FC Barcelona Discussion

[Carnivore Chris]

2 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

Have you subscribed to Eleven Sports already mate?

I'm watching it on BarçaTV

Yeah I subscribed the other day. Well, it's currently a free trial but I might as well keep it going since it's only 6 quid and give it a go. 

[SirBalon]

10 minutes ago, The Rebel CRS said:

Yeah I subscribed the other day. Well, it's currently a free trial but I might as well keep it going since it's only 6 quid and give it a go. 

So if you were to feel you don't want to continue, could you stop it after one month or when you like?

To be honest, I might subscribe too although I've been thinking hard about it because I've got Canal+ Spain.  But The Canal+ app doesn't work here in the UK because of the viewing rights abroad.  So when I'm out and about I want a method to view matches on my iPhone.

[SirBalon]

FC BARCELONA 3-0 BOCA JUNIORS

Joan Gamper 2018

 

Goals from Malcom, Messi and Rafinha gave the 2018 edition of the Joan Gamper to Barcelona.  There was a massive difference in quality between both sides with Barça playing a wonderful game and looking ready for the start to La Liga against Alavés this weekend.

The only issue is the physical fitness of the team during a whole 90 minutes which is kind of understandable at this moment during the summer but other than that all the pieces look to be ready for the new campaign.

 

[Carnivore Chris]

3 hours ago, SirBalon said:

So if you were to feel you don't want to continue, could you stop it after one month or when you like?

To be honest, I might subscribe too although I've been thinking hard about it because I've got Canal+ Spain.  But The Canal+ app doesn't work here in the UK because of the viewing rights abroad.  So when I'm out and about I want a method to view matches on my iPhone.

Yeah you can stop it after a month like with netflix and most other things these days. They do have a yearly pass on offer for 50 quid though, but the offer is only on the table until the end of August. I might even get that as it's only 50 quid for a full 12 months.

[SirBalon]

Sir Alex Ferguson's brother: "Let's see how we can do this"

 

Vítor Borba Ferreira, better known as "Rivaldo" caused a storm in the football world when in the summer of 1997 FC Barcelona deposited the stipulated amount set in his buy-out clause to release him from his obligations to Deportivo La Coruña...  It was the first time in history any club had ever used the aggressive tactic of buying out a player's contract from his current club which meant negotiating behind the backs of the owning club with the player and subsequently paying the amount stipulated so as to terminate the current contract.  When this happens it's a given that his new contract at the buying club will be one that has been accepted by all parties from the player himself to his representative (agent)...

Like it tends to happen in the world of high end business, when an agreement isn't signed beforehand because of the contract laws set in place for the protection of enterprises and also the just and fair movement of object parties, suddenly when in the brief central period in limbo, things change!

The money was deposited at the headquarters of the RFEF (Spanish football federation) and Rivaldo flew from Madrid to Barcelona in a private jet supplied by what would be his new club.  That same day he walked into the office and sat down ready to sign his new contract at FC Barcelona.  Just as he's about to sign and his representative sat next to him is passing through the copy of his new contract, he holds Rivaldo's hand by halting the signature... There were changes!  Changes that were not agreed.  History is history and the then very tough Barça board promised him that he would receive the agreed terms once he had proved himself to the club and the huge investment they'd jus left at the RFEF headquarters in the form of a cheque. Rivaldo signed and became a new Barça player...

Rivaldo was a tremendous success and once three years had passed he reminded the board of the promise (again another verbal agreement... Do people ever learn!) claiming the initial agreement before his move from Galicia to Catalunya.  The board kept their word this time and not only gave him an improved deal but actually doubled the original!  In truth, it was a new board and a new elected president in the shape of Joan Gaspart.

The new contract had an agreed buy-out clause of €46m and a list of clubs that if they'd come calling they'd (Barcelona) agree if all parties were in agreement for a transfer to the buying club.  Obviously Real Madrid didn't figure in that list of selected clubs by Rivaldo which made things easier to accept.

A year later one game before the end of the season (Barça were due to play their final a game against Valencia) Manchester United were in town and had programmed a meeting with Joan Gaspart in the Camp Nou offices... They'd come to enquire about the acquisition of Rivaldo who hadn't had his best season (Barcelona in general were lacklustre that year). Sir Alex Ferguson's brother Martin Ferguson took it upon himself to tell Joan Gaspart that they'd pay the whole amount of €46m but that it'd be better for both parties to do it under negotiation regulations so as to bypass the stringent tax laws that would reduce or inflate each party's interests.  Gaspart agreed and told the Man Utd expedition that the deal would be signed the following day after the final game of the season which he invited the United representatives to watch as Barça's guests.

Isn't history a wonderful thing?

FC Barcelona needed a victory to qualify for the Champions League that day and Valencia had had a very good season, there wasn't much hope or optimism in the Barcelona ranks... Boom!  Final minute and Rivaldo thumps a scorching overhead kick to hand Barça victory and maintain the statistic of playing in every edition of Europe's premium tournament.

The meeting was held with Martin Ferguson as promised but things had changed with Joan Gaspart stating; "If I sell Rivaldo to you after this and he's successful, they'll kill me here!"

Rivaldo stayed and the following season was his worst in the colours of Barcelona with a terrible relationship between himself and the then head coach Louis van Gaal.

The following summer Joan Gaspart agreed with AC Milan for the free transfer of Rivaldo to the northern Italian club... Only 12 months earlier Barcelona could've had €46m in the bank and instead had nothing with a big restructuring project on their hands and the nightmare of Real Madrid's new president elect Florentino Pérez negotiating with Judas Figo behind the club's back.

What goes around comes around as they tend to say! 

 

[nfb_10]

On 12/08/2018 at 05:09, Cannabis said:

We're back @SirBalon @The Rebel CRS @Paulo Dybala @Paulinho Dybala @FCBNick

The Camp Nou is like Heaven on earth, to be honest. It's so majestic. 

[SirBalon]

17 hours ago, FCBNick said:

The Camp Nou is like Heaven on earth, to be honest. It's so majestic. 

Add to that the city of Barcelona itself which is a thing of beauty.  For me in Europe there's no place like it!

[SirBalon]

Di Stéfano - Kubala - Suárez

"Political Games"

 

 

It was 1953  Canaletas in central Barcelona with Alfredo di Stéfano drinking from the fountain celebrating the signing of the agreement to play for FC Barcelona...

Barça were about to create one of the most potent attacks in the history of the game.  László Kubala was already there and the reason why Barcelona's original football ground of Les Corts had to be demolished and further up the city land bought to build what would later become one of the most renowned temples of football, the Camp Nou.  Infact with the original stadium of Les Corts we have the reason as to why a Barça fan is called a Culé (Culés in plural) which means "visible backside" in Catalan.  So many people would congregate at the stadium to see Kubala that many fans ended up sitting on the edge of the top of the stadium and from outside all you could see were butts sticking out from their seating position... The third magician and the only Spanish born winner of the Ballon d'Or (Di Stéfano would one day win the award as an accredited Spaniard, but was born in Argentina) would arrive at a later date in 1955... None other than Luis Suárez (just as we have the real Ronaldo with the Brazilian, this is the real Luis Suárez), Luis Suárez Miramontes "Luisíto".  The agreement with Deportivo La Coruña was already made but to arrive two seasons later.  FC Barcelona were planning a coup not only of the national game but also for European domination which was already a plan in construction between Europe's top clubs and would arrive in just under a decade.

Josep Samitier who was now the chief negotiator for Barça and a footballing legend of the past for the club (curiously played for both Barcelona and later on for Real Madrid) went out to meet Alfredo di Stéfano where he was playing for Millonarios and got the agreement with the player and the club to sign for Barcelona.  They both arrived in Barcelona with Samitier stating that Barça had just signed the greatest Latin American footballer of the time.  Everything sorted and awaiting the player's debut... The following day Di Stéfano played a friendly for Barça at the Camp Nou against French club Stade de Reims where he scored a goal in a 3-1 victory for the locals and the scene was set for the start of the campaign two weeks later...

But two days on Di Stéfano was no longer in Barcelona and things had changed.

"La Saeta Rubia" (Di Stéfano's nickname meaning "Blonde Arrow") was in Madrid and very few people knew what was going on... Nobody at Barça knew and only two people at Real Madrid (where Di Stéfano would eventually play his football) knew.  The then president of Real Madrid CF in the shape of Franco's voluntary chief, Santiago Bernabéu, the Liberator of Catalunya which was dominated by Los Rojos ("Los Rojos" the name given to those that opposed Franco and the regime) made an agreement in the highest ranks of the government to claim Di Stéfano for Real Madrid. So political did the situation become that even Franco's minister for sport, Moscardó was present along with one of the most extreme Falangistas, Elola Olaso... They called upon the then president of the RFEF (Spanish football federation), Sancho Dávila who was a cousin of none other than one of the biggest Civil War criminals of the regime, José Antonio Primo de Rivera.  Maybe these names are quite indifferent to younger generations in Spain these days but back then the simple muttering of the names would send shivers down the spine of many people living in Spain. The president of the RFEF, Sancho Dávila who was a man of fists and guns revered the regime and it was said that above his bed there was no typical Crucifix of Jesus Christ that adorned almost every Spanish bedroom, but instead photos of El Generalísimo (Franco) and Primo de Rivera.

Franco was a Real Madrid fanatic who was well known to argue about which team should or shouldn't take to the field for Real with close friends.  At that time Real Madrid had a front line of Kopa, Molowny, Rial and of course, the great Paco Gento.  There is an anecdote that one day Franco arguing that he hated penalties said this... "Penalties are for homosexuals.  A foul in the box should be given as a corner because defending and attacking corners is for men where you either get punched in the face or someone kicks your knees in.". 

To cut a long story short... All those that met in Madrid that day proposed to Barcelona that Alfredo di Stéfano should be shared by both FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF.. Those in power knew that a contract was signed between Di Stéfano and Barça, and the only way to resolve it was for both clubs to come to an agreement made by themselves that one year one club would have him and the following year the other club would be playing La Saeta Rubia.  The agreement would be made public and nobody other than the club's had come to this agreement.  Barça weren't up for this and threatened to take make it all public on what was going on but the regime obviously didn't want any dissent happening on the streets of Catalunya or Spain in general so the president of Barcelona and some of the board members started to receive political weight on them and their families with death threats and capping of their businesses.  

Enough was enough... Barcelona decided not to make anything public but they weren't going to be party to any of this and decided to renounce the contract signed and gave all rights to Real Madrid.  That year changed the fortunes of Real Madrid CF who until then had been barely successful.  Alfredo di Stéfano ended up changing Spanish football history forever.

[Kowabunga]

9 hours ago, SirBalon said:

Di Stéfano - Kubala - Suárez

"Political Games"

 

 

It was 1953  Canaletas in central Barcelona with Alfredo di Stéfano drinking from the fountain celebrating the signing of the agreement to play for FC Barcelona...

Barça were about to create one of the most potent attacks in the history of the game.  László Kubala was already there and the reason why Barcelona's original football ground of Les Corts had to be demolished and further up the city land bought to build what would later become one of the most renowned temples of football, the Camp Nou.  Infact with the original stadium of Les Corts we have the reason as to why a Barça fan is called a Culé (Culés in plural) which means "visible backside" in Catalan.  So many people would congregate at the stadium to see Kubala that many fans ended up sitting on the edge of the top of the stadium and from outside all you could see were butts sticking out from their seating position... The third magician and the only Spanish born winner of the Ballon d'Or (Di Stéfano would one day win the award as an accredited Spaniard, but was born in Argentina) would arrive at a later date in 1955... None other than Luis Suárez (just as we have the real Ronaldo with the Brazilian, this is the real Luis Suárez), Luis Suárez Miramontes "Luisíto".  The agreement with Deportivo La Coruña was already made but to arrive two seasons later.  FC Barcelona were planning a coup not only of the national game but also for European domination which was already a plan in construction between Europe's top clubs and would arrive in just under a decade.

Josep Samitier who was now the chief negotiator for Barça and a footballing legend of the past for the club (curiously played for both Barcelona and later on for Real Madrid) went out to meet Alfredo di Stéfano where he was playing for Millonarios and got the agreement with the player and the club to sign for Barcelona.  They both arrived in Barcelona with Samitier stating that Barça had just signed the greatest Latin American footballer of the time.  Everything sorted and awaiting the player's debut... The following day Di Stéfano played a friendly for Barça at the Camp Nou against French club Stade de Reims where he scored a goal in a 3-1 victory for the locals and the scene was set for the start of the campaign two weeks later...

But two days on Di Stéfano was no longer in Barcelona and things had changed.

"La Saeta Rubia" (Di Stéfano's nickname meaning "Blonde Arrow") was in Madrid and very few people knew what was going on... Nobody at Barça knew and only two people at Real Madrid (where Di Stéfano would eventually play his football) knew.  The then president of Real Madrid CF in the shape of Franco's voluntary chief, Santiago Bernabéu, the Liberator of Catalunya which was dominated by Los Rojos ("Los Rojos" the name given to those that opposed Franco and the regime) made an agreement in the highest ranks of the government to claim Di Stéfano for Real Madrid. So political did the situation become that even Franco's minister for sport, Moscardó was present along with one of the most extreme Falangistas, Elola Olaso... They called upon the then president of the RFEF (Spanish football federation), Sancho Dávila who was a cousin of none other than one of the biggest Civil War criminals of the regime, José Antonio Primo de Rivera.  Maybe these names are quite indifferent to younger generations in Spain these days but back then the simple muttering of the names would send shivers down the spine of many people living in Spain. The president of the RFEF, Sancho Dávila who was a man of fists and guns revered the regime and it was said that above his bed there was no typical Crucifix of Jesus Christ that adorned almost every Spanish bedroom, but instead photos of El Generalísimo (Franco) and Primo de Rivera.

Franco was a Real Madrid fanatic who was well known to argue about which team should or shouldn't take to the field for Real with close friends.  At that time Real Madrid had a front line of Kopa, Molowny, Rial and of course, the great Paco Gento.  There is an anecdote that one day Franco arguing that he hated penalties said this... "Penalties are for homosexuals.  A foul in the box should be given as a corner because defending and attacking corners is for men where you either get punched in the face or someone kicks your knees in.". 

To cut a long story short... All those that met in Madrid that day proposed to Barcelona that Alfredo di Stéfano should be shared by both FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF.. Those in power knew that a contract was signed between Di Stéfano and Barça, and the only way to resolve it was for both clubs to come to an agreement made by themselves that one year one club would have him and the following year the other club would be playing La Saeta Rubia.  The agreement would be made public and nobody other than the club's had come to this agreement.  Barça weren't up for this and threatened to take make it all public on what was going on but the regime obviously didn't want any dissent happening on the streets of Catalunya or Spain in general so the president of Barcelona and some of the board members started to receive political weight on them and their families with death threats and capping of their businesses.  

Enough was enough... Barcelona decided not to make anything public but they weren't going to be party to any of this and decided to renounce the contract signed and gave all rights to Real Madrid.  That year changed the fortunes of Real Madrid CF who until then had been barely successful.  Alfredo di Stéfano ended up changing Spanish football history forever.

José Antonio Primo de Rivera was not a war criminal, ffs. He was a Fascist, but having been in prison since the start of the civil war until being executed 5 months later the definition of "war criminal" does not hold.

 

 

[RandoEFC+]

I have every certainty that @SirBalon types these entire articles out himself rather than copying and pasting because he just has to get his 20 minute typing session fix.

[SirBalon]

47 minutes ago, Kowabunga said:

José Antonio Primo de Rivera was not a war criminal, ffs. He was a Fascist, but having been in prison since the start of the civil war until being executed 5 months later the definition of "war criminal" does not hold.

 

 

Indeed... There’s the saying that the balls of his white horse were found on top of a building. He was a nasty piece of work mate. 

[SirBalon]

22 minutes ago, RandoEFC said:

I have every certainty that @SirBalon types these entire articles out himself rather than copying and pasting because he just has to get his 20 minute typing session fix.

I definitely don’t copy and paste mate. 

[Kowabunga]

Just now, SirBalon said:

Indeed... There’s the saying that the balls of his white horse were found on top of a building. He was a nasty piece of work mate. 

Bfftttt, lots of more vicious pieces of work than J.A. in the very Falange pop in my mind.

In any case, returning to football in relation to the Franco dictatorship, I am not the type-a-lot guy, but I just recommend (longer) reads that people can find interesting:

González Calleja, Eduardo (2014) "El Real Madrid, ¿"equipo de España"? Fútbol e identidades durante el franquismo" Política y Sociedad 51(2), 275-296

It's worth noting that, while in the one hand during the Franco dictatorship cultivated strong links with the Armed Forces in the early francoist period, the (less developed) link to the falangists was eventually cultivated by Raimundo Saporta rather than Bernabéu, more conservative-monarchist.

 

[Carnivore Chris]

Goalkeepers:

Ter Stegen & Cilessen

Defenders:

Pique, Umtiti, Semedo, Alba, Semedo, Roberto, Lenglet, Miranda & Vermaelen

Midfielders:

Coutinho, Rakitic, Busquets, Arthur, Rafinha, Vidal, Denis & Aleña

Forwards:

Messi, Suarez, Dembele, Malcom & Munir

 

Just need to get rid of Paco Alcacer now(for this own good) and that is a complete squad for me, with no real deadwood. Valverde has a strong squad there at his disposal.

Edited August 23, 2018 by The Rebel CRS

[Carnivore Chris]

[Carnivore Chris]

15 hours ago, The Rebel CRS said:

Is there a stronger starting 11 "on paper" right now? What do people think? @SirBalon, @Cannabis, @El Profesor, @carefreeluke, @Cicero, @Kowabunga

 

What is interesting about this side is the sudden depth of the squad. On the bench we are looking at players like Cilessen, Lenglet, Semedo, Arthur, Vidal, Rafinha, Malcom, Munir...That's a lot of depth and they are all young with a lot ahead of them. Some of which have potential to be first team regulars, especially Arthur, who you'd expect to see a lot of pitch time this season.

All the 'deadwood' has gone this summer as well, so there has been a nice clear-out, which is refreshing. Hopefully we get to see enough of young Miranda as well, who has the potential to be the future left back for years to come. I still do think that another season or 2 in the B team, with Cucurella(who is not as talented, but more experienced) might have made sense for the time-being, although time will tell in how much pitch time Miranda will get. Alba certainly needs the slack taken off him a bit for me and it's come to a time where the likes of himself, Messi and Busquets could probably do with more rest than in the past, in order to keep them fresh for the big ones.

I'd like to see Rafinha get more minutes than Vidal as well. He's earned them for me and with him being from La Masia and a player who has always wanted to make it at the club, he deserves them.

[SirBalon]

7 minutes ago, The Rebel CRS said:

Is there a stronger starting 11 "on paper" right now? What do people think? @SirBalon, @Cannabis, @El Profesor, @carefreeluke, @Cicero, @Kowabunga

 

What is interesting about this side is the sudden depth of the squad. On the bench we are looking at players like Cilessen, Lenglet, Semedo, Arthur, Vidal, Rafinha, Malcom, Munir...That's a lot of depth and they are all young with a lot ahead of them. Some of which have potential to be first team regulars, especially Arthur, who you'd expect to see a lot of pitch time this season.

All the 'deadwood' has gone this summer as well, so there has been a nice clear-out, which is refreshing. Hopefully we get to see enough of young Miranda as well, who has the potential to be the future left back for years to come. I still do think that another season or 2 in the B team, with Cucurella(who is not as talented, but more experienced) might have made sense for the time-being, although time will tell in how much pitch time Miranda will get. Alba certainly needs the slack taken off him a bit for me and it's come to a time where the likes of himself, Messi and Busquets could probably do with more rest than in the past, in order to keep them fresh for the big ones.

I'd like to see Rafinha get more minutes than Vidal as well. He's earned them for me and with him being from La Masia and a player who has always wanted to make it at the club, he deserves them.

I've also heard that Valverde really has a lot of confidence in Riqui Puig too and he's kept him on for full training sessions with the first team.  A good sign!

The squad is very strong but many of those players need to play (especially the new ones) to get into the mechanics of the team on match days.

It's not just the depth though but the journalists have been going on about the immense amount of variables Valverde has for this season to be able to change styles of play in one game and not just have to rely on the system working of things are going wrong in a high profile game.

[SirBalon]

Barça kids teach the big boys a lesson in ethics

 

FC Barcelona's 'B' infant team that's been participating in the famous World Soccer Challenge which is being held in Osaka, Japan this year showed everyone what this sport should be about after defeating Japanese side FC Persimmon in the quarter-finals.  Barcelona beat the Japanese infants 11-10 on penalties and will tomorrow face Club Tijuana de México while the other semifinal will see Arsenal FC take on Osaka FC.  An example on ethics and humility... Where is it lost along the way?

 

[SirBalon]

30 minutes ago, Cannabis said:

11-0 on penalties ?

Oops... 11-10. Sorryyyy 

[Cicero]

@The Rebel CRS

Pique still a liability for me. 

[Carnivore Chris]

On 26/08/2018 at 21:38, Cicero said:

@The Rebel CRS

Pique still a liability for me. 

He always will be unfortunately. Which is a shame as he's so important in other areas. 

[SirBalon]

21 hours ago, The Rebel CRS said:

He always will be unfortunately. Which is a shame as he's so important in other areas. 

Agree... He makes errors but so do all modern centre-backs considering what’s asked of them in today’s football. No longer is it good enough just to be a rock at the back with the only other plus being capabilities in set-pieces. A centre-back has to know how to play football or he sticks out in certain teams with a particular style of play. 

[nfb_10]

On 25/08/2018 at 07:11, The Rebel CRS said:

Is there a stronger starting 11 "on paper" right now? What do people think? @SirBalon, @Cannabis, @El Profesor, @carefreeluke, @Cicero, @Kowabunga

 

What is interesting about this side is the sudden depth of the squad. On the bench we are looking at players like Cilessen, Lenglet, Semedo, Arthur, Vidal, Rafinha, Malcom, Munir...That's a lot of depth and they are all young with a lot ahead of them. Some of which have potential to be first team regulars, especially Arthur, who you'd expect to see a lot of pitch time this season.

All the 'deadwood' has gone this summer as well, so there has been a nice clear-out, which is refreshing. Hopefully we get to see enough of young Miranda as well, who has the potential to be the future left back for years to come. I still do think that another season or 2 in the B team, with Cucurella(who is not as talented, but more experienced) might have made sense for the time-being, although time will tell in how much pitch time Miranda will get. Alba certainly needs the slack taken off him a bit for me and it's come to a time where the likes of himself, Messi and Busquets could probably do with more rest than in the past, in order to keep them fresh for the big ones.

I'd like to see Rafinha get more minutes than Vidal as well. He's earned them for me and with him being from La Masia and a player who has always wanted to make it at the club, he deserves them.

Yes, the board's transfer business this summer was really, really well done for me. For once we actually got rid of every single player that I think needed to go, and we did well in bringing in young, promising players to add quality depth that we haven't had for a good while, plus the experienced Arturo Vidal as well, and all for great prices. The transfer window we had honestly surprised me with just how good it was.

The squad looks really strong and hopefully the new signings integrate well so we can make a strong push for both La Liga and the Champions League. I think our strongest eleven has been the strongest team on paper in the world for a while now, even while Real Madrid were busy winning three UCL's in a row, our team has been better. But one of the biggest issues we've had has been depth, which we have this year and I hope Valverde uses it wisely so our 'Gala XI' can arrive at the business end of the season fresh, especially Messi, Busquets and Rakitic. 

[SirBalon]

During October it looks like there's going to be a more than interesting sequence of games all after another...

Sevilla then Inter Milan and then Real Madrid.

Not bad! 

[SirBalon]

 

The FC Barcelona treasurer Josep Vives during his morning's annual socio meeting presented the finances for last year which have seen FC Barcelona be the first club in history to almost make €1b profits for a financial year.  Without winning the Champions League Barça have managed to create one of the biggest profit margins in the history of sport by making a whopping €960m profit.