Topic: FC Barcelona

[Red Beret]

The rot was there for a long time. They had no business being 3-0 up v us

But I know they’d have gone on to thrash spurs in the final so we defo cost them another big ears

Imagine mouth breather up against Messi.

[CalgarianRed]

For what reason ? Probably 200 insults to come their way, but they are a ok club playing donkey football and no-one likes them outside burnley; but they do their best . I am not sure if they keep their people happy - and if there is anything to sing about, but give me burnley to man city any day

I watch football to get entertained, so ofcourse would prefer watching Barca-Liverpool or PSG-Liverpool than watching shit sides like West Brom/Burnley kick our players. I have nothing against these small sides either, but I was responding to a comment which said Barca can get wiped out from the face of the earth.

The best times I have experienced as a LFC fan in the last 15 years of supporting have come in the latter stages of CL. So I am open to the idea of a NFL style Super League where we get to play the top clubs regularly. Its bound to happen and change is always good for football. Infact our own club is pushing for it.

[Indomitable_Carp]

I watch football to get entertained, so ofcourse would prefer watching Barca-Liverpool or PSG-Liverpool than watching shit sides like West Brom/Burnley kick our players. I have nothing against these small sides either, but I was responding to a comment which said Barca can get wiped out from the face of the earth.

The best times I have experienced as a LFC fan in the last 15 years of supporting have come in the latter stages of CL. So I am open to the idea of a NFL style Super League where we get to play the top clubs regularly. Its bound to happen and change is always good for football. Infact our own club is pushing for it.

Christ on a bike!! It looks like satire but I know it's not 

[WhereAngelsPlay]

I watch football to get entertained, so ofcourse would prefer watching Barca-Liverpool or PSG-Liverpool than watching shit sides like West Brom/Burnley kick our players. I have nothing against these small sides either, but I was responding to a comment which said Barca can get wiped out from the face of the earth.

The best times I have experienced as a LFC fan in the last 15 years of supporting have come in the latter stages of CL. So I am open to the idea of a NFL style Super League where we get to play the top clubs regularly. Its bound to happen and change is always good for football. Infact our own club is pushing for it.

That's because you guys on the other side of the pond are happy with boring as fuck league systems that don't punish the losers.

The fact that our American owners are pushing for it means nothing because surprise,surprise,they're not the Club.

[PeterTheRed ...]

The profligate and irresponsible way that they and Real have acted over the years are part of why they are desperate to ruin football as we know it in terms of a €uropean $uper League.

I'm not sure it will happen but having fucked the rest of the Spanish league over in terms of TV deals by exploiting their position as 2 of the biggest clubs in the world, they want to also fuck over the rest of the game... Fuck anyone that is a part of that (us included)

The €uropean $uper £eague will happen, not because Real Madrid and Barcelona want it, but because ALL the big European clubs (LFC included) want it. It is the next logical step, just as the Premier League was the next logical step back in 1992 ...

[afc tukrish]

That's because you guys on the other side of the pond are happy with boring as fuck league systems that don't punish the losers.

The fact that our American owners are pushing for it means nothing because surprise,surprise,they're not the Club.

It's entirely possible to be from this side the pond and think that CalgarianRed is wrong, that the very rarity of the CL epics is what makes them special, that a super league is not bound to happen and that change is always good for football- witness the VAR fiasco(s) for a start...

[WhereAngelsPlay]

It's entirely possible to be from this side the pond and think that CalgarianRed is wrong, that the very rarity of the CL epics is what makes them special, that a super league is not bound to happen and that change is always good for football- witness the VAR fiasco(s) for a start...

Yes it is,entirely possible but he had specifically named the NFL set up.

[Red Beret]

The thing that repulses me about Barca and Real Madrid is the arrogance brought about by self entitlement.  You can argue that they have the right and the silverware to warrant such arrogance, but it breeds absolute contempt and lack of success towards other clubs - especially when it comes to nabbing their players.

So no, I wouldn't shed a tear if Barca got swallowed up by a hole in the ground.  They've brought this on themselves through their own hubris, and I'm enjoying every second.

[afc tukrish]

Yes it is,entirely possible but he had specifically named the NFL set up.

NFL is shit, haven't watched a game in years, and the set up breeding mediocrity isn't exactly the best model to follow...

[PeterTheRed ...]

NFL is shit, haven't watched a game in years, and the set up breeding mediocrity isn't exactly the best model to follow...

NFL is a huge financial success. That is what the club owners are interested in. Not to mention that the ESL will be bigger in financial terms than the NFL ...

[Indomitable_Carp]

NFL is a huge financial success. That is what the club owners are interested in. Not to mention that the ESL will be bigger in financial terms than the NFL ...

There's a whole thread dedicated to this shit. At least one thread...

[CalgarianRed]

That's because you guys on the other side of the pond are happy with boring as fuck league systems that don't punish the losers.

The fact that our American owners are pushing for it means nothing because surprise,surprise,they're not the Club.

Well there are both sides to it, a closed league with a spending cap keeps all teams competitive and every team has a pathway to success as long as they get the team building right. Only 2-3 clubs have the chance to win the PL (and even then its mostly City coz they outspend everyone), in other leagues across Europe its even worse. Isn't that boring? What about fans of smaller teams who have no chance to win major silverware.

Also for clubs like Barcelona, Real, Bayern, Juve; the only way they compete with PL in the long term is if they can get the Super League. Or else they are getting left behind. Real/Barca just can't go outspend City or even United/Chelsea etc.

Anyways not going to derail this thread further, but a good article by Sid Lowe about the struggles of La Liga and why they are pushing for Super League https://www.espn.com/soccer/barcelona/story/4319016/are-barcelonasevillareal-sociedad-defeats-in-europe-a-sign-of-la-liga-decline

[Dave McCoy]

This is the Barcelona thread and not the Super League thread so as to not derail it further but something eventually has to give especially when it comes to the smaller leagues.  Was listening to the Athletic's business podcast with Mark Chapman and the ECA heads, basically every small league is fucked now based on the one team that consistently gets some type of European payment.  It doesn't even have to be CL payments as it's such a huge influx compared to their normal domestic money and it compounds on itself every year.  Any type of realignment shouldn't be looking at a closed super league but how they can best even out the curve to allow for a more competitive overall landscape.  The issue then though is that the major clubs will fight anything like that tooth and nail so not sure how it could happen.  The NFL example that Agnelli always gives is complete bullshit as the NFL is propped up by the generally labor free cost of college football.  It's also comparing the most favorite sport of the richest country in the world to something that maybe is or isn't for everybody else with varying levels of less wealth.

[PeterTheRed ...]

Well there are both sides to it, a closed league with a spending cap keeps all teams competitive and every team has a pathway to success as long as they get the team building right. Only 2-3 clubs have the chance to win the PL (and even then its mostly City coz they outspend everyone), in other leagues across Europe its even worse. Isn't that boring? What about fans of smaller teams who have no chance to win major silverware.

Also for clubs like Barcelona, Real, Bayern, Juve; the only way they compete with PL in the long term is if they can get the Super League. Or else they are getting left behind. Real/Barca just can't go outspend City or even United/Chelsea etc.

Anyways not going to derail this thread further, but a good article by Sid Lowe about the struggles of La Liga and why they are pushing for Super League https://www.espn.com/soccer/barcelona/story/4319016/are-barcelonasevillareal-sociedad-defeats-in-europe-a-sign-of-la-liga-decline

The reality is, clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich, Dortmund, Juventus, Inter, AC Milan, PSG, Lyon, Benfica, Porto, Ajax, Zenit, Celtic, Anderlecht, Galatasaray and the likes will go for the European Super League, with or without English clubs. Also, it is not a coincidence that cities like Warsaw, Budapest and Bucharest have built new modern football stadiums with over 50,000 seats in recent years. The stage is being prepared for the inevitable European Super League ...

[Drinks Sangria]

I promise you - a European Super League with a guaranteed cadre of elite clubs - will be a disaster with 20 dead rubber matches between disinterested teams and the same 4 or 5 winning it each year. It will be horrendous for domestic leagues and quality will diminish because they'll look to move towards all teams playing a guaranteed 60 - 70 total games a season.

I'm not saying it won't make money to begin with, but viewing figures will dwindle over time. What it might do domestically is get more people supporting their local club and going to lower league games.

I know for a fact I'm done with top-level football if it happens in the guise that's being talked about now. Even expanding the Champions League is also an awful idea.

Spectacle will die.

[Bergersrightwingviews]

Also for clubs like Barcelona, Real, Bayern, Juve; the only way they compete with PL in the long term is if they can get the Super League. Or else they are getting left behind. Real/Barca just can't go outspend City or even United/Chelsea etc.

They still won't be able to compete if City, United and Chelsea are in the Super League too.  It just means they will never win anything at all.

[PeterTheRed ...]

I promise you - a European Super League with a guaranteed cadre of elite clubs - will be a disaster with 20 dead rubber matches between disinterested teams and the same 4 or 5 winning it each year. It will be horrendous for domestic leagues and quality will diminish because they'll look to move towards all teams playing a guaranteed 60 - 70 total games a season.

I'm not saying it won't make money to begin with, but viewing figures will dwindle over time. What it might do domestically is get more people supporting their local club and going to lower league games.

I know for a fact I'm done with top-level football if it happens in the guise that's being talked about now. Even expanding the Champions League is also an awful idea.

Spectacle will die.

They still won't be able to compete if City, United and Chelsea are in the Super League too.  It just means they will never win anything at all.

The European Super League can only exist if there are a salary cap and a luxury tax (for the clubs above the salary cap) introduced, like in the american professional sports. They level the playing field, and allow for every club in the league to be competitive. That is why the scouting and the draft process are so important in american professional sports.

Anyway, supporting your local club is not a bad thing. College american football and college basketball are extremely popular in the USA, despite the spectacle of the NFL or the NBA ...

[palimpsest]

I see their Twitter admin decided to respond to Sevilla's meme from a few days ago. What's up with clubs and cringey social media "banter" these days?
https://twitter.com/FCBarcelona/status/1367250597305593856

[Dave McCoy]

To get back on topic I guess Laporta was in the directors box yesterday?  Pretty presumptive with the election on Sunday but him stating that Messi will for sure leave if he's not elected and Pep being supportive it seems like a forgone conclusion?  Guess we'll see.

[TepidT2O]

Messi leaving is part of their rebirth... they shouldn’t ignore it

[Dim Glas]

I watch football to get entertained, so ofcourse would prefer watching Barca-Liverpool or PSG-Liverpool than watching shit sides like West Brom/Burnley kick our players. I have nothing against these small sides either, but I was responding to a comment which said Barca can get wiped out from the face of the earth.

The best times I have experienced as a LFC fan in the last 15 years of supporting have come in the latter stages of CL. So I am open to the idea of a NFL style Super League where we get to play the top clubs regularly. Its bound to happen and change is always good for football. Infact our own club is pushing for it.

[PeterTheRed ...]

Messi leaving is part of their rebirth... they shouldn’t ignore it

I don't think that anyone at that club has the balls to think about the future without Messi. I suppose it will cost them another couple of years, before someone finally says that the Emperor is naked ...

[afc tukrish]

 

[Drinks Sangria]

The European Super League can only exist if there are a salary cap and a luxury tax (for the clubs above the salary cap) introduced, like in the american professional sports. They level the playing field, and allow for every club in the league to be competitive. That is why the scouting and the draft process are so important in american professional sports.

Anyway, supporting your local club is not a bad thing. College american football and college basketball are extremely popular in the USA, despite the spectacle of the NFL or the NBA ...

I understand what you're saying and to be honest it sounds vile. I, and many others, don't want the American system over here despite the good points of it because it just isn't football.

Until I moved a couple of years ago, and as a child, Liverpool were my local club (Tranmere are the closest league team to me now) and having them swallowed up as part of a money making exercise to play 20 dead rubber European fixtures a season isn't my idea of spectacle or football. I'll go with my family to Crewe Alex if the European Super League in the current guise is established. It sounds a bit petty and nasty guts, but I feel strongly about how awful this would be for top-level football.

[RedSince86]

Luxury cap would never work.

City and PSG would circumnavigate it by dodgy means.

[Skeeve]

That's because you guys on the other side of the pond are happy with boring as fuck league systems that don't punish the losers.

You could argue that our league system doesn't punish the losers that much, everton are still in the PL after all. 

[oojason]

'Joan Laporta is elected as Barcelona president for a second time':-

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/mar/07/joan-laporta-is-elected-as-barcelona-president-for-a-second-time

& https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/club/news/2059811/joan-laporta-president-of-fc-barcelona

[TepidT2O]

Laporta brought them to the brink of this don’t forget ...

[Fromola]

Laporta brought them to the brink of this don’t forget ...

How? He was voted out in 2010.

[Dave McCoy]

In the short term I don’t think there is much Laporta can change other than try to resign Messi just for the political points.  Long term getting their finances back in order and preparing for a post Messi world is going to be tall tasks where the odds probably aren’t great for success.

[TepidT2O]

How? He was voted out in 2010.

He brought about this climate, much of what he instigated also lead to the problems they now have..


Still, what other options did they have?   

Some bank will give them easy term soon, they need not worry, they just need not to assume they will win the league most seasons

[Fromola]

He brought about this climate, much of what he instigated also lead to the problems they now have..


Still, what other options did they have?   

Some bank will give them easy term soon, they need not worry, they just need not to assume they will win the league most seasons

I'd say that's a bit harsh. He wasn't perfect but Rosell and then Bartomeu pretty much fucked over his legacy and then ripped the club apart.

Good piece on The Athletic anyway: https://theathletic.com/2424582/2021/03/08/they-are-looking-for-a-miracle-laporta-back-at-barcelona-and-what-it-means/

[keyop]

I hate Man Utd and Everton for a different reason. I hate Barcelona and Real Madrid for the same reason I hate Man City or Chelsea. They have always bought their success ...

You can't compare Barca/Real to City/Chelsea. Two are European giants with decades of success and pedigree, and two are billionaire play things that would be nowhere without their undeserved inheritance.

Whilst Real could certainly be labelled as big spenders when buying Galacticos each year, they have the silverware to show for it - domestically, and especially in Europe. By comparison, despite spending literally billions, City and Chelsea have 1 European cup between them (or half the number Nottingham Forest have won).

In terms of Barcelona, the irony of your last sentence is that one of the most successful periods in their history (and one of the greatest teams of all time) was built almost entirely around academy graduates like Valdes, Puyol, Pique, Busquets, Pedro, Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi. Three of those players held the top 3 spots in the Ballon D'Or in a single year and cost the club nothing in transfer fees.

The last 5 years they've spent a fortune and gone downhill. How are those two contrasting scenarios evidence of 'buying success'?

[RedSince86]

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/uAJVzkhGLio" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/uAJVzkhGLio</a>

[Drinks Sangria]

The Tifo stuff is always very good, it's like the opposite of Sky Sports' style coverage.

They've recently done another Barca video about Laporta's intentions to re-establish La Masia as the heart of the club. At least he seems to have more of a grasp of Barca's history than the previous incumbent.

[Vinay]

You can't compare Barca/Real to City/Chelsea. Two are European giants with decades of success and pedigree, and two are billionaire play things that would be nowhere without their undeserved inheritance.

Whilst Real could certainly be labelled as big spenders when buying Galacticos each year, they have the silverware to show for it - domestically, and especially in Europe. By comparison, despite spending literally billions, City and Chelsea have 1 European cup between them (or half the number Nottingham Forest have won).

In terms of Barcelona, the irony of your last sentence is that one of the most successful periods in their history (and one of the greatest teams of all time) was built almost entirely around academy graduates like Valdes, Puyol, Pique, Busquets, Pedro, Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi. Three of those players held the top 3 spots in the Ballon D'Or in a single year and cost the club nothing in transfer fees.

The last 5 years they've spent a fortune and gone downhill. How are those two contrasting scenarios evidence of 'buying success'?

Even though Real M do get bailed out by their Government/Municipality....

[Suareznumber7]

Listening to the radio on the way home tonight and they said that there were rumors that Messi was signing a multi year contract with Barca that includes 2 playing years as well as 2 years with Beckham's Inter Miami where Messi will promote the Barca brand. 

[[new username under construction]]

So 10 year contract and then the next one will be them basically signing the club over to him yeah?

[mickeydocs]

Makes you appreciate the prudence shown by FSG, and yes I know I am often a critic.
Players can not be more than a club in the way Barca are Messi FC.

[Suareznumber7]

Makes you appreciate the prudence shown by FSG, and yes I know I am often a critic.
Players can not be more than a club in the way Barca are Messi FC.

I have a feeling that if we had a player who is considered the best to ever play the game and who had won 35 trophies for the club we maybe would be treating them in a similar way.