FASTEST FOOTBALL - SOCCER PLAYERS IN THE WORLD | FIFA RANKING

World Football governing body FIFA has published its ranking of the "Fastest Football Players on the Planet". The speed taken as the "ranking factor" is the top speed peak & Manchester United winger Antonio Valencia takes the top spot with Real Madrid Welshman Gareth Bale second placed. Spanish Football also has players Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi & Alexis Sanchez represented in the Top 10

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REAL MADRID | GARETH BALE INTERVIEW WITH RM TV ( ENGLISH )

Though the readers around the World, especially from the USA & Asian region, may want to see & listen to the interview Gareth Bale gave to Real Madrid TV after his official presentation to media yesterday.

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Thoughts on Two Weeks of EPL

Jackson Schmidtke writes about the English Premier League, U.S. Men's National Team and anything else futbol-related we tell him to write about. Follow him on Twitter.   

Two weeks of Premier League play is in the books. I finally got to watch my first full match of the season on Monday with Manchester United taking on Chelsea. A busy August has regulated me to watch 'Match of the Day' highlights along with bits and pieces of other games in the past couple of weeks. It was a hard fought game and both teams should be happy with the draw.

So with two weeks of play done what do we know about this season? Really the answer is not much. But here are three things I have noticed so far.

1. NBC Sports Network’s coverage is fantastic 

As a soccer fan I’m still in awe of my ability to access every Premier League game. I might never leave my couch on Saturdays and Sundays this Fall. I can wake up early and watch soccer until the Wisconsin Badgers game comes on and then watch whatever college football games are on later in the day. Same thing goes for Sundays too. So much football/futbol and so little time to watch it all! NBC ‘s coverage should help grow the game and the Premier League in the United States and I’m very excited for the rest of the season knowing I will be able to have all sorts of access that I have not had prior to the NBC takeover.

2. The Transfer window is wacky
I love the transfer system and hate it at the same time. It is really cool that teams own a players rights and can loan them out to other teams, but the constant rumors and sheer amount of players all over the world makes it hard to keep up with what is happening where. The Gareth Bale and Wayne Rooney sagas are seemingly wrapped up and done while still being completely wide open at the same time. The excitement that a rumor can spark in a fan base is amazing and when that player actually signs it is cool to see fans get giddy with excitement. Everyone expects the big boys of Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal to throw around money like it’s from Monopoly but it is been really refreshing to see teams like West Ham, Southampton, and Sunderland shell out money on bigger deals. With just under a week left in the window, it will be interesting to see what happens with the sagas mentioned above and any new drama that might arise.

3. No one knows what will happen
It’s been an intriguing two weeks and not very many assumptions can be made so far. It is probably safe to say that Chelsea, Manchester United, Spurs, Manchester City, and Arsenal are all going to finish on top of the league. After that it’s wide open. Arsenal looked poor against Aston Villa but stepped it up after that. Spurs, Chelsea, and Manchester United have all looked very good. Manchester City were shocked by Cardiff City last week in a game that could be pivotal later in the season when the race for the title and relegation battles begin.

It has been a very exciting season so far and we are only two weeks in. As things continue to shake out during the transfer window it is tough to make any predications or assumptions about teams. Give it a few more weeks and things will become a little clearer.

-Jackson  

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REAL MADRID - GARETH BALE NEWS TRANSFER UPDATE

Few emails received by readers asking me what is the latest news exactly happening with Real Madrid & Gareth Bale from a local point of view. 





The following is what we know locally about the situation:


Last Wednesday the deal was agreed : 91M€. Apparently Real Madrid, players rep & Tottenham Football Director Baldini , under Levy guidance, shut the deal.
Tottenham Hotspurs asked Real

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ARSENAL MAKES A 30M€ OFFER TO REAL MADRID FOR DI MARIA ?

The imminent arrival of current Tottenham Hotspurs player Gareth Bale to Real Madrid will force changes at the Spanish Football Club. There is currently a midfield "overbooking" situation where not everyone can play & most big European Clubs know it. 

English Premier League Club Arsenal FC is said to already have made its move. First it was a speculated offer for forward Karim Benzema which was

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REAL MADRID TO RECEIVE MANCHESTER UNITED OFFER FOR OZIL ?

English Club Manchester United is looking "desperately" for a World Class midfielder & play-maker.  Their number one priority FC Barcelona Cesc Fabregas has declined their offer & the "Plan B" widely commented locally is called Mesut Ozil.Spanish Sports media is speculating that Manchester United will be making a 45M€ offer to Real Madrid for its German International. At first glance one may

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS - REAL MADRID AGREE ON GARETH BALE TRANSFER | NEWS FROM ITALY

News out of Italy via "Sky Sport" & from journalist Gianluca Di Marzio. According to the flash Tottenham Hotspurs & Real Madrid have come to an agreement in the Gareth Bale Operation. The transfer figure is 93M GBP plus Real Madrid defender Fabio Coentrao, however this needs further explaining.




Real Madrid will pay Tottenham Hotspurs 93M GBP in transfer payment, a payment that is over two

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REAL MADRID | "MIDFIELD OVERBOOKNG" - THE NEWCOMERS PLUS BALE EFFECT

Real Madrid has an "overbooking" situation especially in the midfield area. Have a look at the current squad names Xabi Alonso, Casemiro, Illaramendi, Khedira, Ozil, Modric, Isco...lets also add Angel Di Maria as well. As you can clearly see not everyone can play & on top of it all  next year is FIFA World Cup time & everyone needs to play to secure a spot on their National Teams.

If we add to

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GARETH BALE LATEST NEWS | REAL MADRID OFFER - SITUATION

The Gareth Bale "saga" continues in the media as it should, it is the only real "interesting" piece of news left before the start of the Spanish Football season this weekend that sells Sports papers.

Lots of news coming out from England. However most are strategic "leaks" or "false". There is no real big interest from Manchester United ( at least not in the prices being offered ) as its a

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TOTTENHAM PULL THE MAN UTD RABBIT TO "PRESSURE" REAL MADRID ON BALE

More news on the transfer saga of this Summer in Spanish Football. News out of England suggest that Manchester United may be preparing an offer for Tottenham Hotspurs Gareth Bale. The idea according to Manchester United is to offer cash & perhaps Mexican Striker Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez.




Lets have a think about this. May it be all a "leaked" story from Tottenham sources? It is not the

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS WANTS REAL MADRID MORATA IN BALE DEAL

The negotiations continue between Tottenham Hotspurs & Real Madrid in order to find a "middle ground" for the transfer of Welsh International & Hotspurs player Gareth Bale. Tough meetings were options are being put on the table & countered with alternatives.Real Madrid wishes to reduce the written about asked transfer figures of 145M€, latter 115M€ ...etc with the inclusion of player/s. The price

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS - REAL MADRID CONTINUE TALKS ON GARETH BALE

Back after a few days relaxing.

The local Spanish Sports papers have the summer pre-season matches on-board with a "curious" Real Madrid - Chelsea match coming up & a "rancorous" Mourinho with his latest comments, FC Barcelona passing through the Middle East & now in Thailand, Atletico de Madrid bettering in South America, Valencia putting in 4 goals in their friendly, Cesc Fabregas apparently "

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Rooney, Suarez & Bale Making an August Move?

What the heck’s going on over there? Three of the Premier League’s transfer sagas broken down.

Wayne Rooney, Luis Suarez, and Gareth Bale are three of the top players in the Premier League and the world  and they’re all locked in interesting transfer rumors. As the soccer transfer season begins to get into its peak I will break down what will happen with these three Premier League stars.

Wayne Rooney

The most interesting and complicated situation in my opinion is Wayne Rooney’s. It is well known that the England international fell out of favor with former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson at the end of last season. Ferguson retired and David Moyes is now the man at Manchester United. Moyes has adamantly claimed there is not a plan to sell Rooney but top tier teams have lined up to bring in the striker. Chelsea has already made a bid for Rooney but it was rejected. Why Chelsea wants to bring in another striker is beyond me when they already have a gluttony of strikers with Demba Ba, Romelu Lukaku, and Fernando Torres, not to mention their fantastic attacking midfielders. But Rooney would be the best striker on that team should he join the Blues. Fellow Premier League squad Arsenal also had a bid for Rooney rejected by Man U where Rooney would be a great fit for a team in need of firepower.

It is become very clear that the relationship between Rooney, management, and fans has soured to the point where the best option is for Rooney to find greener pastures elsewhere.

The question is where are those greener pastures? If you are Manchester United you don’t want to sell him to a fellow Premier League team and risk having to play against an angry Rooney for a league or cup title. So the natural solution is to sell him to a giant foreign team. The problem is who? Spanish league giants Barcelona and Real Madrid do not need him and he would be in a similar situation he is in at Man U playing second fiddle to other strikers. Bayern Munich do not need him either, but Borussia Dortmund might consider bringing him in to replace Robert Lewandowski who will depart for Bayern next year. French side PSG do not need another striker after bringing in Edison Cavani. One of the other high powered French Ligue 1 sides could consider bringing him in, as could a few Italian teams.

Maybe the ideal situation would be for Liverpool and Man U to swap Luis Suarez and Rooney but that likely would not happen. If I had to guess I would say Rooney ends up in France or Italy but it also would not shock me to see Chelsea or Arsenal get him. Then again, seeing as Man U are the New England Patriots of the Premier League, they might end up keeping him on board after all.

Luis Suarez

If it was not for Suarez biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic I probably would not be writing about his

potential transfer. The impending six game ban due to the bite had Liverpool fans fuming at the FA Cup last year and some speculation that he would leave Liverpool this summer. Arsenal have already had bid rejected and are very keen to bring in the Uruguay international. Suarez is angry at the English media and wants to play Champions League football for a top team. Liverpool finished just outside the Champions League this year and Suarez’s ban at the end of the season did not help things.

Going to Arsenal would be an interesting move. Arsenal are looking to bolster their team upfront and Suarez would certainly do that. If he transfers to another Premier League team, he would still have to spend the first six games on the bench. Losing Suarez would hurt Liverpool greatly since they do not have anyone who can replace him effectively. However, despite the interest from Arsenal and their persistence to get him, Suarez is not leaving Liverpool this year. Unless Liverpool get an offer of $70 million or more I do not see them selling. You will see Suarez in a Liverpool uniform in their seventh game of the season.  

Gareth Bale

Bale’s situation is a no brainer. The Tottenham winger has been linked to an expensive move to Real Madrid. Reports have the transfer fee for the 24-year-old Wales international at $130 million and if Spurs hold out they could get more. At that price it’s an easy call, Tottenham have to sell him. With $130 million, Spurs can buy two or maybe even three world class players to replace Bale and strengthen their team. For example, Robin Van Persie went to Manchester United last year for a fee of about $35 million. Even without Bale, Spurs have a strong enough team that they can contend for the Champions League spot.

It’s hard to part with a talent like Bale but for a price like Real Madrid is offering you almost have to sell him. His stock is likely as high as it can be and you are selling him to a team outside of your league. Additionally, there are reports saying Bale wants out of White Hart Lane to play Champions League football.  I fully expect Gareth Bale to be sold before Spurs kicks their season off on August 18^th   they would be crazy not to send Bale elsewhere.   

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS 120M€ BALE AGREEMENT WITH REAL MADRID ?

The "pressure" from the player has been decisive. Tottenham Hotspurs Welsh International Gareth Bale has let known to his Coach & Club President Daniel Levy that he wishes to leave for Real Madrid & to leave now. The offer from Real Madrid is already on the Tottenham Hotspurs table, its a World Record 98,5M€ which the English Club has turned down for the moment.




Today, local Spanish Sports

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REAL MADRID - GARETH BALE | APPROACHING A NEW WORLD RECORD TRANSFER ?

The news from the BBC ( UK ) is that Tottenham Hotspurs has knocked back an incredible 98M€ offer from Real Madrid for its player Gareth Bale. According to the English news sources Bale is not impressed at all as he desires to move over to Spain this season. Apparently the player ( & his family ) has began to pressure the Club & its "tough" President Daniel Levy to negotiate to let him go.




As

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REAL MADRID | TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS PRICES BALE AT 120M€

Tottenham Hotspurs 24 year old player Gareth Bale still is grabbing headlines on Spanish Sports papers. Most are contradictory, in that he will not be leaving his Club this season while others insist that players wishes to transfer to Real Madrid.The Welshman is definitely the signing objective of Real Madrid President Florentino Perez but not at any price. 



Today local media publish that

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WORLD SOCCER | TOP 10 HISTORICAL TRANSFERS - SIGNINGS

This is a "trivial pursuit" question: what are the Top 10 transfer signings in the History of World Football to date? I say to date because until the 31st of August 2013 the signing season is open & we may see surprises.

Spanish Sports paper "Marca" has done a write up that I think will interest the Spanish Football Sports Blog readers & global visitors.




The Nº 1 World Football Historical

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IBRAHIMOVIC WANTS TO FOLLOW ANCELOTTI AT REAL MADRID ?

It was mentioned here a couple of weeks back, that Paris St Germain forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic wished to follow his ex-Coach Carlo Ancelotti & had sent a message via "third persons" that he would be willing to leave PSG for Real Madrid. The Swede is said to have been "offended" with the signing of another number 9 in the player Cavani & wishes to find the exit door.




Spanish Sports paper "AS"

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPURS FOCUSES ON REAL MADRID YOUNGSTER JESE

The Real Madrid youngster has been knocking at the doors of the first team all last season. Jese Rodriguez has comeback from the U-20 FIFA World Championships with 5 goals & with the attention of the mayor European Clubs. According to the English Press, Tottenham Hotspurs is very interested & will prepare a 12M€ offer for the young Spanish Football promise. 



The player has a year left of his

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REAL MADRID SIGNINGS | ISCO, CAVANI & GARETH BALE THE CHOSEN

A popular Spanish Football late night TV show has revealed the three Real Madrid signings for next season. Journalist Juan Gato, reinforced by Alfredo Duro & the shows journalist ( Antonio Luque etc ) analysed the Clubs situation & according to their "inside information" gave the following scoops.


The next Real Madrid Coach will be Carlo Ancelotti. His official announcement is being delayed for

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