From Paul Giblin:
08/24/06
Well, here we are in the final countdown to the start of a new season in Spain, a season you will of course be able to watch live and direct in glorious high-definition on World Sport.
As always with the closing days before the campaign, the nerves start to tingle and everyone is asking the same big questions:
Can Barcelona make it three titles in a row?
The reigning League and Champions League champions have bought wisely and look to have added power to their defense and covered the loss of Larsson, who has returned to Sweden.
Will Real Madrid finally end their losing streak and take the title to the Bernabeu?
New president Ramon Calderon has put his faith in experienced coach Fabio Capello and splashed the cash. Madrid look powerful in every position as they have brought in experienced players who Capello has worked with before. It may not be a long-term plan, but they have bought to win now
Is this going to be Valencia's year?
Quique Sanchez Flores did well in his first season in charge at a difficult club to coach. They pushed Madrid hard for 2nd place, before just failing at the last. At Mestalla, they too have added to what was already a powerful squad and a title shot is a real possibility.Are Atletico Madrid finally going to get it right? We ask the question year after year and the answer is always 'no'. This time they have an experienced coach in Javier Aguirre, who worked wonders with Osasuna, and have brought in a lot of new faces (as usual) Can Aguirre get them to finally gel as a unit?
But there are more questions that the coming months will tell us:
Who will this season's surprise package be? Sevilla have done well recently, can they make the step up into the top 4? And can Osasuna repeat last year's heroics or will they struggle with the burden of Europe?
What about Villarreal? The "yellow submarine" has continually punched about it's weight, will their bubble burst this time around?
And what about Deportivo? They have struggled to make an impact for the last two years, but Caparros has bought wisely and they could challenge again.Will Athletic Bilbao spring a surprise after last season's battle against relegation? They certainly have talent in their squad; can new coach Felix Sarriugarte get the most out of them?
And down at the bottom who faces the prospect of relegation? Racing Santander look candidates as do Espanyol, who have spent two years on the brink. The new boys Gimnastic Tarragona, Recreativo Huelva and Levante will find it hard and what about Getafe who have sold most of their best players???
And of course talking about players: do I have to say more than Ronaldinho, Eto'o, Van Nistelrooy, Beckham, Joaquin, David Villa, Xavi Hernandez, Maxi Rodriguez, El Niño Torres, Nihat, Fran Yeste, Cicinho. the list of stars goes on and on, who will be decisive come the middle of June?
All of this and more will be answered in High Definition when La Liga returns to World Sport this weekend, so take a deep breath, sit back and relax, because from now on its tension and excitement all the way.
Enjoy.
Real Madrid vs.
VillarrealLa Liga Report pre-game show starts 30 minutes before the game around 12:30pm ET.
