LaLiga

Memo Ochoa probably just needs a new team at this point.

The Mexican goalkeeper has fallen far from the lofty heights he achieved as one of the breakout players of the Brazil 2014 World Cup, having appeared only once so far for Spanish club Malaga so far this season.

That appearance came earlier this week in the Copa del Rey against Mirandes. Malaga lost, 2-1, which means something drastic is probably going to have to happen for Ochoa to see the field.

Valencia has a new manager, not that there’s much surprise in that. Since Rafa Benitez left the club as La Liga champions in 2004, 12 coaches have come and gone in the intervening 11 years, delivering a solitary piece of silverware (the 2008 Copa del Rey) between them.

They’re rivals on and off the pitch, but the latest edition of El Clasico has provoked controversy that pushed the tension between Barcelona and Real Madrid to a boiling point.

Barcelona are currently pursuing a case against Manolo Sanchís and Poli Rincon through the Anti-Violence Commission over comments the ex-Real players made about Isco’s horror tackle on Neymar in El Clasico. The Spain starlet was given a straight red card, Real Madrid lost El Clasico, and that should have been the end of it. 

Perhaps the last Real Madrid great game, complete from beginning to end, was the Champions League semifinal against Bayern Munich in April 2014. Even though after that game Madrid won its 10th Champions League, the Fifa Club World Cup and had a 22-game win streak,  Real Madrid was gradually showing flaws that seem to have become more obvious during the past three weeks.

During the period from the Bayern game to now, the management, led by Florentino Perez, has committed a series of mistakes that may well lead to another trophyless season for los Blancos.

As successful as Barcelona have been with the current Messi, there is no doubt that they are constantly on the lookout for the next Messi.

And they just might have found what the're looking for in Carles Aleña, a 17-year-old Spaniard who plays for the Barcelona U-19s and has already trained with the first team because of injuries. There is serious speculation that he could be the next big thing out of the academy that produced Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique, Xavi Hernandes, Andres Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Thiago Motta, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro and Sergio Busquets. 

It’s long been said that opportunity makes the man, that the big occasion grants its greatest performer an indelible place amongst legends. In today's world of soccer, one man has become synonymous with such moments. Andres Iniesta has consistently provided for FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team during their times of greatest need.

FC Barcelona stars participated in a FIFA 16 tournament and the resulting video is comedy gold. Claudio Bravo, Arda Turan and Dani Alves faced off against Neymar Jr., Jordi Alba and Marc-André ter Stegen in a winner-takes-all matchup. 

Who’d the Barcelona players choose to play as? Well, themselves, naturally. With Neymar’s team sporting Barca’s away kits and the Alves squad in the traditional Blaugrana home shirts, the stage was set for a mini half-Clasico on FIFA 16. 

Real Madrid have lost only two games in all competitions this season. They sit atop their Champions League group (one that includes Paris Saint-Germain) and they’ve plundered 33 goals while conceding only 11. Their combined goal difference in La Liga and the Champions League is a resounding +22.

And yet, such is the nature of the beast in the Santiago Bernabéu, all is certainly not right in Madrid.