Part of the Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon, El Palacio de la Aljafería is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that used to house the Banu Dan dynasty, who ruled the taifa (principality) of Zaragoza in the 11th century. Photo courtesy of Anvica.

This weekend, the focus will be on those teams who will play in European competition in the following midweek.  The question of domestic vs. European responsibilities remains an individual club decision, but for some teams, choices become more plentiful than others.

Real Madrid faces Xerez at El Chapín, but Los Blancos have the capability to send out a relatively weakened side and rest some of their regular starting eleven.  Valencia also has a deep squad, and playing against a Sporting Gijón side that has lost four consecutive La Liga matches, do not be surprised if Nikola Zigic or Alejandro "Chori" Domínguez receive starts for Los Che in the early Saturday kickoff.

The Villarreal - Athletic Bilbao clash at El Madrigal will be the most intriguing match of the weekend because both continue to fight for the final Europa League places.  Necessity will force both of their hands, as a loss at this point of the season may come back to haunt them at the end of the season.  Expect strong starting elevens to play both this match and their respective European encounters.

Atlético Madrid, with their 6-3 aggregate win over Racing Santander in the semifinal of the Copa del Rey, booked their place in the final on May 26.  They will face Sevilla, who used their catenaccio tactic in the second leg as they did against Barcelona in the Round of 16, to win 2-1 on agggregate over Getafe.  The winner of the Copa del Rey receives a place in the Europa League, but if that team has already qualified for Europe, the runner-up is awarded that spot.  Sevilla looks assured to finish in the top six, so Atleti, virtually out of the running for a Champions League spot, has a booked spot for next year's Europa League.

They do not have the same urgency as Villarreal, Athletic Bilbao, and others hovering around sixth place in the league, but the leaders Barcelona visit Los Colchoneros in the late Sunday kickoff, and Atlético boasts a decent record against the champions in the Vicente Calderón.  Even though they will host Galatasaray on Thursday, there is no way that the fans will allow their team to field a less than full strength side against their Catalunyan rivals.

The times listed are Eastern Standard Time (EST) and include the pregame pleasantries, although sometimes the matches on the DirecTV La Liga specific channels may not go to match coverage until right before kickoff.

Feb. 13

Sporting Gijón vs. Valencia - 11:55 AM on ESPN Deportes/ESPN 360

Xerez vs. Real Madrid - 1:55 PM on Gol TV

Villarreal vs. Athletic Bilbao - 3:55 PM on Gol TV

Feb. 14

Real Valladolid vs. Real Zaragoza - 10:45 AM on DirecTV channel 456

Getafe vs. Almería - 10:45 AM on DirecTV channel 457

Racing Santander vs. Málaga - 10:45 AM on DirecTV channel 458

Espanyol vs. Deportivo La Coruña - 10:55 AM on ESPN Deportes/ESPN 360

Sevilla vs. Osasuna - 12:55 PM on Gol TV

Atlético Madrid vs. FC Barcelona - 2:55 PM on ESPN Deportes/ESPN 360

Unfortunately, the Tenerife - Mallorca match at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López will not be shown on US TV, the first Monday night football match in La Liga for many years (twelve years to be exact).

UEFA Champions League

Barcelona and Sevilla will not play the first legs of the Round of 16 until the next Tuesday and Wednesday, so all of the Spanish eyes will lay upon the kings of the European Cup, nine-time champions Real Madrid.  Los Merengues, however, have been dismissed from the competition in the first knockout round for five successive years.  This season, they will hope to move past Olympique Lyonnais, the perennially tough French club, as Karim Benzema faces his previous club for the first time.  They last met in the 2006-07 Champions League group stage, where Lyon won their home match 2-0 and drew at Madrid 2-2.  Lyon would finish top of the group with Real finishing second.

Even though the major summer signings were signed in part to dethrone Barcelona from the La Liga pedestal, Florentino Pérez recruited them mainly for the Champions League.  Real Madrid sees their record in the Champions League in the past few years as an embarrassment, and with the Santiago Bernabéu hosting the Champions League final in May, they would want nothing more than to play and compete as hosts.

Feb. 16

AC Milan vs. Manchester United - 2:30 PM on Fox Sports Net HD (5:00 PM on delay on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Español

Olympique Lyonnais vs. Real Madrid - 2:30 PM on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Español (5:00 PM on delay on Setanta Sports) (For those who do not have access to Fox Soccer Channel in high definition, certain Fox Sports Net outlets will show the Lyon - Real Madrid match in high definition at 8:00 PM.  As of right now, these stations include MSG+, Fox Sports South, and Fox Sports Pittsburgh.  For those out west, Fox Sports Arizona and Fox Sports Northwest will show this match in high definition at 11:00 EST, 8:00 PST)

Feb. 17

FC Porto vs. Arsenal - 2:30 PM on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Español (5:00 PM on delay on Setanta Sports)

Bayern Munich vs. Fiorentina - 2:15 PM on Setanta Sports (5:00 PM on delay on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Español)

UEFA Europa League

Not to be overshadowed by the Champions League, Thursday will provide sixteen matches in the Europa League as it also starts their first knockout round.  A rare Spain vs. Belgium double will occur as Valencia visits the Jan Breydel Stadium against Club Brugge, and Athletic Bilbao invites Anderlecht into the San Mamés.

Atlético Madrid, having taken the parachute down from the Champions League as a third-place finisher in their group, will play Galatasaray at the Vicente Calderón.  When these teams fall from the Champions League into the Europa League, they feel as though it is a huge letdown.  Shakhtar Donetsk was the exception last year as the won the UEFA Cup, but generally, the Champions League teams generally lose in the first couple of rounds of the knockout stage.  Atlético will try to emulate Shakhtar and use their frustration from the Champions League to spur them on through the Europa League.

The best matchup of the four Spanish teams will be Villarreal against Wolfsburg.  Both teams have underachieved mightily, with the defending German Bundesliga champions mired in twelfth place and the consistent top five Spanish team hovering in mediocrity at tenth place.  Both love to attack and also leave holes in defense, so if goals are your flavor, this is the match to witness (as this is said, both legs will be 0-0 dour affairs).

Club Brugge vs. Valencia - 12:45 PM on DirecTV channel 464 (464-1 for HD)

Villarreal vs. Wolfsburg - 12:55 PM on Gol TV

Athletic Bilbao vs. Anderlecht - 3:00 PM on DirecTV channel 467 (467-1 for HD)

Atlético Madrid vs. Galatasaray - 3:00 on Gol TV

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Denial

Although Real Madrid needed five goals to overturn their Round of 32 tie with Alcorcón, a certain sense of denial was important in this particular situation so that they could believe that their task was not impossible.  Kaká stated, "For the pride and for the history of Real Madrid, we have to win this tie."  Marcelo and Jerzy Dudek followed in this same vein, declaring, "... for our badge and our shirt, we will not fail."

Through all these hopeful and defiant player statements about their second leg against Alcorcón, Ezequiel Garay showed their true depth of denial when he proclaimed that the Bernabéu will be the 12th man on Tuesday night.  Apparently, Garay relied upon a historically impatient set of supporters, whose lofty standards often lead more to boos and jeers than blind loyalty.

Anger

After the opening stanza of the game, where Real Madrid came out with guns blazing, reality began to settle in as their exertions led to zero goals on the scoreboard.  Real Madrid knew that Alcorcón would put ten men behind the ball, and Alcorcón knew they had to defend for their lives as Real sent out three strikers, Raúl, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Gonzalo Higuaín, as well as Kaká from behind to break the Alcorcón dam.  Alcorcón manager Juan Antonio Anquela admitted as much, saying, "If they want to crush us, they will crush us.  If Madrid is at its very best then it will be difficult to move on.  They are the clear favorites.  We hope we can win, but not in this leg."

The Real Madrid players began to get frustrated, as Alcorcón canceled most of their attacking opportunities, and the demanding Madridistas were not shy in their disapproval.  There was no disputable red card to distract the supporters in the Santiago Bernabéu as there was in their La Liga clash with Getafe on Saturday.  The full venom of their anger went directly to the players, excoriating their every move as the minutes ticked toward their inevitable fate.  Whether the fans' fury fixated on the players, management, ownership, or both, the rampant condemnation within the stadium was more than palpable, especially when Manuel Pellegrini substituted man of the match at the time Lassana Diarra in the second half.

Bargaining

As Real Madrid got closer and closer to breaking the stalemate, many believed that the first goal would open the floodgates.  If only Real could score early in the second half, Alcorcón would feel the pressure for the first time.  Many prayers by the Madridistas were sent to higher powers, asking for a minor miracle.  They will reform their lifestyles.  They will give up their vices.  They will change.  One goal is all they need to spur them on to a historic comeback.  Grant us this one wish.

As Real hit one, then two, then three posts/crossbars, the players and the fans ceased to bargain.  Rafael van der Vaart's 81st minute goal only helped in ushering a sense of hopelessness.  There was no way Real could score three more times in nine minutes plus stoppage time.  The depression set in as Real Madrid won the second leg 1-0 but lost the tie 1-4 on aggregate.

Depression

After the match, Pepe remarked to Spanish sports daily, AS, "It's a very sad night.  The attitude and spirit have been positive, but the win could not be.  The effort was there."  Florentino Pérez, the proactive and ambitious president of Real Madrid, was muted in his assessment of the state of affairs, articulating, "It wouldn't be a failure if we didn't win a trophy.  We are in the middle of building a new project.  We'll give it stability."

For the players, depression after a loss is only short-lived because their next objectives come at a rapid pace, and they do not have to mull over a loss like this.  Unfortunately, for Real Madrid, there is an international break this coming weekend, which means they will not start avenging this loss until November 22, when they host Racing Santander at the Bernabéu.

Acceptance

As one would expect with professional footballers and managers, they should have the proper perspective after all the loss and heartbreak they have suffered in their careers.  "The players are with me, but it's not easy overturning a four goal deficit because were playing against the score line, against the opponent, and against anxiety.  But we are a point behind Barcelona in La Liga and leading our group in the Champions League.  This will end well," declared the levelheaded Real Madrid manager Manuel Pellegrini, according to AS.

"The fault lies with all of the players, who are the ones who play the game. We had a very bad first leg. We lost 4-0, a very heavy losing margin. We have not lived up to what is required at Real Madrid. They worked hard to get through and they deserved it," Raúl Albiol said to Marca.

Whether Pellegrini and Albiol truly meant these words or if they were hollow statements is irrelevant.  They have to assure both the Madrid media and the Real supporters that their Round of 32 collapse to Alcorcón was merely a blip on the radar and that they would grow stronger from these experiences.  Alcorcón justified their two-legged victory as more than a fluke.  Real Madrid does have bigger fish to fry.  As Pellegrini mentioned, they are second in La Liga by one point and tied with AC Milan at the top of Group C in the Champions League.  Real has not won the Copa del Rey since 1993, so while the manner of their exit was surprising, the exit itself was not.  Understandably, all is doom and gloom in the Real universe, but if Real Madrid wins either of the two competitions in which they are still entered, this Copa del Rey embarrassment will merely be a footnote in their history.

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Former Barca star and coach Johan Cruyff (Photobucket)

"I can imagine that he is not going to be involved in football matters.  I don't know about construction and he doesn't know about football.  It is obvious."

In an interview with Cuatro, Johan Cruyff came up with yet another witty line when it came to criticizing former Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez.

"(Real Madrid) are trying to reorganize from the top because that is what is missing.  If it does not work at the top it will never work at the bottom," said Cruyff.

The former Barca idol and coach is known for not holding back an opinion on any football topic and he was not shy about sounding off on Florentino's ability to lead.  "He does have enough football knowledge to make decisions.  Others have to take them.  That is why he needs other people to make the decisions for him.  That is the case of the people around him knowing about the game, not him."

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