FC Barcelona Discussion

[Asura]

1 minute ago, The Rebel CRS said:

All the signings this summer have been terrible and not one single problem whatsoever has been anywhere near close to being addressed.

 

This is even without Neymar leaving, which makes for even more work now. 3 signings are massively needed:- a Neymar replacement, a midfielder since Iniesta can't play much anymore and a top centre back.

 

 

 

why a CB? Pique and Umtiti are generally solid and they have mascherano for cover and also one more guy from their academy I cant remember his name. 

[Asura]

Just now, The Rebel CRS said:

How is that different to Gerrard or Carragher speaking about what Liverpool need on sky sports/BT or Scholes and Keane talking about what United need? They are retired players, who are now pundits/speak a lot about football in the media.

I never saw Gerrard or Carragher saying a young player has scouse DNA in him mate 

[Cicero]

16 minutes ago, Asura said:

why a CB? Pique and Umtiti are generally solid and they have mascherano for cover and also one more guy from their academy I cant remember his name. 

Pique is a liability now. Absolutely torn apart by Real Madrid. 

Barcelona now implement a system where they do not have the ball as much as compared to 2009-12. And Pique is now getting exposed because of it. 

Edited August 14, 2017 by Cicero

[Asura]

6 minutes ago, Cicero said:

Pique is a liability now. Absolutely torn apart by Real Madrid. 

too soon to say he is a liability, it was just one match

[Cicero]

Just now, Asura said:

too soon to say he is a liability, it was just one match

It's not just one match, it's been going on over a year now. Barca do not have the midfielders to keep the ball as much, and their defence is getting exposed for it. Umtiti is the only one I can say can hold his own out of the back 4. 

[Asura]

1 minute ago, Cicero said:

It's not just one match, it's been going on over a year now. Barca do not have the midfielders to keep the ball as much, and their defence is getting exposed for it. Umtiti is the only one I can say can hold his own out of the back 4. 

They can bid for Gabriel, he is up for sale for 25 million which is peanuts for them with all the Neymar money they have 

[Carnivore Chris]

There are some horrible signings these days. There were even poor ones around the time Pep was first appointed as manager in crap like Chiginski, Hleb, Caceres, etc, although lately, there are far more crap signings than positive ones. I'm not sure how Paulinho improves the starting 11, which is what is needed. The starting 11 needs a few new faces, the team needs freshening up. What it doesn't need is a bunch of overpaid, ageing  Spurs flops on high wages clogging up the squad.

 

I wouldn't write Deulofeu off simply because of last night, as being thrown into the team in a Clasico on your official debut is not easy, although I've never seen him as being the sort who would be first choice either way. Paco Alacer and himself are squad players, well needed ones, but for me they aren't players who are good enough to be starting every game. A top young talent like Dembele is needed without a doubt.

[Spike]

11 hours ago, SirBalon said:

It's an interview and he was asked which players he thought would be good for Barcelona!  He doesn't even play for the club anymore!!

What's he meant to do?  Not answer the question because only Barcelona get accused of this?

Ian Wright was asked the same thing a few weeks ago and he reeled off some names...  Is that considered tapping?

Nah, he can say whatever he pleases. Most people just find the 'Barca DNA' line to be real cringe I don't think anyone would give two hoots if he never said that.

[SirBalon]

5 minutes ago, Spike said:

Nah, he can say whatever he pleases. Most people just find the 'Barca DNA' line to be real cringe I don't think anyone would give two hoots if he never said that.

I agree... it's one of the stupidest things in the world although at the same time I get it. I don't like hearing it or reading it unless it's said in jest. 

[Spike]

14 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

I agree... it's one of the stupidest things in the world although at the same time I get it. I don't like hearing it or reading it unless it's said in jest. 

I almost feel like it's a backhand compliment. I feel like it praises Barca more than it does the player, but whatever. I think the stock standard phrase 'He would bring a lot to the team' is sufficient even if it isn't sincere and let's be honest that is what most managers and pundits say. It's generally a stupid question that is just used for clickbait transfer articles. 

Edited August 14, 2017 by Spike

[Asura]

35 minutes ago, Teso dos Bichos said:

you seriously think its only been one match? that tells me you havent seen many Barcelona matches lately. he has been a liability especially in set pieces, he just happened to get overly exposed yesterday along with busquets 

That was my response to cicero's "he was ripped apart"....  I meant to say he was not being ripped apart from a long time, he actually has been brilliant for the last 3-4 years but probably yeah he is declining but he wasnt getting ripped apart all the time like yesterday. 

[Cicero]

2 minutes ago, Asura said:

That was my response to cicero's "he was ripped apart"....  I meant to say he was not being ripped apart from a long time, he actually has been brilliant for the last 3-4 years but probably yeah he is declining but he wasnt getting ripped apart all the time like yesterday. 

Except he was. I said for the past year he's been mugged off. Look at the game against Juve as a prime example. Or PSG. 

[RandoEFC+]

Deulofeu couldn't hold down a place in the Everton side ahead of the likes of Mirallas, Bolasie and Barkley, then AC Milan I believe chose not to take the option to buy after he was loaned there - might be wrong on that second detail.

Given his obvious talent it's not impossible that he succeeds at Barcelona but why they've found themselves in a situation where a player who was loaned from Everton because he wasn't in the first team is now starting against Real Madrid is beyond me.

[SirBalon]

21 minutes ago, RandoEFC said:

Deulofeu couldn't hold down a place in the Everton side ahead of the likes of Mirallas, Bolasie and Barkley, then AC Milan I believe chose not to take the option to buy after he was loaned there - might be wrong on that second detail.

Given his obvious talent it's not impossible that he succeeds at Barcelona but why they've found themselves in a situation where a player who was loaned from Everton because he wasn't in the first team is now starting against Real Madrid is beyond me.

Milan did want to keep him but it was Barça who took their final year option to take him back to the Camp Nou which was totally based on his form at AC Milan last season.  He was never an option before than...  He does have tremendous talent but in my opinion he'll never be what he can be.  He's not as selfish with the ball as he used to be but for some reason he doesn't provide what he shows at times on a consistent level.  Take for example the U21 Euros this summer...  He was brilliant!  But it just occurs in spits and spurts.

[El Profesor]

14 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

Milan did want to keep him but it was Barça who took their final year option to take him back to the Camp Nou which was totally based on his form at AC Milan last season.  He was never an option before than...  He does have tremendous talent but in my opinion he'll never be what he can be.  He's not as selfish with the ball as he used to be but for some reason he doesn't provide what he shows at times on a consistent level.  Take for example the U21 Euros this summer...  He was brilliant!  But it just occurs in spits and spurts.

There is talent there, I agree, and I believe he can be an useful player to Barcelona, but not as a starter. In a different role, as a sub and occasional starter I could see him contributing to Barcelona. 

On the Paulinho transfer, in which scenario do you think he could thrive there? Obviously, I´m not in favour of that deal in a Barcelona perspective, but I´m trying to make sense of it. Perhaps they want more physical strenght than Rakitic offers? A change of formation, in which Valverde will drop the 4-3-3?

[Philippe Coutinho]

"Resign now Bartomeu" trending #1 worldwide.

 

[Cicero]

Same people who wanted Pep out after he lost his first couple games 

[SirBalon]

1 hour ago, El_Loco said:

There is talent there, I agree, and I believe he can be an useful player to Barcelona, but not as a starter. In a different role, as a sub and occasional starter I could see him contributing to Barcelona. 

On the Paulinho transfer, in which scenario do you think he could thrive there? Obviously, I´m not in favour of that deal in a Barcelona perspective, but I´m trying to make sense of it. Perhaps they want more physical strenght than Rakitic offers? A change of formation, in which Valverde will drop the 4-3-3?

As far as I know they want someone to help out Busquets so as to release him from so much responsibility protecting the defence. It leaves the back line open to full on attacks and no back four in the world can take that no matter how good they are. You'd think Mascherano would be that option, but it seems he is fully consecrated as a centre-back at Barça now. From what I've heard speak of the technical team in the boardroom, they rate Paulinho's passing abilities extremely highly and his technical ability.

I can't really comment other than what he done for Spurs which never looked like bedding in. Maybe they think La Liga and Barcelona's way of playing next to someone like Busquets will work. 

[Asura]

7 hours ago, Cicero said:

Except he was. I said for the past year he's been mugged off. Look at the game against Juve as a prime example. Or PSG. 

how many individual errors he has committed to call "he is being torn or ripped"? Im not saying he is still great and agreed that maybe he is not as good as he was, say, 2 yrs ago and like you said above he is getting exposed due to weak midfield maybe. Pique (barcelona CBs in general) covers a lot of space because their midfielders dont sit back and help the defence, they play a high line with ball possession and its always a suicide when their midfield doesnt keep the ball and lose it, as the CBs wil have to cover a lot of ground to get back from their high line and Pique who is not a speedster will always be in trouble in such situations. Anyways I dont think he is really being torn apart except maybe on an odd occasion like yesterday but I will have to check the two examples you quoted as I honestly dont remember what happened in those two matches. 

[SirBalon]

3 hours ago, Asura said:

how many individual errors he has committed to call "he is being torn or ripped"? Im not saying he is still great and agreed that maybe he is not as good as he was, say, 2 yrs ago and like you said above he is getting exposed due to weak midfield maybe. Pique (barcelona CBs in general) covers a lot of space because their midfielders dont sit back and help the defence, they play a high line with ball possession and its always a suicide when their midfield doesnt keep the ball and lose it, as the CBs wil have to cover a lot of ground to get back from their high line and Pique who is not a speedster will always be in trouble in such situations. Anyways I dont think he is really being torn apart except maybe on an odd occasion like yesterday but I will have to check the two examples you quoted as I honestly dont remember what happened in those two matches. 

All defenders get caught in that fashion when a team is either running at them with no barrier in between or when they're having to cover part of the space the full-backs leave behind.  We can go quite a bit further back to see situations such as these occurring in the Barcelona defence!

As the midfield (that traditional one) has died, the others just aren't up to scratch and the defence has begun to suffer more and more.  Barça have a MASSIVE problem with their full-backs, but especially their right-back.  Aleix Vidal went back into his old self in that game the other night...  He done exactly what Luis Enrique would rip into him about and subsequently drop him from either first teams or the squad altogether.  ALL THREE Real Madrid goals are on a counter and all three are down to an initial positional or defensive error by the right-back.  The midfield because it isn't confident does one thing...  Push high up the field trying to suffocate the rival and becoming as narrow as possible!  Watch replays of three games like the Juve first half in Turin, the PSG second half in Paris and the second half against Real Madrid the other night in the Camp Nou. I've been saying it for a long time that the problems at Barcelona lie in midfield because the midfield was and should be the pace-maker at Barça and right now it isn't.

As for the right-back situation...  It's only normal that this should be happening.  It will be a long long time before another of the quality of Dani Alves comes along...  They don't grow on trees.

[SirBalon]

Starting to look dodgy already that signing. Enter those waiting in the dark to pounce and set off the elections. The sooner this happens before things go too far the better. 

[Carnivore Chris]

 

 

Balon won't agree, but I'd have Laporta back myself. He's corrupt, but whoever comes in will be a shady cunt either way, that's a given.

 

Edited August 16, 2017 by The Rebel CRS

[SirBalon]

9 minutes ago, The Rebel CRS said:

 

 

Balon won't agree, but I'd have Laporta back myself. He's a corrupt, but whoever comes in will be a shady cunt either way, that's a given.

 

Laporta?  NO WAY!

He embezzled Barcelona money in Kazakhstan.  He started well but he ended up almost ruining the club!

There are people that can do a good job and those people care about the club.  The problem with those people is financing their bid to be elected as the constitution of the club (same happened with Florentino Pérez at Real Madrid where practically nobody can stand now and it showed in their last elections where he was the only candidate) was changed when Rosell took over and having the capital to show you can cover anything that goes wrong due to your mismanagement is difficult.  But there are at least two that seem to have managed this and in the next two to three months we should be in the position to see the movement.

[Carnivore Chris]

Rosell is currently in jail so the chances of him gaining presidency anytime soon are impossible fortunately mate

Edited August 16, 2017 by The Rebel CRS

[SirBalon]

6 minutes ago, The Rebel CRS said:

Rosell is currently in jail so the chances of him gaining presidency anytime soon are impossible fortunately mate

Uli Hoeneß managed it at Bayern!