Just laugh. It's better that way. Stuff about Barça, pop music, culture; football nerd, writer for Barcelona Football Blog, The Athletic. Pedant, grouch.
We only rate dogs. This is clearly an indie rock band on their debut tour. Please send dogs only... might check which cities they’re stopping in though. 13/10 for all
The problem with the Kroos challenge is lack.of care for a fellow professional. And he is smiling, like it's all a game after injuring a player by being reckless. Just terrible.
🚨🔴⚪️ Arsenal are closing in on Mikel Merino deal as verbal agreement is now getting closer!
Agreement in place on personal terms as Merino wants the move.
Verbal discussions with Real Sociedad for package in excess of €30m, talks on to get the deal done.
@MatteMoretto
🤝🏻
Adama Traore on the ball is like a young couple in a horror film, about to have sex in the woods. You know it's gonna end badly, the only suspense is how.
How TF is anyone seriously considering putting Neymar in this team? Spend that money on a right back, preferably two. Take the Dembele cash and nab both Liga targets. Stop fucking about.
And here I was thinking that I couldn't possibly detest Espanyol more.
Clubs do petty stuff. Don't forget Barça turning on the sprinklers as Mourinho and Inter celebrated at Camp Nou. But this is beyond the pale.
For those who aren't clear: Vinicius is an absolute, flaming dick on the pitch. And taunting a proud club is part of that dickitude. So spit at him. Throw a pig's head. There are lots of ways to express that displeasure. Racists choose racism.
Ronaldinho. Neymar was entertaining, but there was always an edge to it. And I clarify entertaining as showmanship. Messi is entertaining AF, but he is problem solving rather than putting on a show. Ronaldinho megged because "Wheee!" Messi megs because that is the solution.
Xavi to TV3: "I am a little disappointed with Dembele. He has decided to go to PSG. There is nothing we can do. PSG have made an offer that is completely out of the market."
@NealGardner_
A line-breaking through ball assist. Logical, geometric, even telepathic. Requires so many things for it to work, that when they work well, it's beauty.
@_Zeets
But somewhere, Javier Mascherano is watching this video and his legs are twitching. So he goes outside and slide tackles a stranger walking by.
Impossible to overstate how unserious this makes the club look. Can anyone imagine Klopp saying, "Yeah, never mind," or Guardiola when he announced he was leaving, "I'm no so tired after all." A big football club run like a small-town Catalan butcher shop.
Mourinho deserves the harshest punishment imaginable for instigating this. And I don't want to hear, "It's the supporters, not him." That's bullshit and anyone who suggests such a thing knows that it is.
Embarassing Roma fans abusing Anthony Taylor who is with family on his way at the airport.
Disgusting. You can see his daughter in tears and drinks being thrown at his wife too.
Araujo isn't crap. People should stop acting like he is. He is, however, prone to, under pressure in a high line, making reading errors that in an already chaotic system, exacerbate crises. Normally that sort of stuff is gradually coached out of a defender.
Femeni embodies the ideal of what Barça football is like when excecuted at the highest level. The first half of today's match was such an extraordinary 45 minutes of football. How are they still so hungry after winning everything last year?
With Balde and Gavi, Barça walk this tie. QFs is better than anyone could have hoped. Individual errors, inadequate players and poor tactics, and that is that. For me, Xavi got this wrong. Control is the thing. If all yer gonna do is push it forward, why Pedri? Chasing balls.
Ilaix Moriba's agency misread the room. Should have renewed now, let him solidify his spot in the team, let the club regain some fiscal health then shoot your shot.
The team at present is playing worse than it did under Koeman, with a more talented roster. Go figure. You wonder if players lose just a little something under a manager they know isn't working. Psychology is a powerful thing.
Barça has such an exciting nucleus, especially if they can figure out how to get Pedri healthy. Him, Gavi, Lamine Yamal, Roque, Guiu, Fermin Lopez -- Araujo and Christensen are young, Balde can be redeemed. It really is thrilling to consider.
I don't even know what to say about him any longer. That assist is deeply absurd. Any other player it's a lifetime highlight reel. Messi? It's just ... Monday.
Gavi's technical excellence is truly underappreciated.
Part of it is simply because he's so intense off the ball & has this bigger-than-life personality and part is because we're yet to see it fully utilised.
But he's the golden boy for a reason. 🌟
Alert to Joan Laporta and Xavi and anybody else who needs to hear it: Frenkie De Jong can't play in the hole and all y'all goddamn well know he can't. Don't even think it. If you have to stop the Messi plans to solve that dilemma, do it. Crucial.
Says the man who overpaid for Torres, Lewandowski, Raphinha, brought in a pair of Joaokers, etc. You don't get to claim a happy accident as a strategy.
🔵🔴 Barça president Laporta: “As Barça fan, it’s not good news to see Mbappé to Real Madrid”.
“But to be honest, I prefer our strategy to trust a project with players produced and made in La Masia”.
“I respect our rivals but I keep our Philosophy”, via
@mundodeportivo
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Puig, Moriba, Mingueza, Araujo this season, and look for Collado, Jandro and probably Comas to get up next season. Nice to see players coming up from the ranks again.
Football doesn't give a fuck about racism because racism doesn't cost football money. Foolball cares about the *appearance* of giving a fuck about racism. Until racism costs money, football won't care.
Said it before, will say it again: I admire that quality that Real Madrid has. I hope that Barça watches and learns what they can from that quality. It's impressive. 2-0 down at Anfield turns into a 2-5 beatdown.
Xavi going off to shill for Qatar or Iniesta taking his magic show to Vissel Kobe is one thing. Messi choosing to retire at PSG is something else altogether. He deserved to be a one-club man.
For FC Barcelona today's mission is clear: win or at worst, draw. The former means comfort. Even the latter is okay. Still a nine-point gap. A loss means six points and significant uncertainty. Every match becomes a psychological banana peel.
FC Barcelona is no longer a serious club. Any board that can watch not only the season, but the last week and say, "We need to continue this" needs a censure motion. It is all about Laporta's ego.
We see it time and again, player after player. We talk about bad luck, etc. Meanwhile, Dembele has been fit as a fiddle in Paris. Coincidence? Some have been talking about the club physios for years, but at what point does a broader discussion begin?
Last night, Pedri confessed to his teammates he felt the same injury, at the same place of his right leg, he’s had three times now this season.
His injury sparks long-term worries. He and Barcelona have been here before
@TheAthleticFC
Nobody should get carried away by this. Elche was the epitome of dire today. Barça didn't look all that great, but they didn't need to. The 0-4 could have been twice that. Nice to see Fati and Torres get back in the goals. Let's hope it sparks something.
@NealGardner_
The team and the manager learning, and beginning to institute a repeatable manner of playing that can sustain the side. And finishing matches. The second half breakdown is consistent and worrying.
@Iseebrownpeople
As a journalist of color who is also an editor that writes headlines, some perspective: he was the slowest qualifier, so "surprise" is accurate. And "teen" is a valid choice when looking for a descriptor. If someone is an unknown, their name in a headline doesn't work.