REVIEW: CELTA 0 - 3 DEPORTIVO (LA LIGA)

18 Dec 2005 -- Deportivo won the first Galician derby of the new era, and did so with a categoric score. Caparros' men dominated the match and closed the score sheet in the first half after three goals. With this important victory, Deportivo climb to the third spot and can only be surpassed by Real Madrid, which means that they have finally reached the Champions League positions.

BEFORE THE MATCH
Everything hinted at a balanced and fierce battle, with Celta being under more pressure in front of their home crowd. Depor had humiliated them two seasons ago with a comprehensive 5-0 defeat, that would seal Celta's relegation. The new Celta wanted revenge and it would have been a good opportunity to achieve in front their fans. Depor on the other hand was finally in reach of the Champions League places and was also facing a direct rival, which meant any points taken from the Balaidos would be worth gold.

THE FIRST HALF
Celta Vigo started the match as usual when playing at home, by trying to take control of the ball and set the pace of the encounter. Depor were more calm, they were playing cautious, waiting for an opportunity. So it was Celta creating more danger in the first few minutes, but nothing Depor's defense couldn't handle. The 23rd minute finally brought the first dangerous play from Deportivo, as Tristan collected a ball near the box and gave an excellent pass to the onrushing Munitis. Pinto had no chance in stopping the fast winger and commited a clear foul, which prompted the referee to giva a penalty and a red card to the Celta goalkeeper. Vasquez was forced to do a substitution, sacrificing Silva for his second goalkeeper, Esteban, but he couldn't stop Tristan's shot.
With a numerical advantage on the pitch and the score sheet, Depor took control of the midfield and few minutes before the break it was Valeron who scored the second goal after a beautiful individual play. The forward had entered the box with the ball at his feet and created some space between the Celta defenders before placing the ball at the long post. The match was starting to resemble the last two Galician derbies and Celta's players were clearly affected. Even more so when Capdevila scored the third goal from a free kick, just moments before half time.

THE SECOND HALF
Celta didn't give up the match even with this score, but Depor were also ready to inflict more damage on their rivals. Finally Vasquez reacted during the second half and made another change, enforcing the defense with Mendez instead of Núñez. He also demanded a more direct approach to the goal, but Depor's defense stood firm, Colo and Andrade made no concessions. Contrary to the public demands, Vasquez didn't change much with his third substitution, leaving Gustavo Lopez on the bench and sending Larena on the pitch.
Shortly after the hour, Tristan had the chance to raise the score again from the penalty spot, after Munitis was savagely brought down by Lequi in the box, but the Sevillan striker shot wide. Minutes later Ivan Carril got his chance to play when he replaced Munitis and Scaloni also entered for Duscher. But nothing happened on the pitch in the last minutes of the match, and Celta's fans started to leave the stadium even before the whistle.

AFTER THE MATCH
Depor finally achieved three wins in a row this season, and the result is a Champions League position. The steady progress of the last period is becoming obvious and the next encounter against Espanyol is a good opportunity to consolidate this position. Celta on the other hand fall down to seventh place and are out of Europe for the time being.

www.deportivo-la-coruna.com

Zdravo !
I ja sam fan Deportiva a inace sam imao prilike da gledam uzivo seltu 2000 god. kod nas u Bitola, Pelister-Selta/ 1:2 a nadam se da cu gledati nekad i depor.

Pozdrav iz Makedonije

Pozz,

I ja se nadam da cu nekad gledati Depor, stvarno bi mnogo voleo...

Forza Depor 

REVIEW: DEPORTIVO 3 - OSASUNA 0 (COPA DEL REY)

05 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo achieved an important 3-0 victory against Osasuna at the Riazor. As demonstrated by the difference in the score, Javier Aguirre's team presented a tough battle on the pitch. Now the Galicians will travel to Pamplona with more confidence since Osasuna needs four goals to advance to the quarterfinals.

BEFORE THE MATCH As was expected, Caparrós used his starting lineup from the beginning, including the debut of Javier Arizmendi. The Madrilian striker performed on the right wing in an offensive formation that included Munitis, Valerón and Tristán. Meanwhile, Osasuna's coach Javier Aguirre presented several rotations including the goalkeeper Elía, the defender Miguel Flaño and the young striker Brit.

FIRST HALF The first minutes were dominated by Osasuna and their main opportunity was Moha's free kick that Marcelo Sosa couldn't finish off since the ball rebounded off one defender. Deportivo’s response was immediate and Pedro Munitis scored the first goal of the night with a powerful shot that Elía couldn't deflect. The ball hit the right post before entering the net.
Osasuna didn't lose hope and continued to create danger. Four minutes after the goal the youngster Brit passed the ball to Moha, but the defender sent the ball out when he was entering Depor's area. The situation calmed a bit and the tough challenges of Marcelo Sosa and Manuel Pablo against Valerón and Brit respectively were sanctioned with yellow cards by referee Teixeira Vitienes.
After this pause the rush of opportunities continued. Tristán on two occasions had the chance to score, but his first shot ended in Elía’s hands and the second was deflected by the defense. Osasuna had their chances too with free kicks taken by Muñoz and Brit, but the ball missed the target on both occasions.
Javier Arizmendi was very active during the first half. He was the victim of several fouls and his first clear opportunity arrived after 33 minutes, but his shot went wide when he was in Osasuna's area. However, it was Juan Carlos Valerón who increased the lead just before half time. Munitis sent the ball in from the left and the Canarian playmaker crossed the ball into the near post, beating Elía. It was the perfect result for the Galicians to face the second leg with.

SECOND HALF As in the first half, Osasuna started with possession of the ball. Brit and Miguel Flaño had clear occasions to score, but Molina controlled the ball both times, the first one was a shot from inside the area, and the second one a headed ball from a free kick taken by Moha. The clearest opportunity for Javier Aguirre's squad came at the 60th minute when Miguel Flaño headed a corner, but the ball was deflected on the line by Sergio when everyone was expecting a goal.
After that, Caparrós decided to close the open spaces in the field, replacing Romero for Tristán in an attempt to secure the result. A few minutes later Duscher could have scored the third, but his shot was deflected and ended in Elía's hands. Possession continued to belong to Osasuna, but the Basques weren't capable of finding clear opportunities.
Aguirre’s last resort was David López. The youngster is one of the sensations in La Liga and he replaced Ortíz in an attempt to reduce the difference in the score. Caparrós’ response was Scaloni and Xisco. The latter replaced Arizmendi, who gave a positive impression in his debut, and the Argentine replaced Sergio.
And it was Lionel Scaloni who closed the game with an impressive shot from 30 metres that nobody could stop. With five minutes left it was the final reward for the Galicians. They didn't manage the ball well, but the squad knew when it was the right moment to attack, a fact proven by the final score.

AFTER THE MATCH The 3-0 score is an important advantage for the second leg match, especially considering that Osasuna has won every game played so far in the El Sadar stadium. The game will be played next Wednesday and the fact that goals counts as double is important since Depor kept a clean sheet at the Riazor. A new Depor goal will mean Osasuna have to score on five occasions.

www.deportivo-la-coruna.com

x3me,kako je,sto se radi? nije me odavno bilo...

esi gledao derbi?

nisam imao gde da ga gledam 

PS Selti vise srece na Riazoru mada sumnjam da ce je tu imati 

ne,stvarno nas je sudija zajebao-mislim,penal je bio cist,ali sto je golmanu dao crveni....grrrrrrrrrrrrr

ne znam, ne mogu nista da kazem, nisam gledao... ali rezultat mi odgovara 

Arizmendi, pojacanje Deportiva u zimskom prelaznom roku, strelac drugog gola

REVIEW: ATHLETIC BILBAO 1 - 2 DEPORTIVO (LA LIGA)
08 Jan 2006 -- Two defensive mistakes gave Deportivo the victory at the San Mames, and allowed the Galicians to continue the good run of 2006. Munitis and Valeron again proved essential in the victory but the good news is that Arizmendi scored his first goal in the shirt of Deportivo.

BEFORE THE MATCH Javier Clemente knew that a home victory would prove essential for the relegation battle and thus operated a minimal number of changes in the line-up that faced Real Madrid in midweek. Amorebieta replaced the suspended Gurpegui in the defense, and Urzaiz was left on the bench with Aduriz and Guererro leading the offensive charge of a conservative 4-2-3-1 formation.
Meanwhile Caparros had all his options open, but chose to change the entire right wing by using Victor instead of Arizmendi, and Coloccini instead of Manuel Pablo.

THE FIRST HALF The match started with Athletic dominating the pitch, by pressuring their opponents and moving the ball around quickly. This strategy had worked quite well against Real Madrid, but again left the Basques vulnerable to counter attacks. And it was a counter attack of Deportivo that broke the deadlock in the 24th minute. Tristan cleverly created space for Valeron on the left and Victor found the Canarian playmaker with a long pass. Depor's second striker controlled the ball well and managed to make a weak pass past Aranzubia only for Lacruz to put the ball in his own net without being pressured by an opponent. The rest of the first half would have been without any more highlights, had Munitis, Coloccini and Juanma not received a yellow card each in the last minutes before the break.

THE SECOND HALF Caparros made only one change at the break, replacing Tristan with Arizmendi. Meanwhile Javier Clemente was forced to bring Urzaiz from the bench to search for the equaliser. But it was Depor who had the first opportunity of the half, when Arizmendi's action finished with a corner. Minutes later, Urzaiz scored the equaliser with a strong header after an excellent cross by Etxeberria and with the fans behind them, the Basques decided to go for the victory.

Only three minutes later, another defensive mistake, this time by Aranzubia, settled the final score. Munitis executed a freekick from the right and Arizmendi managed to touch the ball from a difficult position in the area, just enough to fool the Basque goalkeeper and make him spill the ball between his legs. With another defeat around the corner, Athletic threw everything at their rivals, but Orbaiz and Urzaiz couldn't convert their opportunities. In the dying minutes, it was Capdevila who could have raised the score with a fierce freekick, but the ball hit the left post and went out.

AFTER THE MATCH Depor are again on the third spot, but only a draw between Villareal and Real Madrid combined with a defeat of Valencia would allow them to maintain this position. Atheltic on the other hand are living dangerous, and this matchday could see them on 19th place should Cadiz and Betis win their matches.

www.deportivo-la-coruna.com

REVIEW: OSASUNA 2 - DEPORTIVO 1 (COPA DEL REY)

12 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo qualified for the Copa del Rey quarterfinals despite a 1-2 defeat at Pamplona. The Galicians took the lead with a penalty taken by Víctor, but Javier Aguirre's team responded with another penalty taken by Muñoz and a last minute goal from Romeo. Depor won the series with an aggregate score of 4-2.

BEFORE THE MATCH Caparrós decided to present the same lineup used in San Mamés for La Liga with two modifications: Scaloni replaced Duscher in midfield and Arizmendi started in place of Tristán. Meanwhile, Javier Aguirre was forced to make some changes in the strike zone since Webó and Milosevic were unable to participate in the match. Brit and Bernardo Romeo were the selected choices by the Mexican trainer.
With a 3-0 advantage in favour of Deportivo, Osasuna needed four goals and not to allow any in order to advance to the quarterfinals. A 3-0 score would give them access to extra time and penalties. Deportivo was trying to score once since the away goals count as double in this tournament. In this form a goal from the Galicians would force Osasuna to score on five occasions.

FIRST HALF Osasuna's players knew that an early goal would give them the push needed to come back in the second leg, and for this reason they started to create pressure in the first few minutes. The first chance to score arrived soon, Brit receiving a pass from Delporte, but the young striker sent the ball inches away from the post. It was the first warning about the local side's intentions.
With the advantage from the aggregate score, Deportivo tried to respond with counterattacks. Munitis and Arizmendi started to create trouble for the local side and the first chances came in the 15th minute. Arizmendi sent a shot that was contained by Elía, and one minute later the Madrilian striker repeated the action, but this time the ball went outside the pitch.
Osasuna continued in search of the first goal. Ortíz had a clear chance to take the lead, but the defender sent the ball out when he was alone against Molina. Deportivo responded with a quick move from Valerón, the Canarian playmaker assisted Arizmendi and the striker sent out a shot that hit the post. Like with the action of Ortíz, the Madrilian forward was facing the keeper one-on-one. The first half ended with a dangerous free-kick taken by Clavero. Then Flaño sent a shot that hit the post when Molina was lying on the grass.
Both sides had enough opportunities to take the lead but the lack of effectiveness and the post caused the first half to end with a 0-0 score. Valerón was the best player for Deportivo. The Canarian enjoyed some free space in midfield and constantly assisted his partners, giving difficulties to the local side.

SECOND HALF Javier Aguirre introduced Raul García in place of Brit. The young striker had a golden opportunity at the end of the first half but the Mexican coach decided to introduce García in a move to win more weight in midfield. Deportivo enjoyed a clear opportunity when Arizmendi faced Elía in another one-on-one situation, but the striker preferred to send a shot that went wide when he could have assisted a partner who was following the action.
But once again, and it has happened in the latest away matches, Deportivo took advantage of an error by the home side. Cruchaga challenged Juanma inside the area and the referee Rubinos Peréz sanctioned the action. Víctor scored the goal from the penalty spot eliminating the small hopes of Osasuna. Javier Aguirre's squad needed to score five times in a period of 35 minutes.
Despite the fact that the score was certain, the match continued in a tense environment. Munitis committed a violent foul against Delporte, and the French player had to abandon the match. People in the stadium were not happy with the yellow card shown to the Cantabrian winger. They started to throw objects on the pitch and one of them hit an assistant.
The match continued when things calmed down and Caparrós introduced modifications in order to rest his men. Romero and Sergio replaced Víctor and Valerón. Ten minutes before the end, Romero pushed Raul García inside the area and Rubinos Peréz awarded another penalty. Muñoz equalized the score and gave a deserved draw to his team.
Arizmendi had a new chance to score, but he hit the post again. When the draw seemed to be the final result, Cruchaga assisted Bernardo Romeo, the striker sending a cross that gave the final victory to his team. A small reward for Osasuna who never gave up during the full ninety minutes.

AFTER THE MATCH With a 4-2 aggregate score, Deportivo qualifies for the quarterfinals. The other five teams that achieved qualification are Barcelona, Betis, Cádiz, Valencia and Espanyol. The other two semi-finalists will emerge from the matches between Real Madrid-Athletic Bilbao and Atlético Madrid-Zaragoza.

www.deportivo-la-coruna.com