Nerja News

Whoa, this almost qualifies as a ‘run’. The Blue and Whites played host to Getafe and ended up on the right side of a 2-1 scoreline. Getafe opened the scoring after only nine minutes with a goal by Soldano, but Málaga C.F. hit back with goals from Baha and Duda, also in the first half. This win shoots them up to seventh place in La Liga.

Valencia cruised back to the top of the pile with a 4-0 victory over Numancia. David Villa got two and there was one apiece for Mata and Vicente. more »

Lewis Hamilton moved a step closer to the world title after a comfortable win in what was basically a procession in China. No sign of the rash antics, criticised by fellow drivers, of the past few races, possibly ‘cos there was never anyone close enough.

Hamilton led from start to finish with his nearest, and now only title rival, Felipe Massa in second place after his Ferrari team-mate, reigning World Champion Kimi Raikkonen, let him past. Fernado Alonso, continuing his recent run of good results, finished fourth.

Hamilton now takes a seven point lead over Massa into the final race in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on November 2nd and, with a maximum of 10 points available, the 23 year old Englishman is a strong favourite to take over from Alonso as the youngest champion in F1 history. Hamilton’s margin is such that he will win the title in Brazil as long as he finishes fifth or higher.

But, of course, he could still blow it, just like last year!

Real Madrid came out on top in their local derby against Atlético Madrid, but it was last minute stuff.

Real took the lead with just one minute on the clock, van Nistelrooy the scorer. They could have gone further ahead but couldn’t quite manage it. Then, before the break, van Nistelrooy for Real and Perea for Atlético were given their marching orders. more »

Rafael Nadal will remain World Numero Uno at the end of the year despite losing in the semi´finals of the Madrid Masters as Roger Federer also lost his semi-final match. He will be the first Spaniard to end the year top of the world rankings since the current ATP system was introduced in 1973.

Nadal lost 3-6 7-5 7-6 (8-6) to Frenchman Gilles Simon, while Roger Federer lost to Andy Murray, 3-6 6-3 7-5.

A bit of a struggle, but Spain managed to win their latest World Cup qualifier in a rain-soaked Belgium.

The home side went ahead after only seven minutes, Sonck heading past Casillas, to end Spain’s run of seven matches without conceding a goal.

Inesta levelled things just before half time and it was that man David Villa, inevitably these days, who slotted home the winner. Spain top their group with maximum points after the first five matches.

Seve Ballesteros is in a stable condition at Madrid’s La Paz hospital after undergoing an operation on a brain tumour.

A biopsy on the tumour had been scheduled for Tuesday, but doctors decided to operate in order to remove as much of the tumour as possible before starting any treatment.

There were apparently no complications during the seven hour surgical operation and Ballesteros is now recovering in intensive care and his condition is said to be ’stable’.

The removed tumour will now be analysed and the results, which should be known in a few days, will determine what course of treatment is necessary.

Spain have qualified for the finals of the Under 21 European finals next summer after a 3-1 victory over Switzerland, although the match had to go to extra time.

Spain went into the match trailing 1-2 after the first leg and went further behind after Gashi scored for the Swiss in the first half. Xisco levelled the score on the night and then in injury time, Sisi ensured the tie went into extra time. Raúl Garcia scored the goal that takes Spain to Sweden next summer.

Seve Ballesteros, who was admitted to Madrid’s La Paz hospital on Monday, has been diagnosed with a brain tumour and will undergo a biopsy on Tuesday.

He came out of Intensive Care on Friday, and on Sunday he announced to the world that he was suffering from a brain tumour. Doctors will decide on possible treatment after the biopsy on Tuesday.

Ballesteros suffered from an arthritic back and knee problems late in his career and retired in 2007.

He won 87 titles during an illustrious career, including the British Open in 1979, 1984 and 1988 and the US Masters in 1980 and 1983, and was also inspirational in the Ryder Cup, winning 20 points from 37 matches, as well as captaining Europe to victory at Valderrama in 1997.

We wish him well and a speedy recovery.

Salamanca are the new leaders in Division 2 after a 2-0 win against Eibar, Quique Martín scoring both goals, one from the penalty spot.

Hércules occupy second spot, one point behind the leaders, after a 0-0 draw away to Murcia. Only four points separate the first nine teams and only five points separate the first fifteen. Pretty tight division. more »

Spain were fairly comfortable 0-3 winners against Estonia and remain top of Group V on maximum points.

Juanito opened the scoring after half an hour, heading in a long free kick from Xavi. Five minutes later, David Villa made it 0-2 with a penalty kick after Fernando Torres had been brought down inside the area.

Puyol got the third, twenty minutes from the end of the match, heading the ball into the net after a header from Torres hit the bar and rebounded back into play. There were numerous chances for further goals, particularly from Cazorla, Juanito and Riera, but the scoreline remained at 0-3.

Fernando Alonso notched up his second victory in a row in Japan after title rivals Hamilton and Massa collided.

Hamilton, who was leading the race for the championship by seven points, started from pole position but made a dreadful start and then, trying to hard to make amends, locked his brakes at the first corner and ended up going off the track, taking Kimi Raikkonen with him. more »

Holy guacamole, two in a row for the Blue and Whites and they shoot up the table to 12th place after a 0-4 victory over Recreativo.

Eliseu got things moving in the first minute and Baha headed a second before the break. In the second half, Duda popped one into the net before Eliseu got his second of the night.

Valencia are back ruling the roost after a 0-1 win away to Valladolid, pushing Villarreal back down to second spot. more »

Villarreal are back on top again, although possibly only temporarily, after a 2-1 win over Betis. Damia scored first for Betis, but then two goals in two minutes at the start of the second half were enough to give Villarreal victory. Gonzales and Llorente were the goalscorers for Villarreal. more »

Two goals from Messi in the last six minutes of the match were enough to see Barcelona clinch victory against Shakhtar Donetsk. Ilsinho had put the home side ahead just before half time. The final score was 1-2.

Atlético beat Olympique Marseille 2-1, all the goals coming in the first half. Agüero put Atlético ahead after just four minutes but Niang equalised for Olympique ten minutes later. Raúl García scored what turned out to be the the winning goal when he managed to turn in a free kick from Pernia.

Real Madrid are top of their group after a 2-1 victory against Zenit St. Petersburg. Real went ahead after only three minutes when Hubocan put the ball into his own net as he tried to intercept a cross from van der Vaart. more »

In the Primera Andaluza Grupo 3, local lads CD Nerja traveled to Mancha Real but came away empty handed, losing 2-1 and ending their 100% record this season.

More misery for Alcalá C.F. as the leaks continued, El Palo scoring 7 times without reply. Torredonjimeno C.F. were the other big scorers, beating U.D. Torre del Mar 6-1.

A few nervous moments before the final whistle, but the Blue and Whites managed their first victory of the season, finding the net at long last!

Lolo scored Málaga’s first goal of the season after half an hour and Adrián got the second. Pedro León pulled one back for Valladolid, but the Blue and Whites held on to win 2-1. more »