BARCELONA SLIP-UP DISPLAYS CRACKS IN THE PAVEMENT

Barcelona lost 2-3 at Camp Nou to Valencia Saturday afternoon dropping three crucial points which blows La Liga wide open for both Madrid title challengers, Atletico and Real. Defensive errors cost Barca dearly despite getting off to a decent start when Lionel Messi assisted Alexis Sanchez for the opener. Dani Parejo equalised just before half-time and Pablo Piatti gave them the lead just minutes after the break. Messi put away a penalty on 53 minutes to draw level but "Paco" Alcacer drove the knife in with Valencia's winner just six minutes afterwards.

Valencia CF players celebrating at the end of their La Liga victory versus FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou on the 1st of February, 2014

A crushing blow for the Catalans who must now be very careful not to see their season derail in the coming weeks. Atletico and Real are in action this evening, both with the opportunity to put serious pressure on Barca provided they can do their part and pick up wins against Real Sociedad at home and Athletic Bilbao away respectively. What's even more worrying is the form of Manchester City who they face in the Champions League on February 19th. The Premier League leaders are on sensational form, scoring freely and likely to beat the goal record set by Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea in the 2009/10 season. With Barcelona's defensive problems, an embarrassment similar to Bayern Munich 7-0 aggregate semi-final win last season is not completely unthinkable. They must have fingers crossed hoping Sergio Aguero will not recover from his hamstring problem in time.

It was only during the week that rumours spread of "Tata" Martino getting a contract extension as Barcelona's manager. It is hard to rate Martino so far in that he obviously has world class players at his disposal but the team's playing style has changed after the fantasy football which Pep Guardiola first introduced and Tito Vilanova continued last season. Tiki-taka appears to be on the way out and Tata seems to be getting more out of pacy wingers Sanchez and Pedro rather than getting the best out of their traditional midfield dynamic duo of Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta. The decline of that midfield pair should concern Spain as they prepare to defend their World Cup next summer. Barca are resorting to playing long balls more often too. Never has Victor Valdez been seen to lump long passes out of his penalty area the way he has this term. They have improved on attacking set pieces in fairness, Gerard Pique's recent few goals have demonstrated that but overall, it can't be said that their philosophy is as attractive this season. With a new club president, many challenges lie ahead - the next month or so could define Tata's time at the club.

D. Ray Morton, 2nd February 2014

Tottenham v Man City (Barclays Premier League) Match Review White Hart Lane - Wednesday 29th January 2014

QUESTIONABLE OFFICIATING DID NOT MASK CITY'S CLASS

Tottenham fans may feel some discontent over two major decisions that had an impact on last night's Premier League clash with Manchester City but very few can argue that they would have stood a chance had the officiating swung in their favour.

City exploded into action early on, dominating Spurs with waves of fluid attacking movement. Sergio Aguero terrorised the Tottenham back four with his direct running and unsurprisingly gave City the lead with a tidy finish, fed in by David Silva after 15 minutes. City continued to stretch what looked like an uncomfortable Spurs back four and it was something of a miracle that the first half ended only 0-1 to the visitors. Tottenham felt aggrieved that Michael Dawson's close range finish off a fine Christian Eriksen free kick had been ruled out for offside but the likelihood is that Emmanuel Adebayor's presence was enough to be seen as interference. The only down side to the half for City was Aguero being carted off just before the break. His hamstring problems often seem to arise just as he demonstrates that explosive ability which draws comparisons to likes of Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi.

Tottenham can point towards the second half penalty that saw Danny Rose sent off harshly as the moment in the game where even a fighting chance had been lost. Rose's last ditch challenge on Edin Dzeko did win the ball but the towering Bosnian sold the tackle sufficiently and made the case very convincing for the referee and his assistants. On the assumption that Rose did not win the ball, they had no option but to show him red. An appeal may see his suspension removed. Under-performing on the night, Yaya Toure still slotted away the spot-kick and Dzeko made it 0-3 only moments later thanks to some sloppy defending. Etienne Capoue managed to pull one back before Aguero's replacement, Stevan Jovetic, got in on the act with a deflected strike whilst Vincent Kompany completed the rout with a couple of minutes remaining.

A reality call for Tottenham who had managed to string together some good results under their new manager Tim Sherwood. City can only take supreme confidence out of the performance despite Aguero's injury. Their quadruple quest continues although they might fret over their diminutive Argentine's condition in the lead-up to their clash against the might of another diminutive Argentine, Lionel Messi and his Barcelona, in the Champions League.

D. Ray Morton, 30 Jan 2014