A new photo of Barcelona’s home shirt for the 2012-13 season has been leaked on the Internet.

The iconic red and blue shirt of Barcelona will again be centerpiece. But this time, the blue and red colors are blended on the home shirt instead of featuring traditional stripes. The design also matches a mock-design of the Barcelona home shirt, which was leaked last month.

The photo of the Barcelona home shirt is from an industry trade show.

What do you think of the new shirt design? Post your opinions in the comments section below.

H/T Todo Sobre Camisetas

Real Madrid’s latest win (4-2 over Levante) gave Jose Mourinho’s squad a 10 point lead (and a comfortable margin of error) over Barcelona in the race for the La Liga title. It would fair to say that Los Blancos are nearing on the league title after years of dominance by their bitter rivals from Catalonia. In recent years, almost every match between those two sides has ended in Barca’s favor and, in some cases, embarrassed the Madrid side.

The start of the season has not seen any changes in this dynamic with the Catalans winning the Spanish Super Cup then triumphing in league play in Madrid (3-1 after trailing 1-0 early on) and eliminating Los Blancos in Copa del Rey. However, it appears the Madrid side will win what matters most for the capital side’s supporters: the league title!

Unless there is a miraculous turn in events, including a sudden and unexpected collapse by Real’s players then the trophy will end up in the coffers of the Madrid side. There are 16 matches left but with an advantage of 10 points even the likely defeat at the Camp Nou will only close the gap to 7 points. Barca will be hoping Real will begin to drop points but it will be difficult for the Catalans to overcome this difference in points. There are a number of factors behind the surge of Los Blancos to the top of the standings:

1) Away Form: Real Madrid have an impressive away record. The club won 9 out of 11 matches away from the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu while Barcelona’s struggles away from home will likely cost the Catalans the league title. The Catalans lost 2 games and drew 5 others out of 11 matches played outside Barcelona.

2) Goals: Mourinho has often been criticized in the media for his approach to certain matches, in particular the clashes with Barca, but Los Blancos have scored an impressive 75 goals in just 22 games. Madrid’s offensive success overshadows how strong the club has been on the defensive end when playing away. Madrid conceded only 6 goals on their travels compared to Barca’s 13. That is quite impressive considering Real have conceded 15 goals at home. Both Barca and Real have managed to score 45 goals at home but once again the difference shows in the away matches. Barca’s players have scored just18 times outside the Camp Nou to highlight the difficulty faced against home teams which defend deep to negate the possession game used by Barca to breakdown opponents. Real’s direct approach is proving to be much more successful than Barca’s patient play.

3) Scorers: Credit must be given not just to Cristiano Ronaldo but also to some of his teammates for their scoring exploits while Barca’s lack of a true striker is beginning to show. Last season the Catalans relied on Lionel Messi’s amazing run but one player alone cannot keep carrying the team. Xavi had an exceptional 2010-11 season and he is still performing at a high level but he is not a scorer while his teammate Andres Iniesta has been injury prone (and he too is not going to guarantee 20 or even 15 goals a season). Real have Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain, both of whom can score 20 goals a season. Barca’s flirtation with Zlatan Ibrahimovic might not have been a resounding success but perhaps he should have been given more time to establish himself. It is true Barca’s system does not allow Ibrahimovic to flourish but the Swedish star could have managed 20 or more goals a season if given the proper opportunity.

4) Motivation: Barca’s winning run will come to an end sooner or later for a number of reasons, including the lack of alternatives for key players such as Xavi and Carles Puyol. Teams are desperate to get a point from the mighty Catalans and they have figured ways to grind out results against Messi and his teammates. Having won so many trophies, some Barca players appear to have lost motivation and they seem to lack the passion which helped drive the side to unprecedented success. On the other hand, Real’s players are desperate for the league title and have been watching in despair during the last few years while Barca received plaudits piling up the trophies.

5) Mourinho: The self-proclaimed Special One might be the most desperate individual seeking to achieve success at the expense of Barcelona. Mourinho’s ties with the Catalan club go back to the days when the late Sir Bobby Robson was Barca’s coach and Jose worked on his staff. Mourinho is renowned for his ability to motivate players and he is a tireless worker despite the critics who point out to his struggles against Barca (excluding Inter’s win in the semi-final of the Champions League and last season’s Cop del Rey success).

6) Rotation: While Mourinho has been able to rotate certain players and still get the best possible results, Barca struggle whenever key players such as Xavi and Cesc Fabregas do not start matches. Barca seem incapable of winning easily if some of the star players such as Iniesta, Xavi or Fabregas are left on the bench. In Real’s case, Mourinho has been able at times to rotate Benzema and Higuain or use them both in the same match.

7) Barca’s Injuries: Iniesta has missed a number of matches during to injury while David Villa is out for an extended period. Even summer signing Alexis Sanchez was out for a number of weeks this season. These three players would have played many more games if they have been healthy throughout the season.

Real Madrid suffered another home defeat to Barcelona but this time in the first-leg of the Copa del Rey. The cup loss has not been as painful as the La Liga loss to the bitter rivals from Catalonia. In both defeats the hosts took the lead early on only for the Catalans to strike back to achieve precious and morale boosting victories.

Last season, Mourinho’s team was able to lift the Copa del Rey at Barca’s expense yet all other competitions involving both sides have ended in favor of the Catalans who went on to win La Liga title and the Champions League. Those two latter titles are the ones which Mourinho wants to win and are the reason why he was hired in the first place.

Mourinho knows he cannot beat Barca by playing an attacking game so he keeps resorting to a defensive strategy with an emphasis on counter-attacks and an aggressive approach to intimidate Barca’s creative trio of Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

Those who value the Spanish Cup will argue that the Portuguese coach used his strongest lineup to face the Catalans but the reality is crystal clear for those who understand the intense rivalry between the two clubs and Mourinho’s personal grudge against Barca. Real, in particular the club’s management and Mourinho, cannot afford to be seen as giving away a match to Barcelona.

For Mourinho the focus remains on winning La Liga and this is a possible objective despite the home loss to the Catalans. Los Blancos have been more consistent than any other club in the Spanish league and deserve to be on top. With Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain scoring the goals, Mourinho can rely on a decisive firepower to finish off opponents.

As for the Spanish Cup’s return-leg, Mourinho will attempt to win the clash at the Camp Nou because he needs to boost his own morale and that of his squad since he realizes Los Blancos cannot afford a crushing defeat to the bitter rivals. Another loss to Barca this week would damage the confidence of the players and increase doubts about Real’s ability to win La Liga following a period of dominance by the Catalans.

Mourinho realizes losing the return tie will create a psychological barrier for his players who will become increasingly lacking in confidence when it comes to their ability to win the remaining fixture against the Catalans at the Camp Nou on April 22nd. That league fixture will likely be decisive for the coronation of the eventual league champions.

In the meantime, and despite the criticism from supporters and various media outlets, Mourinho will stick to the unpopular defensive strategy against Barca while relying on Ronaldo and his attacking partners to sneak a winner from counter-attacks. The Copa del Rey might not be Mourinho’s ultimate objective but winning the return fixture, even by a scoreline of 1-0 which leads to exiting the cup, will be one of Mourinho’s main targets ahead of the much anticipated league dual in April.

Will Mourinho be able to halt Barca’s dominance or will Messi and his teammates continue to cause heartache for the shrewd Portuguese tactician?

Barcelona’s home shirt for the 2012-13 season will be blue and red, according to a leaked design from Spanish website Sport.es.

Pictured above, the new design features a Nike shirt sponsored by Qatar Foundation. The shirt features the gold World Cup Club badge in the center of the shirt, as well as a color scheme that morphs from blue to red near the middle of the shirt. Next season’s Barcelona shirt won’t feature the stripes that many Barca fans are accustomed to seeing.

What do you think about Barcelona’s new home shirt? Share your feedback in the comments section below. And be sure to take a look at Barcelona’s away shirt for the 2012-13 season too.

Barcelona’s away shirt for the 2012-13 season will be orange, according to a leaked design from Spanish website Sport.es.

Pictured above, the new design features a Nike shirt sponsored by Qatar Foundation. The shirt features the gold World Cup Club badge in the center of the shirt, as well as a color scheme that morphs from orange at the top to yellow near the bottom.

What do you think about Barcelona’s new away shirt? Share your feedback in the comments section below. And be sure to take a look at Barcelona’s home shirt for the 2012-13 season too.

Photos of Real Madrid’s home and away shirts for the 2012-13 season have been leaked on the Internet.

Both designed and manufactured by Adidas, the home shirt features blue and black trim on their classic white shirt. The Real Madrid home shirt also features a v-neck collar.

Real Madrid’s away shirt is black with a fluorescent trim. The rounded collar and the three Adidas lines down the arms are marks of classic Adidas shirts. Personally I prefer the design of the away shirt more than the home one.

When Karim Benzema scored the opener for Real Madrid inside the first minute, some assumed it was going to be a long night for Barcelona’s players and the club’s supporters. However, the Catalans eventually turned the result around in another painful defeat for outspoken coach Jose Mourinho who, as expected, pretended the loss was not damaging.

Below are some of the key factors behind Barca’s ability to turn the early 1-0 deficit into a precious 3-1 victory in Madrid:

1) Barca’s Possession Plan: Most Spanish football fans are aware of Barca’s reliance on the possession game in order to deprive opponents of the ball and the chance to create scoring opportunities against goalkeeper Victor Valdes.

The Barca goalkeeper was shaky throughout the night not because of Real’s chances but rather due to his persistent attempt at neatly passing the ball to a teammate when he was under pressure. This led to Benzema’s early goal and could have resulted in one or two other goals if Real took advantage.

By keeping possession over 60% of the time, Barca made sure that Cristiano Ronaldo saw less of the ball and this restricted the overall efficiency and attacking threat from the hosts.

2) Barca win Midfield Battle: While there is no doubt some Barca player tend to flop at the slightest of touches, the Real players were certainly more aggressive and they did not hesitate to use two-footed tackles on a number of occasions against Barca. At the end, Xavi’s and Andres Iniesta’s confidence with the ball and their ability to pass their way out of any difficult situation allowed the Catalans to eventually turn the ride in their favor.

Xavi would certainly like to take credit for the second goal albeit the heavy deflection which ought to see Real’s Marcelo take the unfortunate credit of scoring an own goal. However, it was not this goal which makes Xavi so critical for Barca’s success but rather his amazing ability to make everything look ordinary. Xavi is not the talented dribbler such as Lionel Messi and he certainly is not flashy, but the Spanish midfielder can pass the ball like no other when forced into some of the most difficult situations.

Finally, Iniesta deserves praise for his efforts and he was Barca’s main threat once the game was at 3-1 with his marauding runs creating at least three serious scoring opportunities for the Catalans to add to the score. Iniesta and Xavi continue to show telepathic understanding when it comes to their passing and positional awareness.

3) Cristiano Ronaldo’s Failure: Ronaldo could have easily helped Real take a solid 2-0 lead over their bitter rivals yet he chose to be selfish instead of passing to the well-placed Angel Di Maria. This squandered opportunity would prove costly as Barca’s Messi would opt to setup Alexis Sanchez with a sublime pass for the equalizer.

In the second-half, Ronaldo would go on to miss a glorious scoring opportunity from a header while his decision continued to be questionable. While Messi did not score, the Argentina wizard did at least create space for his teammates and his assist led to the equalizer while Ronaldo went on to squander a couple of other free-kicks from his favorite spots.

4) Jose Mourinho’s Decisions: The Portuguese coach has been fortunate to get the opportunity to coach some of the best teams in their respective league. In the case of Chelsea, Mourinho became manager at the opportune moment when Roman Abramovich had already poured millions and millions of pounds. Then, with Inter, Mourinho had the benefit of Massimo Moratti’s heavy spending, players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic on the squad and the fact previous coach Roberto Mancini had set the winning era rolling. Currently, Mourinho is coaching one of the richest and best teams in the world with players such as Ronaldo, Higuain, Mesut Ozil, Pepe, Xabi Alonso and Kaka on his squad.

So where did it go wrong for Jose? When it comes to Barca, many acknowledge the controversial Portuguese coach has a personal vendetta because deep inside he always wanted to take over coaching duties at the Camp Nou. He hoped after Chelsea he would be considered for the Barca post but he was overlooked and then the same following the end of the Frank Rijkaard era in Catalonia. Thus, Mourinho seems to be emotionally charged when facing Barca and he often seems obsessed with avoiding defeat against the Catalans rather than pushing hard for a win.

Some of his questionable decisions include giving striker Gonzalo Higuain a mere 20 minutes to save the game. The Argentina striker has managed to score 12 goals in just 14 La Liga appearances, with 7 of those games coming as a substitute. Some might say Mourinho was adventurous enough to use Benzema, Ozil and Ronaldo at the same time, but the Portuguese coach ought to have started Higuain who is in fine form.

Another issue was the timing of his substitutions which seemed to be off as at 1-3 down, Higuain was realistically left with very little time to save something from the match while Kaka was only brought on after the hosts fell behind 1-2. Ozil was not having a great game so to wait almost an hour before subbing him was quite a mistake. Even Di Maria who was inconsistent and erratic somehow survived longer than expected before Mourinho opted to remove him.

5) The Talent Level: To be fair to Mourinho, the Barca squad has to be considered as one of the best assembled teams in the history of the game at the club level. The core of Spain’s Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010 winning squad is formed by Barca’s backbone with key players Xavi, Iniesta, Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol all contributing heavily to both Spain’s and the Catalan club’s success over the last few years. Add to the mix players of the quality of Messi and even summer signing Alexis Sanchez, then it is hard to imagine a team currently better prepared to win trophies. Obviously the addition of Cesc Fabregas, the former Arsenal skipper, only makes the squad even deeper and more talented!

Some might argue this is just a single match, but what they fail to recognize is the fact this triumph in Madrid will likely boost Barca’s morale following an inconsistent run in La Liga. As for Real, the club still has a chance to be 3 points ahead if the players can put behind this defeat to win their remaining match before the holidays. The win was certainly much more important for Barca because had Real won, then the difference would have been 6 points with the Madrid side having the opportunity to make it 9 points prior to 2012.

Time will tell whether this loss will have a damaging effect on Los Blancos and if the Barca players will use this precious victory as a means to propel their season to new heights in the quest to retain their La Liga title.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0bPoxFEPRU

Real Madrid against Barcelona on Saturday, December 10 will be the 163rd time these two clubs have played a league version of El Clasico. The highly-anticipated match will be seen by soccer fans from around the world, but where on U.S. television will you be able to watch it?

Here’s where:

ESPN continues to provide unmatched multi-platform coverage of Spain’s La Liga, presenting live coverage of El Clásico – Real Madrid vs. Barcelona, Saturday, Dec. 10 at 3:55 p.m. ET from Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid on ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio and ESPN3.

The two Spanish giants ranking at the top with only a few points different – Real Madrid, 37 and Barca, 34 – are currently the most prolific teams in the league. With Ronaldo and Messi both the top goal-scorers, this head-to-head battle of El Clásico will have all the drama and excitement fans have come to expect from this rivalry.

PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS

ESPN Deportes

• On game day, ESPN Deportes will feature live coverage from Madrid, starting with ESPN Futbol Center at 2 p.m. ET. The commentary program will be followed by a pre-game show of Fuera de Juego, also live and on-site.
• Real Madrid v Barcelona is live on ESPN Deportes on Saturday, December 10 at 4PM ET.

• The live telecast of the game will be presented by lead soccer commentator Fernando Palomo (play-by-play), former professional soccer players Quique Wolff, special guest Santiago Solari, former Real Madrid, River Plate and Inter Milan player, and Martin Ainstein and Tony Cherchi reporting from the sidelines.

• ESPN Deportes will air a post-game show, Fuera de Juego, around 6 p.m. ET. In addition, a special edition of SportsCenter with in-depth analysis and recap of the game will air at 7 p.m. followed by the re-run at 7:30 p.m. ET.

ESPN Deportes Radio

• The only radio network providing around-the-clock national Spanish-language sports coverage will begin Wednesday, December 7, with the Jorge Ramos y su Banda show live simulcast on TV and radio from the Spanish capital. Jorge Ramos and Hernan Pereyra alongside ESPN Deportes’ Spanish correspondent, Martin Ainstein, will be hosting the show featuring special guests and interviews.

• In addition to the three daily special broadcasts of Jorge Ramos y su Banda, ESPN Deportes Radio will provide wide coverage the day of the match with a preview show starting at 2 p.m. ET, which will include interviews, commentary and analysis from ESPN Deportes experts.

ESPN3

• ESPN3 will carry the action of El Clásico live exclusively online in English and Spanish.  El Real Madrid vs. Barcelona will be the highlight event of the day with coverage beginning at 3:55 p.m. ET.  The live multi-screen network is available through an affiliated provider to approximately 70 million households nationwide online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and through ESPN on Xbox LIVE. 

ESPNDeportes.com

• ESPNDeportes.com will offer vast content previewing the match as well as polls, news, analysis and post-game features with reporters on-site.

• ESPNDeportes.com’s GameCast coverage will feature play-by-play broadcast and a live chat in-game. Post-game coverage will include match highlights as well as photo galleries.

• Exclusive blogs and video reports from on-site reporters Martín Ainstein, Iván Vázquez and daily reports from special assignment reporter from ESPN Deportes Radio and ESPNdeportesLA.com Sebastián M. Christensen will be featured. 

ESPNDeportesLosAngeles.com

• The Spanish-language site will deliver complete coverage of the match including highlights, special reports from onsite talent Sebastian M. Christensen, videos, photo galleries, GameCast and Cover It Live – chat with editors and special interaction with TV talent via twitter.

• As a preview to kickoff, Sebastián M. Christensen will host a live Twitter chat one hour before game time. This session allows fans to follow a live thread using the hashtag #LaLigaPorESPN. Questions will be presented by ESPN Deportes’ brand page: http://twitter.com/ESPNDeportes. Christensen will reply from his Twitter account, answering questions from fans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqAhEouj2Sk

The legend is that Lionel Messi played so well against the youth players in Barcelona that his father demanded that Barcelona sign him immediately. Otherwise his father threatened to fly him back to Argentina.

The above video not shows the evidence of the contract that was signed on a paper napkin, but it also features some rare footage of Messi as a very young boy playing on the football pitch.

Real Madrid v Barcelona is live on ESPN Deportes on Saturday, December 10 at 4PM ET. Watch a preview of El Clasico here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdKrM9RY8cM

In the past 48 hours, we’ve asked you who do you think will win El Clasico. But today, on the day of the game, we have a different but important question for you: Who do you want to win? Which side are you on? Real Madrid or Barcelona?

Real Madrid v Barcelona is live on ESPN Deportes on Saturday, December 10 at 4PM ET. Watch a preview of El Clasico here.