champion didn't automatically qualify. The top four teams in England's Premier League qualify, and Liverpool finished fifth. Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Everton qualified automatically.
UEFA decided Friday that, from now on, the champion will have the right to defend the title.
``They (the executive committee) felt it was the best and wisest, and I felt that way too,'' UEFA spokesman William Gaillard said. ``The rules said that no association could have five clubs in the Champions League. The decision that has been taken today is exceptional.''
If the situation occurs again, the Champions League winner would take the place of the final qualifier from its domestic league. Had the rule been in force this season, Liverpool's archrival Everton, which finished fourth in the Premier League, would have had to drop out.
``In the upcoming season, England will be the only national association ever, and for the last time, that will be allowed to have five clubs,'' Gaillard said.
Liverpool will enter the qualifying rounds, which begin next month. The draw will take place June 24.
Liverpool will have to play six matches to reach the group stage, which begins in September.
The response from fans wasn't as positive.
``To be told they have to start in the first qualifier is wrong and a real kick in the teeth,'' said Les Lawson, spokesman for the Liverpool International Supporters Club. ``It is a disgrace.''

[raul julia]

Michael Owen says that despite the speculation linking him with a return to the Premiership he is reluctant to leave Real Madrid and will move only if the club tells him to go.
"I don't know what my situation is at the moment, but I know I am happy here," the England striker said in an interview with Spanish sports daily Marca on Sunday.
"All that I've been told is that Real Madrid are happy with me. I'm happy with the way things have gone and obviously I want to win things with Real Madrid and I'm not thinking of leaving.
"Of course if someone comes and tells me there is a club interested in me and that I have to leave then I'll have to go. But I like this club and its fans and I have enjoyed myself more and more as each month has gone by."
Owen, who joined Real from Liverpool for 12 million euros last August, had a difficult first few months at the club but earned himself a regular place in the starting line-up by the end of the season.
He finished up as Real's second highest scorer in the league with 13 goals, eight fewer than Ronaldo but four more than fellow forward Raul.
The 25-year-old Owen has been linked with several Premier League clubs in recent weeks, including Arsenal and Manchester United, while Spanish media report that Real are trying to close a deal to sign Brazilian international forward Robinho from Santos.

[Madeus]

OT and Shameless plug:

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