Barcelona Are La Liga Favorites

Barca shipped nine goals in the European and Spanish Supercups which is quite a turnaround from last season when they had the meanest defense in La Liga and in Europe and something Luis Enrique will have to work on.

“La Liga has not started yet, and it seems we are carrying a weight on our shoulders”, he said.

And despite a tough start to the season, Enrique acknowledged the defending champions remain the favourites to win the title.

Pique was said to have roared the insult at the linesman after he failed to call a clear offside during the 1-1 draw.

It’s also been a rocky enough summer at Real Madrid. Long-serving captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas’s exit was also handled badly. Los Blancos enter the new campaign with burgeoning confidence following the appointment of a new manager in Rafa Benitez and a string of shrewd signings. But the first month is free, and the subscription can be cancelled at any time.

“We’ve seen the return of great players with great professionalism, all of whom are very excited to win more trophies”. Season opener is bound to be as intense and electrified as were two previous meetings, with the Basque side knowing for sure they could get a result, after last Friday’s thrashing of Barcelona at San Mames.

But, as ever, most people’s interest in La Liga centres on Barcelona and Real Madrid’s perennial tussle for supremacy, with the capital side looking well primed to capitalise on the Catalans’ depleted squad and defensive fragility. He identified the players he wanted early on and they were in the red and white stripes before anyone could say in their best Eric Idle voice: “wait a minute, we’re supposed to haggle”.

Any side with that trio probably has to be favorite to win the title, given their ability to conjure a goal out of nothing, although Barca may well regret the sale of forward Pedro Rodriguez to Chelsea.

There are times when familiarity can breed contempt as the saying goes, but in the case of Athletic Club Bilbao and FC Barcelona, who kick off the season in the San Mames Stadium here on Sunday, it is more likely to breed rivalry.

Graham also spoke to Ger about calendar alterations to the Spanish season along with the transfers of Nicolas Otamendi to Manchester City and Mateo Kovacic to Real Madrid.

Along with Sporting, Las Palmas of the Canary Islands and Real Betis are the newcomers to the top flight and.

Getafe will surprise, with impressive ex-Elche coach Fran Escriba at the helm, while Dutch global Rafael Van der Vaart is an exciting signing for back in the big time Real Betis. Deportivo La Coruna will host Real Sociedad, Espanyol will take on Getafe and Valencia – with part of their focus on Tuesday’s Champions League play-off trip to Monaco – will visit Rayo Vallecano. Ex-Premier League players Roberto Soldado [Villarreal], Iago Aspas [Celta Vigo] and Felipe Luis [Atletico] are all returning to Spain with points to prove.

Ronaldo’s challenger to the Pichichi crown – La Liga’s top scorer award – will, of course, be Messi.