There were more questions than answers as FC Barcelona lined up for the start of their first competitive game after the departure of club legend and most successful coach in their history, Pep Guardiola. Over the past four years Barcelona had swept 14 out of 19 possible trophies including breaking a series of records on their way to winning the Spanish league three times and becoming champions of both Europe and the world twice, leading many to proclaim them the greatest football team to ever exist.

Having missed out on the two big prizes last year–the championships of Spain and Europe–amid a spate of injuries and occasionally sloppy performances by their own high standards, and having seen the talisman coach, Guardiola, depart citing the stress of constant pressure to be replaced by his former assistant Tito Vilanova, many doubted the ability of Barcelona to continue to dominate.

This was given further credence by the overpowering performances of eternal rivals, Real Madrid, last season, a young, hungry and athletic side that finally broke Barcelona’s stranglehold on domestic competition last year. However, in Madrid’s opener this season against Valencia immediately preceding the Barcelona game, they had drawn 1-1.

With this context, Barcelona went into their first game of the season against Real Sociedad needing to make a statement. And make one they did. Defender, Carles Puyol, headed Barcelona into the lead in the 4th minute before Chori Castro leveled for Sociedad on nine minutes. This parity would prove to be short-lived, as only 56 seconds later Lionel Messi scored and then scored yet another five minutes afterwards to put Barcelona 3-1 up in only 16 minutes.

Youngster Cristian Tello looked lively throughout, playing an intelligent and vastly improved game, and new signing, Jordi Alba, put in an untiring and dangerous performance from left-back, linking up well in his attack. In a warm night in Catalonia, Pedro Rodriguez, who had been off form much of last season, finished off a chance just before half-time to put the gloss on a great game.

With the game a formality by the beginning of the second half, Barcelona lowered the intensity of their game and introduced David Villa, who had missed most of last season due to his injury, to a rapturous reception by the Camp Nou crowd.

Villa duly marked his return to competitive play with a sharp performance and a well-struck goal in the 84th minute to cap off a result that sent out a statement, heading into Thursday’s Supercopa match against Real Madrid, to the rest of Europe for the season to come: don’t write off this Barcelona side just yet.

Image Courtesy of   Natursports / Shutterstock.com

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Washington, U.S.A.  – U.S. News Travel released the 2012-2013 editions of several popular Best Vacations ranking lists. These rankings include — for the first time — destinations from Asia, Australia and the Pacific, Central and South America, and Africa and the Middle East. The new rankings are available online at http://travel.usnews.com/.

The top-ranked destinations in three popular categories are listed below:

The complete Best Vacations rankings, overall and sorted by region, are available here:http://travel.usnews.com/Rankings/

The new rankings identify the top vacation spots based on a methodology that combines expert and consumer opinions. They reflect how strongly a destination is recommended by travel experts and U.S. News Travel website users.

“We are pleased to expand our coverage of top travel destinations to a worldwide scale,” said Chad Smolinski, Vice President of Rankings and Reviews at U.S. News & World Report. “This expansion allows us to make comparisons between places as geographically disperse as Bali, Corfu, and Rio de Janeiro. For someone planning a major vacation or a honeymoon, this can be important.”

The launch is a part of the 2012-2013 U.S. News Best Vacations rankings. In total, more than 200 destinations were considered in the current rankings.

About U.S. News & World Report

U.S. News & World Report is a multi-platform publisher of news and analysis, which includes the digital-only U.S. News Weekly magazine, www.usnews.com, and www.rankingsandreviews.com. Focusing on Health, Personal Finance, Education, Travel, Cars, and Public Service/Opinion, U.S. News has earned a reputation as the leading provider of service news and information that improves the quality of life of its readers.

U.S. News & World Report‘s signature franchise includes its News You Can Use® brand of journalism and its annual “Best” series of consumer web guides and publications that include rankings of colleges, graduate schools, hospitals, mutual funds, health plans, and more.

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Florida, U.S.A. — SOUL Electronics – a global leader in consumer electronics and manufacturing with a rich history in delivering innovative technology concepts has announced international football star Cesc Fabregas as a new brand ambassador. The FC Barcelona player will be featured in the company’s upcoming “SOUL of Greatness” video series and campaign. Fabregas will also represent the SOUL brand during various sporting events throughout the year.

“Fabregas is one of the most talented international footballers in the game, making him the perfect athlete to align with,” commented Len Davi, Executive Director of SOUL Electronics. “Fabregas’ achievements and athleticism make him a great representation of what the SOUL of Greatness campaign stands for. He’s dedicated, focused and driven on attaining goals and striving for excellence.”

The “SOUL of Greatness” video series is designed to inspire and demonstrate how achieving greatness is a way of life. Reaching greatness involves dedication and focus. Many people turn to music to help block out the noise and distractions of the world to help them concentrate and accomplish goals.

“Motivation and hard work are key ingredients for success,” noted Cesc Fabregas. “Listening to music shuts out distractions and helps me stay focused, whether on the field, in the locker room or at home. I am excited to partner with SOUL to help spread the message that anyone can find will and determination from within.”

Cesc Fabregas joins Olympic athlete and SOUL Electronics partner Usain Bolt, as well as original SOUL by Ludacris brand partner Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, who will also each appear in key video spots for the series. Other stars of the campaign will be announced soon.

To view video of Cesc Fabregas, please visit: http://bit.ly/SoGYouTube

Image Courtesy of  Natursports / Shutterstock.com

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Tournament favorite and reigning World Champions, Spain, opened their Euro 2012 campaign against Italy in a highly anticipated match at the PGE arena in Gdansk, Poland.

Some eyebrows were raised over Spain’s decision to not select a traditional striker in their lineup, playing in a formation very similar to that of prestigious club side Barcelona. With five of their starting players also plying their trade for Barcelona, Spain looked comfortable early on in the unorthodox formation and controlled the tempo of the game well.

Italy’s formation was also under scrutiny, with Italian manager Cesare Prandelli opting to use midfielder Daniele De Rossi in the rarely used sweeper position. The decision seemed to pay off early in the game as, despite Spain’s domination of possession, the Italian defense held strong against several Spanish attacks.

The first real chance of the game fell to the Italians when Antonio Cassano timed his run perfectly to collect the ball and advance into the Spanish penalty area. Although his low shot beat the diving Iker Casillas, it also drifted just wide of the post. Spain hit back with a chance of their own. After their corner was cleared by the Italian defense, the ball fell to Andres Iniesta outside of the penalty area and the midfielder hit a fierce shot towards the bottom corner of the goal, forcing Gianluigi Buffon into a good save.

As the first half went on, Italy seemed to grow into the game, threatening the Spanish goal on several occasions. Most notable was a stinging volley from Claudio Marchisio that Casillas did well to hold on to. Spain, meanwhile, seemed unable to break down the Italian defense with their Barcelona-esque style of play. The presence of Barcelona players Iniesta, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas in the midfield was seemingly not enough to make up for the lack of a player of the caliber of Lionel Messi.

Spanish manager Vincente del Bosque would not have been pleased with the performance from his side at the half, with the Spaniards lucky to still be drawing 0-0 after Emanuele Giacherinni found Thiago Motta unmarked just eight yards out with a cross. His header was fired straight at Casillas and was not a problem for the Spanish goalkeeper.

Surprisingly, Spain did not bring on any of the three strikers on their bench during the interval, but the World Champions looked more threatening after the break with Fabreas testing Buffon early on. Minutes later, Iniesta seemed destined to score after breaking into the box, only for Buffon to get his fingertips to the ball and tip it wide for a corner.

With the game approaching the hour mark, controversial striker Mario Balotelli had the best opportunity to break the deadlock in the game thus far. Beating Sergio Ramos and progressing into the area unchallenged, he inexplicably held on to the ball for too long and allowed the recovering Ramos to get back and steal the ball from the Italian.

The lead was finally taken by Italy in the minute 60. Andrea Pirlo played a superb through ball for Antonio Di Natale, who was left one on one with Casillas and expertly curled his shot around the outstretched hands of the Spanish number one.

Clearly spurred on by the Italian goal, Spain struck back immediately, leveling the scores just two minutes later. Fabreas picked up a neat pass into the box from David Silva and smashed the ball beyond the reaches of Buffon, ensuring an exciting final 25 minutes.

The two goals certainly livened up the game, with both Fernando Torres and Sebastian Giovinco wasting good chances to give their sides the lead in the aftermath. Ultimately, neither side could find that bit extra to give themselves the three points.

Although Spain was favored going into the match, both sides will likely be content with the draw. Their remaining games, the Republic of Ireland and Croatia will likely pose less of a challenge than their opponents today. Spain and del Bosque will have to analyze whether their decision to play without a traditional striker was the right one before the next match, whilst Prandelli and Italy will be thrilled they defied expectations in avoiding defeat to the Spanish. He will want to see more of the same from his team in training if they are to continue in this form.

Image Courtesy of  Michael Steele

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The current Champions League holders drew a blank on Italian soil, as both teams failed to break down stubborn defenses in Milan. Barcelona will hold a slight advantage with the second leg at the Nou Camp, but on a night with few chances, Milan will be disappointed it didn’t make it count.

It was a frantic start. Barcelona looked half asleep, as it gifted the ball to Milan in the opening minutes, culminating in a great chance for Boateng, and an even better chance for Robinho, who volleyed over from no more than six yards. But Lionel Messi was beginning to get into his stride, testing Abbiati from the edge of the box and inter-linking nicely with his teammates.

Last year’s winners had a big appeal for a penalty turned down, when Alexis Sanchez was brought down by Abbiati after a neatly worked free-kick, but the referee waved the shouts away. Barcelona was getting on top though, and had a goal disallowed for offside minutes later, when Messi went too early to meet a Dani Alves cross.

Milan wasn’t taking the pressure lying down though, and almost went ahead, as the ex-Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic ran through on goal but was denied by Victor Valdes. It was a typically fraught encounter between two attack-minded teams, but the away side definitely had the upper hand, as Milan failed to keep possession regularly enough to pose a threat.

The game was evenly poised as half-time approached, the world champions Barcelona threatened with no end product, whilst Milan had the odd opportunity on the counter-attack, but couldn’t find a route to goal.

The second half started much like the first had ended: Barcelona was doing most of the pressing, but Milan had to make a change when Robinho fell awkwardly and was replaced by El Shaarawy. Guardiola was beginning to grow frustrated by the lack of chances being created, and took Andres Iniesta off for youngster Cristian Tello, in hopes of getting a crucial away goal.

Urby Emanuelson was also thrown into the action with twenty minutes to go, and instead of the game becoming stretched, defenses tightened, as Milan looked even more likely to sit back and soak up the pressure, frustrating Barcelona further, as the 2011 winners failed to find a way through the stubborn defense.

As the clock ticked down, so did the chances of either team grabbing a crucial lead to take back to Spain. Messi came closest, forcing a good save from Abbiati, and Tello was denied by a last ditch block from Ambrosini, with the goal gaping. There were no more clear-cut chances, and the referee brought time on an anti-climactic second half, as both teams prepare to do it all again in Barcelona next week.

Image Courtesy of  Natursports / Shutterstock.com

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Genius in sports does not come around every day, and when it does, it should not be hard to recognize and appreciate. When an athlete accomplishes things in a sport that have never been done before and does it in a way that has rarely ever been seen, it is important to not only stand up and applaud that greatness, but to make sure everyone else sees it and understands what is being accomplished.

Lionel Messi is probably the greatest athlete of today, yet outside of those who understand and love the sport he dominates, his genius is swept aside as just another athlete playing a meaningless sport. Of course, soccer, or football as it is call outside of the U.S., is one of the most popular sports in the world, yet you would not know it listening to analysts discuss the sport.

Soccer gets a bad rap for many reasons here in the U.S., but instead of welcoming the washed-up players from Europe who are past their prime, the greatest soccer player to have come along in decades while he is still ripe with potential should be celebrated.

Messi stands at 5 feet 7 inches tall. It would be hard to look at the man and think that you are looking at the greatest athlete playing any sport today. He has a slight build with the face of a young boy, not yet a man, but do not be fooled. He has been described as an assassin on the field, and at 24 years old, the 7-year pro has surpassed legends.

Messi is now the all-time leading scorer for his club team, Barcelona, with 234 goals, and the first player to score 5 goals in a single game in that league. Accomplishments left to those at the twilight of their careers, not a young player yet to reach his prime. He has won the FIFA Ballon d’Or three times, an award given to the best player each season, and is likely to win his fourth this year.

Soccer played at the highest level by the best players is the most beautiful sport in the world to watch, and Messi reinforces that every time he gets on the field. Watching the boy genius play is like watching Barry Sanders make a great unexpected cut on the football field or even watching Michael Jordan suspended in the air on his way to the basket.

Those are not images seen every day in sports, but when they do happen, they should be appreciated because they may never be seen again. As sports fans here get sidetracked by Linsanity and Tebowmania, the real once-in-a-generation story does not get the attention it deserves. We do not play football in America, so it is only right we give it another name. Soccer in America is the reason why Messi does not get the love and recognition he truly deserves.

During the week when the record was set by Messi, ESPN, who covers all sports, barely dedicated a segment to the story. In fact, a quick video was put up along with the record-breaking goal, and that was that. That is all soccer is worth in the realm of American sports, even if the great Lionel Messi is the topic.

There have been many sports analysts during World Cup events and Olympic events who have said that America does not need to be good at soccer because of all the other sports which the U.S. dominates. There is an arrogance that goes along with the ideas that Americans have about soccer and why American soccer players are not as good as other nations.  Sadly, this will not change anytime soon.

The eye test is all it takes to realize that this is no ordinary man. Lionel Messi is superman and his kryptonite might very well be the international stage, the only place left where his greatness has yet to make its mark. However, maybe that will change in 2014.

Image Courtesy of   sportgraphic / Shutterstock.com

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Barcelona beat Sevilla 2-0 at Sanchez Pizjuan and reduced the difference between themselves and the league leader Read Madrid to eight points as they drew against Malaga at Santiago Bernabeu. Before kick-off both teams were wearing t-shirts in support of Barcelona left back Eric Abidal, who is waiting for a liver transplant.

First Half

Guardiola’s players gave a clinic on ball possession in the first half hour. Xavi and Iniesta were the main architects for Barcelona. Pedro warned Seville with a shot from the centre of the area which Palop tipped away the goal. Xavi put forward the Catalans in the 17th minute with an excellent free-kick despite Palop’s best efforts to keep it out. This goal was his ninth liga goal, the most in Xavi’s career.

Messi played a one-two with Iniesta seven minutes later, when he nutmegged a Sevilla defender and chipped Palop. The Argentine made his 31st league goal and his 51st of the season. Manu del Moral had his chance to reduce the difference with a header but the ball went against the crossbar.

Pedro had two chances to score before the break, but his shot went away from the goal and Palop saved the second one. The hosts took advantage of poor defending from Gerard Pique and Kanoute had a clear chance to score, but Adriano came behind to prevent the danger. In the last minute, Fabregas shot from point-blank range but veteran Palop blocked it.

Second Half

Barcelona lost the control of the match in the first fifteen minutes, but the Andalusians continued failing their opportunities. Navas, who was the best player for the hosts, whipped an nice delivery towards the back post but Manul del Moral spoiled his assistance. Messi’s magic appeared in the 73th minute with a millimetric pass to Iniesta in a one-on-one with Palop. The Spanish international managed to fake out Palop who was unguarded, but his shot went wide of the post.

Sevilla created two more opportunities with the connection between Navas and Manu del Moral, but both were saved by the visiting goalkeeper Valdez. Chilean Alexis Sanchez had the third goal in his boots in a one-on-one with Palop after a counterattack, but the goalkeeper made a save with his feet — like handball keeper. Messi was disallowed his second goal by the referee for offside in the 89th minute.

After the match Guardiloa said in the press conference, despite Barcelona’s win: “Forget the liga, we are not going to win.”

Image Courtesy of   Natursports / Shutterstock.com

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Second-placed Barcelona won 2-1 at Vicente Calderon over Atletico Madrid in Sunday’s match. The Liga champions keeps the 10 points distance to the leading team, Real Madrid. The `blancos´ won over their neighbors in Vallecas 1-0 thanks to a clever Cristiano Ronaldo backhell.

First Half

Guardiola´s players controlled the possession of the ball, making passes during the first 40 minutes. But their speed circulation was not quick enough to break the spider web strategy built by Cholo Simeone who had his players chasing Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas and Busquest.

Xavi warned Atletico with a tricky shot close to the left post of the Belgian Curtois in the second minute. Five minutes later, Messi was disallowed a goal by referee Perez Lasa who claimed that the Argentina used his hand to help control the ball.

Barcelona had their first chance with a curling free-kick by Xavi in front of the box in the twentieth minute, but Curtois made a good save. In a raid by Dani Alves, he managed to connect with Messi in goal centre, attracting three Altetico players, and lay the ball for Cesc Fabregas who assisted Alves’ goal inside the goal in the thirty-sixth minute.

Simeone took charge, stripping out the corset of their players, but Atletico Madrid was struggling to control the ball and they only could feed Colombia striker Falcao with long crosses, challenged by Mascherarno and Puyol.

Second Half

Atletico improved after the break and Simeone put forward the lines to press Barcelona’s possession. A Gabi corner curled into the box to be met after few rejections by Falcao who volleyed home from close range.

Barcelona seemed nervous and imprecise, loosing control of the ball after the draw. Atletico kept pressing up higher and won the ball in Barcelona’s territory. Falcao had a change in front of Valdez but it was offside in the thirteenth minute. Alexis replied by heading the ball close to the angle after good delivery from Dani Alves.

Moments later, Falcao had his chance to score a second time, but Valdes made a great save. Nine minutes before the end, the genius of Messi appeared and the Argentina made a free kick on the left edge of the area as Atletico’s players were preparing their wall. However, Messi did not ask for wall and surprised Curtois with an excellent shot into the far corner of the net.

Barcelona suffered the last minutes with Atletico throwing all players forward. Vales was the game’s hero, saving the victory on two occasions: once against a close range shot from Juanfran inside the small box; and once against a long range shot from Gabi outside the box. There was also a clear hand-ball (penalty) by Barça player Busquets in the Atletico area later which was not called.

Barcelona is still chasing Real Madrid, while Atletico’s impressive seven games unbeaten with Simeone as manager ends.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/globalite/

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Telefonica announced February 26, the first live experience of the world’s “smartest” 4G network, in the most ambitious technological innovation ever deployed at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) (1). The network – the world´s first of its kind in the 2.6Ghz frequency band – provides download speeds of 100 Mbps, between 40-60Mbps on upload, vastly improved indoor coverage and can increase capacity by up to 400% in high density data-traffic areas.

Based on Alcatel-Lucent’s lightRadio technology, Telefonica’s network is a revolutionary first step toward a real “HetNet” network, which greatly improves mobile coverage by bringing small-cell base stations closer to the customer.

In this deployment conventional radio base stations co-exist with 4G metro cells (small base stations incorporating antennas and radio) working on the same frequency and with no interference. As a strong supporter for Telefonica’s LTE service initiative, Samsung is also presenting the first LTE smart mobile devices for band 7 (2.6Mhz), GALAXY S II LTE smartphone and GALAXY Tab 8.9 LTE tablet, which can be used on this new high-capacity network.

The most significant feature of Telefonica’s LTE network is its increased capacity – with each cell comfortably supporting 30 people browsing simultaneously with average speed of 30Mbps. Tests conducted on this network show that a 400% increase in capacity can be made available to users compared to a conventional network design, and that significantly higher capacity gains could be delivered with denser metro-network design.

The network supports speeds of up to 10 times those offered by the 3G network, with download speeds of 100Mbps, upload speeds of 40-60 Mbps and with latency times of around 20-25 milliseconds.

“Today the future of mobile networks begins,” said Enrique Blanco, Telefonica’s Chief Technology Officer. “The deployment of LTE that Telefonica has brought to the MWC, together with Alcatel-Lucent, gives us a glimpse of a tomorrow where everyone and everything is seamlessly connected, and in superfast time.

But the challenge ahead is to ensure that all the technologies currently being deployed – 2G, 3G, LTE, WiFi and Fiber – can co-exist to deliver next generation communications. Telefonica’s strategy is to develop intelligent networks that allow these different technologies to co-exist efficiently and cover customers’ growing connectivity needs in markets that are at different stages of development.”

Another key benefit of the advanced feature network is that it utilizes the same frequency for several network layers, allowing for far more efficient use of spectrum. This solution would also reduce network deployment costs by as much as 40%, as the installation of small-cells significantly reduces the amount of construction, installation and configuration work needed.

Additionally, small-cells use less powerful amplification equipment, resulting in energy savings of up to 35% and a guaranteed reduction in environmental impact.

Wim Sweldens, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s Wireless Division said: “This close collaboration with Telefonica through our co-creation program is a clear articulation of the future of mobile broadband – rather than merely evolving their current architecture, which was designed for voice and messaging, Telefonica is making fast progress toward building a mobile broadband network designed with the future in mind.

The wireless network of the future needs to be lighter, greener and closer to customers and deliver much higher capacity – that is what lightRadio is all about.”

“Samsung has been actively collaborating with Telefonica for LTE trial services with a variety of device line-up from LTE dongles to MiFi and LTE smartphones across European markets. I am excited to join Telefonica’s breakthrough LTE demonstration with our representative LTE models, GALAXY S II LTE and GALAXY Tab 8.9 LTE,” said DJ Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of Sales and Marketing team for Samsung Mobile.

“We are fully committed to supporting Telefonica’s LTE roll-out and hopefully will try to expand our LTE partnerships not only for European markets but also including Latin American markets. Our ambition is to become a number one LTE partner for Telefonica.” Visitors to MWC will be able to experience first-hand the wide range of options generated by this innovative network at the Telefonica stand (Hall 8), where the smallest metro cells in the market and the latest LTE devices from Samsung are being exhibited.

A video wall will demonstrate the capabilities of the network by projecting video filmed live at the congress and delivered via LTE. The Samsung LTE devices will be used for high-definition videoconferences. This will demonstrate for both applications the improvements in speeds of both links for uploads and downloads.

There will be real-time gaming demonstrations as well as augmented reality and hypermedia applications that highlight the latency and versatility of the network.

Web Site: http://www.telefonica.com/saladeprensa

1)Telefonica has not only covered the Fira grounds but also other Barcelona hotspots including the Camp Nou football stadium, the Diagonal 00 tower, and the Ayre and Arts hotels.

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As expected, Spanish giants Barcelona cruised to a predictable, if somewhat unimpressive, win over Viktoria Plzen, recording a 2-0 score line over the Czech side, and strengthening their position in the battle with AC Milan for top spot in the group. The breakthrough came early for Barcelona, and was the result of excellent play from Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi.

The little maestro played a delicate ball into the box and to the feet of the waiting Andres Iniesta, who then calmly placed the ball into the bottom right hand corner of the net, to the delight of the home crowd.

Despite enjoying near total domination over the visitors, Barca were unable to add their solitary goal in the first half, however the performances of players such as Messi, Iniesta and David Villa indicated that it was surely just a matter of time before they added to their lead after the interval.

Whilst Barca were enjoying a pass success rate of 93% and a total of 14 shots to Plzen’s 0, halfway through the second half, they were still unable to extend their lead over the visitors. Despite no change to the score line, home and visiting fans alike were treated to a show of exquisite football from Messi, with the player exhibiting his full range of tricks, nutmegs, and deft touches.

If Messi’s triumphant display wasn’t enough for Barca fans, Villa soon gave them something to cheer about with his side’s second goal of the game. Messi collected a neat through ball from Villa, and when tackled by the Plzen centre-back, the ball bobbled loose to the onrushing Villa who calmly stroked the ball into the bottom corner of the goal.

The home side came close to adding a third when Pedro broke into the box and instead of attempting a shot himself, passed the ball onto Villa, but the attacker did not have the pace to get to the ball in time, and the attack fizzled out.

Whilst many will be disappointed to not have seen Barcelona score more than their two goals tonight, the game was never in doubt, and Pep Guardiola will be happy enough with his team’s overall performance, if not with their ability to finish off chances.

The win does however keep them level with AC Milan at the top of the group, and sets up a match against the Italian side which will most likely decide the winner of the group.

Natursports / Shutterstock.com

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Despite being only 7 kilometers apart, citizens of Villarejo, Segovia have three times less the voice in the Spanish general election than their neighbors in Somosierra, Madrid. Interestingly enough, a vote in Villarejo is equivalent to 3 votes in Somosierra.

This is possible owing the particular electoral system that Spain adopted into its constitution in 1978. Despite the bicameral system, the legislative power is nowadays mainly held by the Congress with 350 deputies selected during general elections.

For this purpose, the country is divided into 50 provinces each one granted with minimum two deputies just for the matter of being a province and two autonomous cities, both in Morocco coastline, with one deputy. So from 350 total deputies, 102 are fixed among provinces and 248 are divided equally between all the provinces by their number of registered voters.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Madrid is granted two deputies per province plus 33 deputies for its 4.5 million registered voters while Segovia has two deputies plus one for its 124,000 electors. A deputy must obtain over 128,000 votes to be elected in Madrid — far more than the whole total amount of registered voters in Segovia, where only around 40,000 votes can decide a deputy. Sometimes it gets worse — like between Barcelona and Teruel were differences are even bigger.

This makes the voting system bipolar; on one side, regional parties always campaign for their own province’s welfare, obviating the needs of other parts of the country and targeting only potential voters living within the same region. They therefore reach a very limited number of deputies.

On the other hand, the main nationwide political parties, Partido Popular (PP) and Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE), target citizens throughout the country and have obtained the bulk of deputies so far. In Spain since 1982 there have been eight general elections where both PP and PSOE together obtained between 80 and 92 percent of the 350 deputies while remaining in positions covered by minority regional parties and other minority nationwide parties.

This system made a lot of sense when it was approved back in December 1978, only three years after the death of dictator Francisco Franco. By that time, the dictatorship had centralized all power and control in Madrid to make it easier to oversee what was going on and rule the entire nation.

But when the democratic process began, many regions started to claim autonomy. The dictatorship had severely repressed the desire of autonomy in regions like Catalonia and Basque Country, abolishing antique fiscal privileges and suppressing the recognition of Basque and Catalan as official languages.

Regions have been struggling for more independence after Franco´s death and while dismantling the old regime structure and creating a democratic one, the makers of the constitution feared a national partition into several independent countries — or a new civil war. In order to avoid this, they developed a voting system to support more power in regional minorities.

Nowadays, all Spanish regions have obtained more authority on such matters as education, health, transportation, economy, public security and so forth, transferred by the central government over three decades. They have gained an autonomous status with their own regional elections and parliament.

Moreover, the central government has given many other authorities to Brussels after the admission to the European Union. So what is the point of maintaining the system unchanged if regional minorities today have gained most of their demands? For instance, Izquierda Unida (IU), a political party whose ideals rest between communism and socialism obtained at the last general elections almost a million votes — but only obtained two deputies.

Meanwhile, Partido Nacionalista Vasco (PNV), a seeker for independence of Basque Country, received merely 300.000 votes but gained six deputies. Obviously, the vote to deputy ratio does not hold. Imagine that someone decides to create a new party supporting gay and lesbian rights and gains support in the community.

Unfortunately, the gay community is considered a national minority; in aggregated numbers there are several hundred thousands but divided by provinces, their numbers are limited, as low as 3 percent, and not enough to obtain a deputy to represent them. Project this to other national minorities like environmental activists, communists, immigrants with the right to vote, pacifist and so on. Under this system they will never be able to obtain a chair in the Chamber of Deputies.

In 2008, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs, there were 98 different political parties. Nevertheless, two parties obtained more than 90 percent of deputies, effectively holding the legislative right og Spain without effectively representing the diversity of the nation.

The last opinion poll dated September 2011, just two months before the polling day, shows the same scenario for next general elections. A scenario where the PP and PSOE will obtain over 75 percent of the total votes. Either the Spanish citizens are quite homogeneous or there is a fake democracy in place where plurality has no effect.

Democracy is not only the right to vote once every four years, nor the right to do it freely and secretly. Democracy must encourage dialogue, space for confrontation between ideas and ideals, space to be heard and a space to defend your rights.
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Nine former Salvadoran soldiers turned themselves in earlier this month. They will face the charges of killing six Jesuit priests and two women during El Salvador’s civil war. The priests, five of whom were Spanish, their housekeeper and her daughter were shot dead by soldiers in 1989.

They had been indicted in Spain and the case was filed using Spain’s universal jurisdiction law, which holds that some crimes are so grave that they can be tried anywhere.

The men handed themselves in at a military base after reportedly hearing that Salvadoran police were going to detain them under an international arrest order issued by Interpol.

Among those who were indicted by the Spanish court, a total of 20 former soldiers, are two former defence ministers.The man accused of ordering the killings, Gen Rene Emilio Ponce, died in May. Ten other suspects remain at large.

Among those who handed themselves in is Gen Rafael Humberto Larios. He was the minister of defence at the time of the shooting and was present at the meeting where Ponce ordered the killing, according to a report by a United Nations Truth Commission who investigated the killings.

The judge, Eloy Velasco, said the priests had been targeted because they had pushed for negotiations between the government and left-wing rebels.

He said the men, who worked at the Central American University, had taken the lead in pressing for negotiations between the right-wing government and the left-wing rebels.

“That was the fundamental motive for the killing,” the judge added. Around 70,000 people were killed during the 12-year civil war before a 1992 United Nations-brokered agreement brought peace to the country.

Human rights groups have welcomed the move by the nine former military men, although they hold out little hope that the Salvadoran Supreme Court will extradite them to Spain.

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For tourists around the world, going to Barcelona could be a dream vacation. When they hear about the famous architect “Gaudi”, “Colon”, “La Ciutadella”, “Las Ramblas” and “Plaza Cataluña”, they will automatically think about Catalonia’s capital. Travelers get to know the city while visiting the most popular monuments, but from a local point of view getting to know the city takes longer.

Art, literature, and history are important reasons for visiting a city. However, Barcelona is not only known for cultural wonders. For football supporters, follow the Football Club Barcelona Tour. Only one ticket grants entrance to the New Camp, Barça museum or any VIP area popular among tourists.

Barcelona’s nightlife is breathtaking. There are clubs, bars, pubs or even karaoke bars for any age and style. You could find a wide range of bars and clubs:  House music, R&B, Latin music, Techno or Dance, whatever you feel like dancing.

One way to get a feel for the city is to check out a local party or tradition in town or around the city. Loriana Mitova, a Latvian girl coming from Ireland said, “The best way I could know the real lifestyle of the city was enjoying the best traditions and local parties. I also lived with a Spanish friend and that helped me to get different holidays which I have never expected to have.”

She also admits she “didn’t want to be a normal tourist. That is why I looked up the most amazing tours I could find”.

Being in Barcelona on St George’s Day is unusual for tourists. On that day, the tradition is special for couples. The girl must give a book to the boy, and the boy must get a red rose for the girl.

Because of this, the streets are full of small stores selling books and roses. The popular tradition has grown up and nowadays they even sell Barcelona Football club roses and any book that is on the market. People go crazy and look around for the best book for their boyfriends or the nicest rose for their girlfriends.

It is also very easy to keep children entertained in Barcelona, due to the amount of amusement parks in the area. “Port Aventura” stays in the memories of tourists, as well as “Tibidabo”. In summertime, aquatic parks are the best decision.

Because of the usual hot weather it is very enjoyable for kids being inside a swimming pool the whole day. Also, every family is free to go around the most beautiful beaches of “Costa Daurada” and “Costa Brava”.

In the winter, Christmas lights of “Plaza Cataluña” brighten the sky. In spring, indulge in buying books or roses for your partners on St George’s day. In the summer, the wide range of beaches offers many choices. Finally, fall is the perfect season to enjoy the different landscapes of colorful trees.

Clearly, it is not possible to visit Barcelona in one or two weeks. But if time allows, it is possible to really visit and experience the authentic life style of the city.

Being a tourist in Barcelona means following any situation that might come up without hesitation. Whether it is winter, spring, summer or fall, any time of the year is perfect for a Barcelona vacation.

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We’ve seen her rocking the screen on Gossip Girl, but Little J is not so little anymore. Today it’s her birthday and she’s turning  eighteen.

She wrote a message to her fans on Twitter today by saying: “ Thanks for all the birthday wishes from around the world…18…big news on the way.”

Now that she has reached a legal age, we just wander what plans she has on mind.

Her reputation does not fit in the category of keeping a low profile, since she is not a girl that wants to keep it quiet.  Few weeks ago when she was giving a concert at Razzmatazz club in Barcelona, she heated up the stage when a female fan went on stage and began to grind with her.

The upcoming plans include her band The Pretty Reckless which will head up to Chicago next week to heat it up, and then will go to the other side of the world Japan and Australia to keep performing in more music festivals.

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Tonight the Champions League Final saw the English and Spanish domestic trophy holders clash for the undisputed title of being the best team in Europe. Both teams entered the Final with 3 Champions League trophies to their name; to win this 4^th trophy would mean that they could take their place in history alongside the European legends of Liverpool,  Ajax, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

Manchester United had the majority of the possession in the first 15 minutes, white shirts hounded the Barcelona defence but their attacks came to nothing more than a few brief encounters in and around the box.

Finally Barcelona got up to operating temperature and Pedro sent the ball wide after some quick football from David Villa and Xavi – there was much more of that to come.

Two more shots came from David Villa which went even closer than Pedro’s effort and Manchester United must have been yearning to get back to the possession they had enjoyed during the early minutes – Barcelona were settling into their ominously predictable, unpredictable forays from midfield.

United were not going to be spared from the brilliance of Lionel Messi it seemed, his first real action was to make four United players look like statues as he dribbled the ball past them. Minutes after, he was denied a clear shot on goal only by a perfect tackle from Vidic.

At this point Sir Alex Ferguson had left his seat and joined Pep Guardiola on the touchline to try command his men back on course. Whatever he was ordering was not in time to stop Pedro scoring first. A pass from Villa, probably not the most dangerous of the night so far, found its way to Pedro who had plenty of time to slot the ball into an opening at the near post.

After half an hour Barcelona had completed 265 passes compared to a mere 100 from Manchester United, however Wayne Rooney was about to show that his team was not fazed by the Barcelona possession. Great link-up play between Ryan Giggs and Rooney led to a shot being fired from 16 yards out which sailed past Victor Valdes and into the net. It was back to level again and game on.

The goal did not mark the start of a United charge, Barcelona still threatened. Iniesta launched a shot from range which wasn’t far off, but an even closer chance was at the very end of the half when Villa supplied a pass across the goal mouth which Messi at full stretch narrowly missed connecting with.

The half time whistle blew dead on the 45 minute mark. It was a half that was relentlessly quick, neither side had sought to reduce the tempo of the game and I’m sure the break came as an unwelcome distraction to two teams who both looked incredibly focussed.

After the resumption of play there was clearly little change in either of the teams tactics, neither manager had made a substitution and Barcelona were back on the offensive with United trying to break their spells of possession.

It was at this point in the game that Barcelona looked most menacing. Their pressure was relentless and tiring for the Manchester United defence who could not anticipate what was coming from a team who did not use a striker but instead attacked from midfield.

Lionel Messi scored his 53^rd goal of the season in the 53^rd minute in spectacular fashion, firing a shot from 25 yards out and past Edwin Van Der Sar who, on a better day, would have saved it. It really was an excellent goal from Messi, a player who has made excellence a habit – his manager was jubilant but seemed unsurprised at his prodigy’s goal.

Messi was fouled for the 3^rd time by Antonio Valencia who seemed intent on keeping him on the floor, but in typical fashion, the most prolific scorer in La Liga returned to his feet without complaint and proceeded to terrorise the Manchester defence and midfield.

Dani Alves received a yellow card just before 60 minutes for tripping Patrice Evra and soon after Micheal Carrick was booked for a very late tackle on Andres Iniesta. Overall, it was to be a very good performance from the Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai.

Barcelona had Manchester United in the corner, their constant attacks and swift passing left the English Champions looking punch drunk. Dani Alves could have delivered the knockout blow at 64 minutes after a Barcelona attack had left the United defence dangerously exposed.

Sir Alex Ferguson tried change his fortunes by removing the flagging full back Fabio and replacing him with Nani. No substitution could have prevented Iniesta’s shot in the 66^th minute however, it was a 20 yard curling strike which looped into the top corner, Van Der Sar could have done nothing this time.

The trophy engraver had probably started carving FC Barcelona’s name into the massive Champions League cup at this point – Man United showed no sign of getting back into the game.

The remaining 20 minutes were a little more contested, Giggs threatened and Nani shot but their attacks were not carried out with the relentless conviction Barcelona had displayed throughout.

Puyol came on after 87 minutes, the captain had played no starting role in the final but it was only right that such a key figure in their Champions League campaign was on the pitch to savour the moment the final whistle blew.

When it did Sir Alex Ferguson looked dejected but you could see that he knew his team had been wholly outclassed on the night – he would have to wait another year to play Barcelona, who would almost certainly be in the final if they remain at this exemplary standard.

I don’t think anybody would have left Wembley tonight feeling short changed, a ticket to the final bought a seat to witness some beautiful football. It is hard to see how anyone can come close to Barcelona in the near future if they can dispatch Manchester United with such ease.

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