A total of 19 of the 23 players announced for the Spanish squad for the forthcoming Euro 2012 Championship were involved in the 2010 World Cup winning squad and 12 of them, part of the 2008 European Championship winning squad. Add to that, 11 of the 23 play for either Barcelona or Real Madrid and it difficult to argue that this is anything other than a team of winners and it is difficult to see Vicente del Bosque's losing that winning habit in Poland and the Ukraine.

A total of 19 of the 23 players announced for the Spanish squad for the forthcoming Euro 2012 Championship were involved in the 2010 World Cup winning squad and 12 of them, part of the 2008 European Championship winning squad. Add to that, 11 of the 23 play for either Barcelona or Real Madrid and it difficult to argue that this is anything other than a team of winners and it is difficult to see Vicente del Bosque's losing that winning habit in Poland and the Ukraine.

Spain cruised to a comfortable win over Serbia in a friendly on Saturday, May 26, 2012.

With the Copa del Rey final on Friday, Spain were without any players from Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. Despite not being at full strength, Barcelona would get second half goals from Adrian (64th minute) and Santi Cazorla (75th minute) to win the match.

It is normally England that are desperately hoping one of their star players are fit for a major tournament. Whether it be David Beckham, Michael Owen or Wayne Rooney, there has always been something to worry about.

This year though, those over at http://euro2012onlinebetting.com/spain note how it is reining European Champions Spain that are sweating on the fitness of their star striker David Villa.

A big blow for Spain heading into this summer's European Championship as Barcelona announced today that Carlos Puyol has a knee injury that requires arthroscopic surgery.

"After tests were conducted it was decided the player would have arthroscopic surgery next Saturday, May 12," Barcelona said in a statement on their website.

After Dani Alves and Thiago Alcantara combined to help Barcelona thump Rayo Vallecano they were feeling rather pleased with themselves. So pleased, in fact, that they couldn't contain the samba rhythm within them. But their impromptu dance class was brought to a premature end when His Curly Highness Carlos Puyol decreed that this was not [.

Impossible? I think not.

Prepare for glory.

Team sheets
FC Barcelona
Valdés, Piqué, Mascherano, Puyol, Busi, Xavi, Cesc, Cuenca, Messi, Iniesta, Alexis. Bench: Pinto Alves Thiago Keita Adriano Tello Pedro.

Chelsea
Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Cole, Mikel, Lampard, Mata, Meireles, Ramires, Drogba.

Spanish newspaper Sport have been forced to change their front page splash after using a photo that appeared to show Barcelona skipper Carlos Puyol in a very compromising position with midfield star Xavi. A slight change of photo and suddenly the cover isn't anywhere near as controversial! Via 101GG

Mighty big match in Spain tomorrow. Just thought you should know.

The CO hasn't been one for polls recently. As you've probably noticed, we did away with our match of the day polling, which at one point was a mainstay. It had run its course, I think, though we're always up to bringing it back if there's demand.

La Liga
Barcelona 1:2 Real Madrid
Real Madrid took a decisive lead in the Spanish title race this evening and silenced the 99,000 of the Camp Nou with a 2-1 victory over Barcelona.
Cristiano Ronaldo eclipsed Lionel Messi by scoring the winner in the 72nd minute, which leaves Barça seven points adrift with only four matches to play.

A second half Cristiano Ronaldo goal was the difference as Real Madrid defeated Barcelona in another edition of the El Clasico.

The match started out with Real Madrid getting the better chances and able to take an early lead. The goal was scored by Sami Khedira in the 17th minute as he pounced on a rebound in front of goal before Carlos Puyol could clear it.

By Chris Wright

The Daily Mail have busied themselves by totting up the total amount of time Didier Drogba spent screaming in anguish with his face mashed into the spittle-infused turf at Stamford Bridge against Barcelona on Tuesday evening.

Here's the scores on the doors.

Didier Drogba's various ailments held up play for 6mins 30secs during Chelsea's Champions League semi-final first-leg against Barcelona. The great stat has been dug up by the Daily Mail. They have clocked all the time the Ivorian spent rolling around the ground. And it turns out that it was a very effective way of running [.

Dealing with suspected fractures Step 1: Recognition and treatment Look for swelling. If you spot any, try prodding the victim or squeezing the swollen area. Listen for a grating noise. If this turns out to be Ashley Cole thinking aloud about opening contract negotiations, please ignore. Be aware of shock.

1. It's not very often that you can celebrate a first-leg win, but you can forgive Chelsea for enjoying this one. 2. Didier Drogba is back to his best... and worst. The goal-scoring hero seems to believe his recent good form has earnt him the right to spend prolonged periods in a horizontal position once [.

Kids in Spanish schools get taught that England grinds to a halt every mid-afternoon while we all tuck into some cucumber sandwiches. Carlos Puyol found out in the hardest way that the image of the stereotypical English gentlemen isn't all it's cracked up to be: he came face-to-face with John Terry. Noting that Puyol was [.

By Alan Duffy

Has John Terry had his beloved captain's armband tattooed onto his body?

Roberto Di Matteo's plan to keep Lionel Messi subdued at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night came up trumps, with both Barcelona and the Argentine imp failing to get on the scoresheet.

Revenge is at hand.

Team sheets
Chelsea
Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Cole, Lampard, Mikel, Meireles, Ramires, Mata, Drogba. Bench: Turnbull, Essien, Malouda, Bosingwa, Torres, Kalou, Sturridge.

Barcelona
Valdés, Alves, Puyol, Mascherano, Adriano, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Cesc, Messi, Sanchez.

Fans of football hardmen and stationery alike, you're going to love this video. Barcelona skipper Carlos Puyol was ordered off the pitch with blood coming from a gash on his head during his side's win over Real Zaragoza. He was not going to be kept out of action for too long though. Puyol took a [...

Attack is the best form of defence Barcelona skipper Carlos Puyol got momentarily confused during last night's match against Valencia and thought he was his FIFA 12 alter ego being controlled by a fearless seven-year-old. The veteran stormed out of defence and threw two outrageous roulettes to beat two defenders!

In name it's only a friendly but when any world champion rolls up to Wembley everybody watching can be sure it will be anything but. Spain, FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship winners, are rightly considered the best team in contemporary international football. Some even consider this Spanish side to be the best international team that has ever played the game.

David Villa signs for Benitez

Spain are in London this weekend to face England in the friendly at Wembley but Rafael Benítez caught up with the squad before their trip and persuaded a number of them to sign football shirts for him to be auctioned for charity. As already mentioned on this site, a shirt signed by Spain's World Cup winning coach Vicente Del Bosque is up for auction and all proceeds from the sale will go the various charities that the Montse Benítez Foundation (MBF) raises funds for.

The Prem's early season dream team During this tedious international break, many of us will spend our weekend without our usual fix of Premier League action and have to watch England be crushed by the football machine that is Spain. So, during the interruption let's think which players have made our football-filled weekends a joy [.

Spain are the bookies' favourite to claim the Euro 2012 title held in Poland and Ukraine but do they deserve to be in this position?
They are undoubtedly the best team in the world and have a respectable history in terms of awards. The Spanish last claimed the European title back in the Euro 2008 where they beat the German powerhouses 1-0 after a goal from the unstoppable Fernando Torres in the 33rd minute.

Este próximo Sábado 12 de Noviembre en Wembley se enfrentarán Ingleses y Españoles en un amistoso que echará chispas, los equipos representantes de las 2 mejores ligas del mundo.
Horario del partido Mexico - 11:15 a.mPeru, Ecuador, Colombia y Estados Unidos - 12:15 p.mVenezuela - 12:45 p.

La baja de Carlos Puyol y Gerard Piqué no sólo trastoca los planes de Pep Guardiola. Son la pareja invencible, ya que juntos sólo han perdido tres partidos en estas tres campañas.
Uno con el Barcelona, ante el Inter en Milán en la semifinales de la Champions 2010, y dos con la selección ambos en Sudáfrica: uno en la Copa Confederaciones (ante Estados Unidos) y otro en el Mundial (el estreno ante Suiza).

La baja de Carlos Puyol y Gerard Piqué no sólo trastoca los planes de Pep Guardiola. Son la pareja invencible, ya que juntos sólo han perdido tres partidos en estas tres campañas.
Uno con el Barcelona, ante el Inter en Milán en la semifinales de la Champions 2010, y dos con la selección ambos en Sudáfrica: uno en la Copa Confederaciones (ante Estados Unidos) y otro en el Mundial (el estreno ante Suiza).

Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Image (Bleacher Report)Argentine defender Gabriel Milito joined Barcelona in 2007 from Real Zaragoza, but since that time a series of chronic injuries have limited him to only 75 first team appearances for the club as Gerard Pique rose to prominence as Carlos Puyol's primary partner at the back.

I am in Washington D.C. for the Barcelona v Manchester United match on Saturday. Tonight both teams had a practices that were open to the middle and fans.

It was really cool to watch Barcelona practice. Completely different exercises than what Man Utd went through. Carlos Puyol (looking a bit heavy) did not practice, but he did sign autographs for the fans.

I am in Washington D.C. for the Barcelona v Manchester United match on Saturday. Tonight both teams had a practices that were open to the middle and fans.

It was really cool to watch Barcelona practice. Completely different exercises than what Man Utd went through. Carlos Puyol (looking a bit heavy) did not practice, but he did sign autographs for the fans.

Sure, news of Andre Villas-Boas' imminent and no doubt suave arrival at Stamford Bridge is monopolizing headlines. Rightfully so.

However, such is the ridiculousness of this rumor that I needed to offer some initial thoughts on it.

Catalonia? Please.

Apparently Barcelona has been sniffing around the private space of one David Luiz in recent weeks.

The recent successes of the Spanish National team in the last two international tournaments, 2008 European Championships and the 2010 World Cup has highlighted a wind of change in world football. Couple Spain's international glory with the emergence of Barcelona combining winning football with fantasy, flair and creativity and you have a recipe for success.

The recent successes of the Spanish National team in the last two international tournaments, 2008 European Championships and the 2010 World Cup has highlighted a wind of change in world football. Couple Spain's international glory with the emergence of Barcelona combining winning football with fantasy, flair and creativity and you have a recipe for success.

Catch of the Day Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has proven to be nothing but a hooligan during his stay in England. Firstly, he and Carlos Puyol were mucking about with the décor at Arsenal's training ground. Then he stole the nets from Wembley. What Pique plans to do with his nets remains to be seen, [.

Arsene Wenger lets cheeky Barcelona scamps Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique off the leash for two seconds at Arsenal's London Colney training ground and they are rearranging the furniture. Barca are training at the Gunners' base ahead of the Champions League final. Puyol and Pique took the opportunity to remove a photo of Cesc Fabregas [.

The highly anticipated FC Barcelona Nike 2011/12 home and away kits were officially launched on Tuesday night Spanish time on the club's website featuring modeling from club captain Carlos Puyol and striker Pedro. The new home and away uniforms of the 2010/11 Spanish La Liga champions and UEFA Champions League finalists are the first in Barca's [.

Tonight's game has never been too far away in every gooner's minds eye since the draw was made last December in Nyon, Switzerland.

There is no point in making far reaching rally calls..... my take is to sit back and hopefully enjoy a festival of Total Football, played out by the two purest footballing sides on earth.

Tonight's game has never been too far away in every gooner's minds eye since the draw was made last December in Nyon, Switzerland.

There is no point in making far reaching rally calls..... my take is to sit back and hopefully enjoy a festival of Total Football, played out by the two purest footballing sides on earth.

There's no doubt Barcelona come into this tie as favourites and we must use this to our advantage. I won't read much into the reports that Barca are fatigued, I'm sure a lot of this is mind games, but the absence of Carlos Puyol is definitely an important loss for them, especially if Abidal plays at centre back, he really is not the most robust in that position.

Andreas Iniesta provided Barcelona with a timely boost ahead of their clash against Atletico Madrid this weekend as the Spanish International looks to have shaken off a shoulder strain in time to help his side look for their 16th consecutive league win. The 2010 World Cup winner has been in excellent form this season, and [.