Fran Escribá was a consistent presence after Elche’s sale last year but after his sacking the owners – one of whom is a striker at the club – will have to show what their intentions arePissing off the boss is rarely a good plan and losing lots of footb…
Xavi heading home to Barcelona in chronicle of a coaching job foretold | Sid Lowe
Club legend twice rejected offers but finally he is coming back as a defender of the faith and symbol of hope for the futureOn Xavi Hernández’s last night as a Barcelona player, he walked out of the Olimpiastadion in Berlin carrying the European Cup in…
Real Sociedad lead the way in Spain and get to enjoy moment of liberation | Sid Lowe
Was a last-gasp winner to beat Mallorca the mark of champions? Either way, la Real are unbeaten since opening dayJulen Lobete was on his knees crying again when his teammates sprinted towards him, hauled him to his feet and held him tight. One after an…
Kylian Mbappé sinks Spain to clinch Nations League for France
Maybe this Nations League thing isn’t a bad idea after all. It may not be universally recognised as a real tournament, at least not yet, but it turns out that it’s a lot of fun. The final four brought three wild nights in Milan and champions who twice …
Ferran Torres double sweeps Spain past Italy and into Nations League final
So this is how it feels. After three years in charge, having claimed a European Championship and set a new world record, Roberto Mancini finally tasted defeat. After 37 games unbeaten going back to Portugal in September 2018, Italy lost at last. Two fi…
Iñaki Williams: ‘My parents crossed the desert barefoot to get to Spain’ | Sid Lowe
The striker tells of his parents’ remarkable journey, rejecting Ghana and playing a record 203 league games in a row“We were at home one day in Bilbao watching the television when something came on – I can’t remember exactly what – and I asked her agai…
Rebels without a cause: has title win taken away Atlético Madrid’s hunger?
Their old gunslinger Suárez got the champions out of jail again but something is missing in Simeone’s teamDiego Simeone had pretty much seen it all but he had never seen this and he didn’t much like it either. It was 8.15 on a Tuesday night down by the…
Pablo Fornals: ‘I’m in love with West Ham, the songs, the sign, the bubbles’ | Sid Lowe
The Spanish international has fallen for London and the club, an eventuality that didn’t always look likely given the departure of the manager who signed him and the isolation of the pandemicIt’s a long way from Spain’s east coast to London’s East End …
Difficult days for Real Madrid and Barça plunge La Liga into uncertainty
Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos are gone, while Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid will fancy their chances of back-to-back titlesZinedine Zidane was the first one out, so early it feels like a lifetime ago. Then Sergio Ramos departed, the full-time whistle…
‘I wanted to stay’: Lionel Messi tearful at Barcelona exit as PSG move looms
Argentinian leaves Barça after more than 20 years at clubHe denies deal already agreed with Paris Saint-GermainLionel Messi hadn’t even started talking when he started crying. Holding a tissue handed to him by his wife, Antonella, he leant on the lecte…