Football News

For years, fans and media portrayed La Liga as a boring championship, without any suspense as Real Madrid and Barcelona fought every year for the title. Teams like Getafe and Cadiz popularised the usage of so-called ‘deep blocks’ that prevented fans from enjoying the game. As the Premier League collected elite managers (Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp, Roberto de Zerbi, Mikel Arteta, Ange Postecoglou), whatever La Liga was doing, it wasn’t evolution. Ex-Villarreal manager Unai Emery also joined (and to this day has remained with Aston Villa), while Andoni Iraola (ex-Rayo Vallecano) is also enjoying life in Bournemouth. But today, fans complain about another problem…

Before, there was no fun. Is there too much fun? Many complaints from Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid fans claim that their team is not good enough, and unable to defend. Barcelona indeed gave up on their defensive record that saw Xavi lifting his first La Liga as a manager and, indeed, Carlo Ancelotti and Diego Simeone have given up their defensive principles (for the most part). It teaches us a valuable lesson: the problem was never the style, it was the result.

The concept that “the customer is king” is widespread in today’s industry, but football has shown that customers, sooner or later, prove to be unconscious of their wishes. The sport is a never-ending cycle where trends come back and forth, under adjusted details. In the last Clasico, both teams seemed to disregard pressing, instead preferring to go back and forth. The score (3-2) is a great reflection of the general trend of the game.

All of this comes to say that what fans should be looking for is fun, instead of perfection. While it is natural for fans to seek perfection in their team,

Mikel Arteta Jurgen Klopp Carlo Ancelotti Unai Emery Roberto De-Zerbi El Clasico Andoni Iraola Diego Simeone Real Madrid