Spanish Primera Liga Preview

Levante are revelling in their unlikely status as Primera Division leaders with midweek hero Ruben Suarez declaring: "We are the team to beat." Ruben lashed home a stunning 93rd-minute winner as Levante edged out Real Sociedad 3-2 on Wednesday night to move back to the top of the table after being briefly usurped by Barcelona. The win saw Levante re-establish their one-point lead at the summit over Real Madrid, who won later in the evening, an advantage they will try to preserve at Osasuna on Sunday afternoon.

Valencia-based Levante avoided relegation last season by just two points and were among the favourites to suffer the fate in 2011/12. The lack of expectation means the players are currently enjoying their new-found fame. Ruben said: "Right now, we are the team to beat.”We have another short week to enjoy the moment. After nine rounds we are first and people want to beat us." Levante will have little trepidation ahead of the trip to Pamplona after thrashing local rivals Villarreal 3-0 in their last away game last Sunday. By the time they take the field at the Estadio Reyno de Navarra, Levante could be down in third, however, with the big two playing on Saturday.

European champions Barca are first up with a home game against Real Mallorca. Cesc Fabregas has backed Lionel Messi to get back on the goal trail after a three-game scoreless run - a drought by his prolific standards - which included him missing a penalty in injury-time of the 0-0 draw with Sevilla on Sunday night. The former Arsenal man said of the Argentinian: "Messi is the best and a born winner.”Messi always wants to score goals, but that did not happen on Wednesday (against Granada). "However, the great thing about football is that the best players take no time in getting back on their feet.”On Saturday he will have another chance to prove that he is the best."

Madrid kick-off at Real Sociedad minutes after the Barca game concludes. Jose Mourinho's men continued their phenomenal scoring streak last night by crushing Villarreal 3-0 at the Bernabeu. Madrid has scored 28 goals in their last seven games in all competitions with their attacking ranks bolstered by the return to full fitness of playmaker Kaka. The Brazil international played the full game against Villarreal, netting the second goal. He said: "Things are turning out well for me. I had not played 90 minutes for a long time. I feel well both physically and personally, and I use that to help the team. I'm gradually growing more confident. I'm happy for everything. "We continue to take points in a championship that will prove to be very difficult. We constantly grow stronger. "This is a long championship and the quality of the squad will be important and help us face it with guarantees."

Saturday's other game sees struggling Villarreal host Rayo Vallecano. The Yellow Submarine has not won in seven games and the pressure is starting to mount on coach Juan Carlos Garrido. Another man feeling the heat is Atletico Madrid boss Gregorio Manzano, whose side were booed during the 1-1 home draw against Mallorca last weekend. Prior to the clash with Athletic Bilbao, Manzano said: "I have watched the game against Mallorca and I don't think we did too much wrong.”This is a good team with good players but we live in a society of instant success. "I respect all opinions but surely they (the fans) want the best for Atletico." After the trip to San Mames, Atletico return to the Vicente Calderon to meet Real Zaragoza on Sunday.

Three successive defeats has seen Malaga's promising start to the season come to a shuddering halt and they will be looking to get back on track at home to Espanyol while Racing Santander go in search of their first win when they host Real Betis. Sporting Gijon also occupy a place in the relegation zone. They meet Athletic on Sunday. The weekend program is completed by Monday night's clash between Sevilla and Granada.

Spanish Primera Liga Preview

Malaga will be looking to reassert themselves amongst the upper-echelons of La Liga when they face their toughest test yet as Real Madrid come to visit.

The high-spending Andalucian outfit suffered a significant setback to their lofty ambitions with a 3-0 defeat at high-flying Levante last week, while Madrid are back to their rampant best with back-to-back four-goal hauls against Real Betis last weekend and then Lyonin the Champions League.

Malaga's hopes of ending Levante's unbeaten start were virtually over after half-an-hour with goalkeeper Willy Caballero seeing red before the hosts made it 2-0.

While Sky Bet make them 13/2 to cause an upset, Malaga will certainly have the inside info on their visitors with former Bernabeu boss Manuel Pellegrini backed up by Bernabeu legend Fernando Hierro in the general manager role.

Ruud van Nistelrooy is also in line to face his former club, while another ex-Madrid man Julio Baptista is ruled out with a foot problem.

Malaga will be looking to avenge a 7-0 defeat in their last meeting, but their much-changed side can take encouragement from the knowledge that a victory would see them move level with Real Madrid on 16 points.

Jose Mourinho's men are not the only ones looking to subdue supposed challengers from Andalucia, with Barcelona facing a Sevilla side yet to taste defeat this season.

Los Rojiblancos will, however, be without their star striker Alvaro Negredo and winger Diego Perotti, as they attempt to beat Barca for the first time under Pep Guardiola, having endured a 5-0 hammering last time they visited the Nou Camp.

Barca, who are also unbeaten this term, have the added boost of Cesc Fabregas returning from a hamstring injury but will be without Gerard Pique, Alexis Sanchez and Ibrahim Afellay.

Elsewhere on Saturday, injury-hit Racing Santander could be forced to persist with a string of youth players when they go in search of their first victory of the season against Espanyol.

In the other game, basement boys Sporting Gijon have their best chance of securing a first win of the season when Granada, who are only one win better off in their first season in the top-flight, come to town.

The pick of Sunday's six games will see Villarreal look to be the side to end Levante's stunning start and bounce back from their Champions League heartache.

The Yellow Submarines saw a 1-0 lead turn in to a defeat as Sergio Aguero struck a last-gasp winner for Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

That 2-1 loss means Juan Carlos Garrido's men have only won twice in all competitions, once in the league and once in the Champions League qualifying stage, leaving them in an area of the table second-place Levante would be expected to occupy.

In contrast, Levante have only dropped four points to date and conceding just three goals in the process, the least in the league.

Garrido will know this is the sort of game which could really get his side going again or, with a trip to Real Madrid to proceed, leave them looking down at very few in the La Liga.

Spanish Primera Liga Review

Reigning champions Barcelona and surprise packages Levante make an unlikely couple at the top of the Primera Division standings following round six of the season, while Gonzalo Higuain struck a hat-trick as Real Madrid thrashed Espanyol.

Barca took over top spot after an early goal from Adriano saw Pep Guardiola's side claim a scrappy 1-0 win at bottom club Sporting Gijon, but they find themselves level on 14 points with unfancied Levante.

Levante made it fours wins on the trot after a first-half effort from Juanlu saw them record a 1-0 away victory over Real Betis, who have now lost back-to-back matches after starting the season with four successive victories.

Madrid put behind them disappointing results at Levante and Racing Santander in their last two away matches with a 4-0 mauling of Espanyol.

Higuain, who has largely had to make do with bench duty so far this season, gave Madrid manager Jose Mourinho a firm reminder of his goalscoring prowess with a treble.

The Argentinian grabbed the first of the game after 17 minutes and added two more in the second half, with former Espanyol midfielder Jose Callejon also scoring against his old team-mates after coming off the bench.

Three points take Real to third in the Primera Division table with their fourth win of the campaign.

Elsewhere on Sunday, Champions League hopefuls Atletico Madrid and Sevilla shared the points in a goalless draw at the Vicente Calderon.

In the day's early kick-off, Athletic Bilbao beat local rivals Real Sociedad 2-1 thanks to a brace from star striker Fernando Llorente.

The Spain international scored in each half to earn Athletic coach Marcelo Bielsa the first victory of his reign at the sixth time of asking.

Sociedad had levelled through defender Inigo Martinez's astonishing strike from his own half but were outplayed for the majority of the encounter and had no answer after Llorente's second as Athletic claimed the Basque derby at the Estadio Anoeta.

On Saturday, a stunning late rally from Malaga saw the Andalusian side defeat Getafe 3-2.

Getafe led 2-1 in the 88th minute courtesy of goals from Pedro Leon and substitute Nicolas Fedor Miku, either side of Ruud van Nistelrooy's equalizer.

But Enzo Maresca tapped in a scruffy equalizer, before Julio Baptista won it with a stunning overhead kick.

Valencia got back to winning ways but failed to kill off Granada as their goalscoring troubles surfaced once more in a 1-0 win.

Sergio Canales' fine early goal was sufficient to seal victory, though forwards Roberto Soldado and Jonas Goncalves wasted a hatful of chances to extend the lead.

And they should have been made to pay by Carlos Martins late on, while Inigo Lopez hit the bar as Granada improved in the second period.

Villarreal's disappointing start to the season continued as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by 10-man Real Zaragoza, although it could have been worse for the Yellow Submarine as they needed a late equalizer to avoid defeat.

The visitors twice took the lead at El Madrigal, Luis Garcia opening the scoring in the 34th minute and then Pablo Barrera restoring their advantage on the stroke of half-time after Giuseppe Rossi had equalized for Villarreal.

It remained that way heading into the final 11 minutes, but the dismissal of Zaragoza defender Maurizio Lanzaro gave Villarreal a boost and substitute Hernan Perez salvaged a point with an 83rd-minute leveller.

Adrian scored Racing Santander's first goal since the opening weekend of the season to claim a 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano.

The former Getafe midfielder was brought on at half-time to replace Alexandros Tziolis and made almost an immediate impact as he slid in to divert Oscar Serrano's cross into the net.

Rayo had taken the lead in the first-half through Raul Tamudo, who took advantage of a slip by Bernardo in the home defence to run through and cleverly lob Tono Ramirez from a narrow angle.

Both sides had chances to win the match but Michu's header came back off the bar for the visitors and Adrian should have won it in the final minute - but he shot straight at Dani Gimenez.

Raul Garcia and Tomer Hemed both scored twice as Osasuna and 10-man Real Mallorca shared the points in an entertaining 2-2 draw at the Reyno de Navarra stadium.

Hemed scored his first-ever goal for the visitors from a penalty on 34 minutes after Miguel Flano had felled the Israeli just inside the area.

Garcia then headed the hosts level in first-half injury-time when he was left unmarked inside the six-yard box from Alvaro Cejudo's corner and he repeated the trick 15 minutes into the second period as he again met a Cejudo corner to flick a header past Dudu Aouate.

Mallorca were reduced to 10 men in the 72nd minute as Emilio Nsue was shown a straight red card for kicking out at Roland Lamah, but they were given a second penalty only minutes later as Lamah appeared to clip the heels of Alejandro Alfaro and Hemed stepped up again to claim a point for his side.

Spain La Liga Preview

Barcelona visit bottom side Sporting Gijon and Real Madrid are at Espanyol in Sunday's La Liga action.

Since their 2-2 draw with Valencia at the Estadio Mestalla last Wednesday, Pep Guardiola's side have looked invincible, cruising to a 5-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday before repeating that scoreline against Belarusians BATE Borisov in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Argentine maestro Lionel Messi orchestrated much of the carnage, scoring a hat-trick against Atletico and following up with a brace in Belarus.

Guardiola's team is looking healthy, with Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol both back in action after injury, although Andres Iniesta (hamstring), Ibrahim Afellay (knee) and Alexis Sanchez (hamstring) are all unavailable.

Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid side, meanwhile, are in fifth place, just two points off the lead, and they will be buoyed by their 3-0 win over Ajax in the Champions League on Wednesday as they head to 10th-placed Espanyol.

Defenders Fabio Coentrao and Pepe are under clouds for Real, but Mourinho will be delighted by the return to form of Brazilian playmaker Kaka, who scored a goal and played a starring role in the Ajax win.

But the surprise packet so far of the 2011/12 La Liga season is Real Betis, who have a one-point buffer at the top of the table over Barca, Levante and Sevilla after five games.

Betis host Levante at the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Sunday, while Sevilla journey to Madrid to meet Atletico, and Real Sociedad welcome Athletic Bilbao.

Saturday's games see Mallorca journey to Osasuna, Racing Santander host league newcomers Rayo Vallecano and Villarreal will look to bounce back from their 2-0 Champions League loss to Napoli on Tuesday when they host Real Zaragoza.

Valencia, fresh from their 1-1 draw with Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday, welcome Granada while Getafe visit Malaga.

Spanish Primera Liga Preview

Real Betis striker Jorge Molina has highlighted his side's never-say-die attitude as the promoted outfit head into the third round of Primera Division action as one of only three clubs still boasting a 100 per cent record.

Last season's Segunda Division champions are currently level on six points with Real Madrid and Valencia after starting their campaign with 1-0 victories over Granada and Real Mallorca.

Both of those victories have been secured with goals in the last four minutes from Ruben Castro, and Molina believes that is proof his side are ready to battle until the final whistle.

He said ahead of this weekend's trip to Athletic Bilbao: "The goals are arriving late but this shows that we don't give up at all. We're showing that we're going to fight for matches until the end and letting our rivals know that we want the points at all times.

"Hopefully things continue like that."

He added: "Clearly we would've wanted to start as well as this. It's very good to start with six points from six, although we know there's a long way to go."

Early-season pacesetters Madrid will look to build on their impressive start when they go to Levante.

Jose Mourinho's troops followed up their 6-0 opening win over Real Zaragoza with a 4-2 home triumph over Getafe last weekend.

Madrid then recorded a 1-0 midweek triumph at Dinamo Zagreb to begin their Champions League campaign on a winning note as well, and although the club were unhappy about the treatment meted out to Cristiano Ronaldo in that match, assistant coach Aitor Karanka is pleased with the way things are going.

"We must keep this up, growing and working hard to do a good job. It's easier to work when you earn positive results. If we keep this up we'll reap rewards," he said.

Defending champions Barcelona will be looking to end a disappointing week on a high note when they host Osasuna at the Nou Camp.

Last weekend Barca had to settle for a draw at Real Sociedad despite leading 2-0 after 11 minutes, and then on Tuesday they were held to a 2-2 Champions League draw at home by AC Milan after conceding a stoppage-time equalizer.

Barca midfielder Xavi said: "What happened on Tuesday is pure bad luck, totally unfair. The other day (against Sociedad) we dropped our intensity in the second half of the game, but this time the team played well, we pressurized them until the 90th minute, and we had possession of the ball."

He added: "We have to win, now, this Saturday. We'll battle on. We know we have a great team to carry on winning things, and we're competitive."

Valencia striker Roberto Soldado will look to add to the four goals he netted in wins over Racing Santander and Atletico Madrid when Los Che travel to second-bottom Sporting Gijon.

Sevilla and Real Sociedad will both attempt to build on their four-point haul so far when they meet at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, while Atletico host Racing, Espanyol go to Zaragoza and Malaga make the trip to Mallorca.

Also, rock-bottom Granada hunt their first points as they meet Villarreal while local rivals Getafe and Rayo Vallecano meet in this weekend's other match.

Spanish Primera Liga Preview

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has been given the all-clear by medical staff and included in the squad for Saturday's game at Real Sociedad, the Spanish and European champions said on Friday.

The Spain international has not played since undergoing knee surgery in June and his return is a welcome development for coach Pep Guardiola, who is still missing Puyol's partner in central defence Gerard Pique.

"He is a fundamental player for us, he gives us things that others do not, he is the captain, he has proven experience in a wide range of situations," Guardiola told a news conference.

"Seeing him content and shouting in training makes us happy and stronger."

Barca have occasionally suffered a dip in form in recent seasons after their players returned from international duty and Guardiola said they are hoping to avoid a similar slip-up on Saturday.

"The first match back after internationals has always been tough for us.

"Real Sociedad are playing differently to last year and it's a team that has made a very good impression on me. We'll have to prepare ourselves well and make a big effort."

Full-backs Adriano and Maxwell and midfielder Ibrahim Afellay were also given the all-clear after injury and are available for the game in San Sebastian, Barca said in a statement on their website.

Sociedad beat Barca 2-1 at their Anoeta stadium last season and their Norway defender Vadim Demidov said the Basque club's strong form at home could surprise the Catalans.

"I think this year will be tougher because they are an incredible team but winning one match against them is not impossible because we are strong at the Anoeta," he told a news conference.

Real Madrid are a better team than last season and are capable of getting the better of Barcelona, Spanish champions for the past three years, according to Real's Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo.

"To beat them we have to play at 100 percent, but I also think that this season we are more competitive, more mature and have more experience," Ronaldo said in an interview published in Friday's Marca sports daily.

"That's why I think this will be Real Madrid's year," La Liga's top scorer last season with 40 goals added.

Real host city rivals Getafe on Saturday following a 6-0 demolition of Real Zaragoza in the first round of matches.

Getafe coach Luis Garcia, who joined from Levante at the end of last season, said on Thursday he was concerned about a number of injuries in defence and on the wings but insisted his side were capable of causing an upset.

"They have an excellent counterattack and also exploit the spaces very well," Garcia told a news conference. "But Barca and Madrid won't take all the points and there is always a chance."

Valencia can still have a good season despite the loss of Spain forward Juan Mata to Chelsea and the club proved they can survive the exit of top players after David Villa and David Silva left, coach Unai Emery said.

"I believe in this Valencia independently of who is here," Emery said in an interview in Friday's As newspaper ahead of his side's match at home to Atletico Madrid on Saturday.

"Last season we were able to improve on the previous campaign and overcome all the doubts, internal and external, that there were after we said goodbye to Villa and Silva."

Atletico's new signings including Colombia striker Radamel Falcao, Brazilian playmaker Diego and Turkey midfielder Arda Turan need time to adjust, coach Gregorio Manzano said at a news conference on Friday.

"Maybe some of the latest signings are lacking a little bit of connection with the rest of the team, which is logical," said Manzano, who is beginning a second stint with the club.

"It needs some time so that they can continue to adapt and improve their understanding with the others on the pitch."

Real Madrid And Barcelona To Leave La Liga

Former Real Madrid general director Jorge Valdano expects the capital outfit and Barcelona to leave La Liga at some point in the future, with a European league proving to be more interesting for them.

Sevilla president Jose Maria Del Nido recently ridiculed La Liga for its lack of competitiveness due to the domination of the big two and Valdano thinks it’s only a matter of time before Barca and Madrid have had enough.

“In the future Madrid and Barcelona will be forced to look elsewhere for clubs that develop at the same speed. That will eventually move to a European league,” Valdano was quoted as saying by Cadena Ser.

“The gap between the big two and the rest is only getting bigger in the next few years. You can’t help but feel that it will only get worse over time.

“Barcelona and Real Madrid have the entire world as their market, while the others only have their local community.”

This would be a rather shocking, and seemingly unlikely, development which aligns the Spanish league to a similar issue that has been felt in the SPL for quite some time. Jorge Valdano talks of the lack of competition without taking some of the responsibility for this issue.

For instance the cut of TV revenue handed to Barcelona and Real Madrid exceeds the other sides in La Liga and it is also worth noting that whilst either Real Madrid or Barcelona have won the last seven titles, three of the five titles before that were taken by Valencia and Deportivo La Coruna, and in many ways that record is not unlike Man United and Chelsea’s dominance in the Premier League but then you don’t hear those two clubs asking to leave.

La Liga Set For Delayed Start As Spanish Players' Union Calls Strike

La Liga and Segunda División players will go on strike for the first two weekends of the new Spanish season as the players' union steps up pressure on the league for a new deal over conditions.

The AFE president Luis Rubiales told a news conference: "We are unanimous and firm in our decision to call a strike. The league will not start until a new agreement [between the league and the players] has been signed."

At the heart of the dispute is the union's demand for a larger emergency fund to help players not being paid by clubs who are in financial administration.

The La Liga and Segunda División seasons are scheduled to start on the weekend of 20-21 August.

The AFE were supported by more than 100 top-flight footballers in a Madrid hotel where the event was held. The Spain internationals Iker Casillas and Carles Puyol were among the players and there were union representatives from France, Germany and Italy among others to lend their support.

Rubiales said the players had been negotiating with the Spanish football league (LFP) over a series of protective measures for players that are commonplace in other leagues in Europe but which Spanish players do not have.

"It is lamentable. As it stands we are at the bottom of the pile in Europe. We don't want more money, we want the clubs to honour the contracts they sign with their players. We don't want palliative measures. We have put forward proposals which exist in Holland, Germany, France and England which are preventative. In these countries if a club shows it can't pay its players the club doesn't compete.

"We have asked that players who are owed more than three months [wages] can break their contracts. It seemed like we had an agreement but it was left out."

Rubiales said that, despite the lengthy negotiations, the LFP had imposed a new settlement at the beginning of August which the players rejected.

"Enough is enough," he said. "This does not mean we are refusing to negotiate any more. We will do for the good of the players and football in general. But the league will not start until a new collective agreement is signed."

Real Madrid Sign Five-Year Sponsorship Deal With Emirates

Real Madrid have signed a sponsorship deal with Dubai-based airline Emirates for the next five years.

The agreement was announced at a press conference at the Santiago Bernabeu on Friday and was attended by club president Florentino Perez and 20 players from Jose Mourinho's squad.

A statement on the club's official website reads:

"Real Madrid and Emirates presented a new sponsorship deal for the next five years. The act was attended by Real Madrid president Florentino Perez; Salim Obaidalla, Emirates' Senior Vice-President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation; Boutros Boutros, Emirates' Divisional Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications; and 20 players of the first team squad."

Speaking of the deal, Perez said: "Emirates is a world-renowned company that has always respected and valued sport.

"The airline shares our belief in loyalty, effort, commitment and innovation and these common principles will create a special understanding.

"We strongly believe this is a strategic alliance bridging us with our many followers all over the world."

Part of the agreement will see Emirates become the club's official airline.