UEFA has confirmed that Villarreal's 7th-place finish in La Liga does not merit a Europe League berth. Our faint European dreams now depend on Mallorca's insolvency. The Spanish league (LFP) already affirmed Mallorca's presence in Europe, financial difficulties and all, but we know how much such promises are worth. Stay tuned.
The B team put up a valiant effort but lost 2-1 away to leaders Real Sociedad. Sociedad took the lead, completely against the run of play, on an awful penalty call against Catala. Though Marco Ruben leveled the score from the spot, we never fully recovered. And Montero wreaked havoc again for the 6th-place team in Segunda. Not bad.
Other news and notes:
- Cristobal still thinks the B team can win the Segunda. Right. That has the same odds as Castellon avoiding relegation.
- Jozy Altidore (where have you been?) scored the tying goal in the USA's 2-1 victory over Turkey. He could hardly have missed.
- Add another reason to root against Spain: Joan Capdevila may not be in Vicente del Bosque's starting XI. His replacement: Real Madrid center back Alvaro Arbeloa. Hopefully Mati Fernandez will give him fits.