For a club that has been a complete and utter shitshow for too long, there was no other way for its greatest player to leave — reluctantly at a teary solo presser. For a club that has been a complete and utter shitshow for too long, that it loses its greatest player to its bitterest… Continue reading It’s official. Messi is gone. Now is our chance to be like Messi and move on.
Category: Messi
And just like that, a legend is gone, aka “Money changes everything”
Money. Everything in football now is about money. It’s also about greed, and ugliness and animus but mostly it’s about money. Lionel Messi is moving to Paris St. Germain. Whether he had to is ultimately for people with vastly more knowledge to sort. What we know is that he is going to the only club… Continue reading And just like that, a legend is gone, aka “Money changes everything”
Barça wasn’t good enough this season, and it never was
Now, at the tail end of the season, with a team and parts of a fanbase hanging on to hope like FC Barcelona is hanging on to that Super League charter, reality beckons. Barça exceeded expectations. If someone had looked at the morass that Ronald Koeman inherited and told me they would have won a… Continue reading Barça wasn’t good enough this season, and it never was
Copa del Rey final, an unlikely event for an unlikely team
Take a moment to appreciate what your team has done. Take a moment to appreciate how far it has come. Today, Barça faces off against Athletic Club in the Copa del Rey final for what is in all probability the only shot at silver it will have this season, and it’s worth reflecting on how… Continue reading Copa del Rey final, an unlikely event for an unlikely team
Real Madrid 2, Barça 1, aka “Has anyone seen that gift horse?”
This match sucked. I know that neutrals enjoyed it, and it was certainly an enthralling contest at times. But for me, the rage at seeing my team get punked and as usual, show up late (but too late this time) killed any enjoyment for me. The first half was a masterclass by Real Madrid of… Continue reading Real Madrid 2, Barça 1, aka “Has anyone seen that gift horse?”
Barça 4, Huesca 1, aka “To hell with football”
Just hit it. When you think of things that people have thought to themselves, have said after great goals, it’s usually something along the lines of, “I just hit it.” We can talk all we want about statistics, and stuff like xG (expected goals, and Huesca had a higher number). But sometimes, football is about… Continue reading Barça 4, Huesca 1, aka “To hell with football”
PSG 1, Barça 1, aka “It’s true, it’s true!”
For years, culers have said that they wouldn’t mind if the team lost, as long as it played the right way. For years, many, including me, questioned the firmness of that resolve, that it would be tested when the team did that and lost. Many, including me, were wrong. Barça was eliminated by Paris St.… Continue reading PSG 1, Barça 1, aka “It’s true, it’s true!”
Cometh the moment, cometh the team? Dunno.
Dunno. That is the easiest way to answer anyone who might ask about tomorrow’s return leg against Paris St.-Germain. Dunno. Logically, given what happened in the first leg and the seeming disparity between the two sides, another remuntada would appear to be out of the question, but again … Dunno. As a sporting and political… Continue reading Cometh the moment, cometh the team? Dunno.
Osasuna 0, Barça 2, aka “Joy”
As a concept, how do you explain joy? It’s different from happiness, though both are something that everyone seeks. And even if you can’t explain it, you know it when you feel it. You just start smiling, and this weird glow suffuses your entire being. Like happiness, joy is shared, but feels more selfless than… Continue reading Osasuna 0, Barça 2, aka “Joy”
Sevilla 0, Barça 2, aka “A day of firsts”
Mothers are amazing for a number of reasons, not least of which are all the sayings they equip you with as you grow in their care. “Expect the worst and you’ll never be disappointed,” is one that came to mind as we looked at the lineup for a crucial away match against Sevilla. Ter Stegen,… Continue reading Sevilla 0, Barça 2, aka “A day of firsts”
Okay, Barça is broken. So what next?
Yesterday, we looked at how things got so messy. The next question is what to do about it? Next year at training camp, certain FC Barcelona players enter the locker room, and this happens: Eerie music, flies buzz around the room, and out comes the demonic voice. “Get. Out. … Get. Out! GET OUT!” Everybody… Continue reading Okay, Barça is broken. So what next?
FC Relic, aka “How Barça got like this”
As lots of people ask “What happened” at Barça, the answer is so obvious: fear. We can point fingers at poor decisions, institutional rot and all that stuff, but everything comes back to fear — of change, of damaging a project, of killing the golden goose. It’s the same kind of fear that has turned… Continue reading FC Relic, aka “How Barça got like this”