FC Barcelona Discussion

[SirBalon]

I know Spike loves his tasty digs and trying to arouse some heated upheaval in terms of an almost troll like scenario.  Spike is no troll, he's too intelligent to be one but he does like to fabricate a bit of a sensationalist sensation.  Infact he'd make a great member of a marketing team in my view and I know because that's my forté. I like the guy a lot but yesterday I found myself taking him serious under the reasoning I've just mentioned in this post...  I mean...  Look at Spike's avatar and signature...  If that isn't called coaxing (something I find easy to look past because I'm indifferent to that) then I don't know what is. 

Naming Xavi and Puyol was extremely provocative and I fell for it because I let myself fall for it.  Those two are sacred (with Iniesta being the Holy Grail of perfect human ethics where a footballer is concerned) and I will defend them to the hilt because not only are they footballing legends, but the way they managed to keep out of the hatred involved within the Barça v Real Madrid battles especially in the Mourinho era takes almost a valid acceptance as an option to be canonised.

Anyway...  I have no problem with hatred toward a club but where individuals are concerned I do like some substance that includes a bit more than what drunk men do as a stupid prank in front of over a million people on the streets.  A hated player has to be about the way he conducts himself as a footballer.

[Cicero]

I like Puyol. Xavi however, as talented as he is, had made some comments regarding how the opposing team shouldn't have won which were bar none cringeworthy. 

[SirBalon]

3 minutes ago, Cicero said:

I like Puyol. Xavi however, as talented as he is, had made some comments regarding how the opposing team shouldn't have won which were bar none cringeworthy. 

Yeah...  He would also always go on about grass length which was annoying to say the least.  But to hate a footballer over that is confusing.  I see it a whole different way like a player that's dirty, sly, cheats or is an utter egotistical arsehole.  If as humans we start hating other over annoyances then it's no wonder the divorce rate is as high as it is these days.  

[Spike]

8 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

I know Spike loves his tasty digs and trying to arouse some heated upheaval in terms of an almost troll like scenario.  Spike is no troll, he's too intelligent to be one but he does like to fabricate a bit of a sensationalist sensation.  Infact he'd make a great member of a marketing team in my view and I know because that's my forté. I like the guy a lot but yesterday I found myself taking him serious under the reasoning I've just mentioned in this post...  I mean...  Look at Spike's avatar and signature...  If that isn't called coaxing (something I find easy to look past because I'm indifferent to that) then I don't know what is. 

Naming Xavi and Puyol was extremely provocative and I fell for it because I let myself fall for it.  Those two are sacred (with Iniesta being the Holy Grail of perfect human ethics where a footballer is concerned) and I will defend them to the hilt because not only are they footballing legends, but the way they managed to keep out of the hatred involved within the Barça v Real Madrid battles especially in the Mourinho era takes almost a valid acceptance as an option to be canonised.

Anyway...  I have no problem with hatred toward a club but where individuals are concerned I do like some substance that includes a bit more than what drunk men do as a stupid prank in front of over a million people on the streets.  A hated player has to be about the way he conducts himself as a footballer.

The worst part was is that I didn't even say I hated them. Just that one or two things they've done have irritated me. I don't hate any footballer or club.

[Spike]

I almost changed my avatar and signature to Xavi and Puyol to really wind up Balon, but I decided against it. 

[Philippe Coutinho]

Oh no. This guy's a friggin joke.

https://www.sport-english.com/en/news/barca/referee-appointed-for-clasico-hernandez-hernandez-5952125

[Devil-Dick Willie]

Has Messi got out of prison yet?

[SirBalon]

Isco...  You can't do that and you know it!

 

Isco posted this on his Instagram account and already many Real Madrid fans are going mental and saying all sorts.  Didn't know Barça did crisps  He later deletes the photo. 

 

Isco: ¿nuevo guiño al Barça?

[SirBalon]

Due to the barrage of attacks and abuse Isco Alarcón has been receiving since he posted the Instagram picture (post above) from thousands of Real Madrid fans, the Real Madrid player has felt obliged to "clear" things up with this Tweet;

Which reads; "Stop being so annoying, I'm not going to Barça!! What I was saying with the photo is that we're going to eat them like crisps"

Why did Isco delete the Instagram picture before anyone could respond though?

[SirBalon]

7 hours ago, Cannabis said:

It's something you'd hear from Chris Kamara on a Saturday evening.

[Spike]

I drank a bottle of Gatorade with Messi on the bottle the other day. Please don't tell Madridistas this

[Paulinho Dybala]

La Liga title race is over. Congratulations to Real Madrid. They were much more consistent throughout the season. Always found a way to get it done.

If Enrique and Unzue are smart, they'll focus on the Champions League. Can't have Real Madrid winning the European Double.

Here's a stat:  Barca has dropped points in 14 of the 15 games that Andre Gomes has started. Says it all really.

That means that he's almost singlehandedly denying Barca what could have been a treble winning season.

He's the worst signing in recent memory. He needs to go pronto.

Edited April 9, 2017 by Luis Suarez

[Paulinho Dybala]

[Spike]

It doesn't say anything because there is no context. Football is too complicsted to reduce it to a single statement. 

[SirBalon]

7 hours ago, Luis Suarez said:

Always found a way to get it done.

Florentino Pérez indeed always finds a way!  It's why he continues to have a slight majority of support amongst the Real Madrid 'socios'.

 

André Gomes...  Yesterday has to have been his worst performance for Barcelona and that takes some doing.  He was a total ghost in the game and it was like playing with 10 men most of the time.  He had two interventions of note, one was a magnificent pass from Messi in the first half for André to score and for some reason André Gomes let it run too far past his body which gave time for the defender to rectify his initial mistake and clear easily.  The other intervention was a cross toward the end of the first half.  Apart from that he was missing in action the whole game until he was substituted.

The truth is that hardly none of the players played well yesterday and it was a very physical game.  I don't know if the players had Juventus on their mind or not but that was a poor performance.  Neymar who has been the best player for months overall made countless mistakes by cutting in when he should've hugged the line or staying close to the line when he should've looked inside.  Messi came deeper and deeper into midfield but that was actually due to the fact Barça were being dominated in midfield where key moments were in question because Barcelona had all the possession of the ball (Málaga let them have it) without being penetrative with it.

Luis Enrique has rotated too much this season and what that achieves is that the players don't get to associate properly and don't bed into accomplishing form.  Iniesta is the best example of this and even though Iniesta has to be given rest more than ever these days, Luis Enrique has taken that too far because in midfield and especially the way Iniesta plays the game, he needs to play more.  It's coming toward the end of the campaign and Iniesta should be playing all of them now, or at least most of them from the start.  But Luis Enrique is so scared of losing him due to an injury that he has him wrapped in cotton wool practically all of the time.

Rafinha out for the season now (he's had various injuries this year) hasn't helped matters either because he does fit into the system and is the perfect player to rotate with.  He has hurt Luis Enrique's rotation capabilities in terms of effective quality when applied.  Arda Turan's constant calf strains have also been a nightmare for the coach because he started the season so well and looked to have regained the form he was signed for at Atlético Madrid.  So there are reasons for the thinness of the options because even though there are multiple players to choose from, the real quality has worn thin.

What I don't understand at all is the rotation of Ivan Rakitić...  The Croatian would've put that André Gomes chance from a Messi pass away with his eyes closed.  That's one of his main fortes.  Not only is he one of the best second line attack minded midfielders in Europe, but he is also more than just competent in the destruction of the rival's game.  In other words, a must in any top midfield anywhere in the world.  Obviously it was away to Málaga and Luis Enrique decided once again to rest the all terrain midfielder due to how much the player wastes himself physically in games.   The thing is that Rakitić isn't Andrés Iniesta's age and he can take it twice a week!  It was the biggest error yesterday because he should've been playing instead of André Gomes.

If André Gomes ends up leaving Barça in the end, he won't be able to ever say that he wasn't given a chance.  Luis Enrique has definitely given him that.  He has played as many minutes as any midfielder this season.  He's had the coach's faith and confidence which is paramount for a player to eventually show form.  But that hasn't ever looked like arriving.  Infact I'd say André Gomes' problems started when he was dropped from the Portugal side that won the European Championship in France last summer.  That was his downfall and no longer has that form and game he had at Valencia been seen again.  He needs to go to a club where he will be the protagonist once again and not just another player.  Only then do I see him returning to what he was which was one of my favourite players anywhere at one point and the reason I was so happy when Barcelona signed him.

Edited April 9, 2017 by SirBalon

[Carnivore Chris]

Why start with Andre Gomes in midfield, Mathieu in central defence and Mascherano at right back? Masch should have played as a  centre back with Sergi Roberto at right back. Raktic, who has rediscovered his best form lately, should be starting and the only change I can understand is Iniesta as there is a big game against Juventus midweek and he can only play so many minutes per week now. But even then, I think he can play a lot more than the minutes he's getting lately and him starting doesn't necessarily mean he has to play the full 90.

 

Gomes and Mathieu are terrible and the team lose more than win when those 2 start. I don't understand Enrique's rotation policy at all and it gets worse. He's pretty much thrown the league away whenever he's had chance to capitalise this season.

 

 

Edited April 9, 2017 by The Rebel CRS

[Spike]

Why the fuck is Xavi ruining his image in Qatar? 

[Spike]

I just don't get why someone like Xavi elects to play in a country that lashes homosexuals and steals worker's visas.

He doesn't need the money, he isn't winning anything prestigious, he has no connection to the culture, he isn't playing against quality opposition, he isn't learning anything new, nor is he endowing his abilities and knowledge on a budding footballing nation. I just don't understand the rationale behind this. If he wants to play football he could have done so anywhere in Europe, he could have played for a decent Italian team, he could have proved despite his age he still has it, he doesn't need his 300,000p/w paycheque, so why chase money?

Xavi is considered the best midfielder of his generation. He is adored and respected worldwide by players and fans alike. So why the shit is he on the level of Carlos Tevez and Hulk, chasing the easy dineros in an ass-backwards cunt of a country? All he does outside of it is publicly wank over what players he wants to play for Barcelona, he practically taps them up! I just don't understand any of this.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Spike

[SirBalon]

On 4/10/2017 at 2:47 PM, Teso Dos Bichos said:

LMAO lost to 15th place???? Los Blancos are winning La Liga and the Champions this year, increasing the gap between them and Barcelona, but hey, they have more Copa de Rey titles though 

Yeah, but one league title in almost a decade is almost at a level of Valencia. 

[SirBalon]

Just now, Spike said:

I just don't get why someone like Xavi elects to play in a country that lashes homosexuals and steals worker's visas.

He doesn't need the money, he isn't winning anything prestigious, he has no connection to the culture, he isn't playing against quality opposition, he isn't learning anything new, nor is he endowing his abilities and knowledge on a budding footballing nation. I just don't understand the rationale behind this. If he wants to play football he could have done so anywhere in Europe, he could have played for a decent Italian team, he could have proved despite his age he still has it, he doesn't need his 300,000p/w paycheque, so why chase money?

Everyone asks this...  To be honest he's enjoying it there and is doing more on the coaching side of things than being serious about the playing.

The reason he went there instead of the States was exactly that...  They let him do his coaching badges while playing and also coach the youth setups with total autonomy.

[Spike]

Just now, SirBalon said:

Everyone asks this...  To be honest he's enjoying it there and is doing more on the coaching side of things than being serious about the playing.

The reason he went there instead of the States was exactly that...  They let him do his coaching badges while playing and also coach the youth setups with total autonomy.

He couldn't do that in Spain? Or anywhere else? Why couldn't he work and play for Barcelona B? Surely his knowledge is more important there

[SirBalon]

Just now, Spike said:

He couldn't do that in Spain? Or anywhere else? Why couldn't he work and play for Barcelona B? Surely his knowledge is more important there

No serious football club would allow you that much freedom mate.  The MSL may seem amateur here in Europe but I'm sure you well know that they take it seriously there and no Spanish club would ever contemplate paying him a salary (especially the one he receives there which is perverted) while spending 50% of the time getting himself ready to coach Barça.  He doesn't practically train with the club he plays for and does private gym training to get ready for games while spending most of the time with the youth setups.

[Spike]

Just now, SirBalon said:

No serious football club would allow you that much freedom mate.  The MSL may seem amateur here in Europe but I'm sure you well know that they take it seriously there and no Spanish club would ever contemplate paying him a salary (especially the one he receives there which is perverted) while spending 50% of the time getting himself ready to coach Barça.  He doesn't practically train with the club he plays for and does private gym training to get ready for games while spending most of the time with the youth setups.

That is stupid. Why does he even play? Why couldn't he do it the way everyone else does? Why can't he work his way up as an assistant coach? He has his cake and eats it to. 

It is things like this that make me hate all professional footballers. Arrogant creatures full of avarice.

[Asura]

20 minutes ago, SirBalon said:

Yeah, but one league title in almost a decade is almost at a level of Valencia. 

or leicester... (sorry leicester fans for that)

[Stan]

8 minutes ago, Asura said:

or leicester... (sorry leicester fans for that)

no need to be sorry. we'd be the most dominant club in Spain if we were there.