Visca Barca Campeon
No amount of Cava ejaculating across the Camp Nou last night could hide the fact that after the nail-biting scramble with Sevilla last week, Barca’s encounter with relegation-bound Valladolid was somewhat of an anti-climax.
And yet there were touches of brilliance and wonderful goals to remind one of why Barca is the best football team in the world and deserving of the Spanish championship. Messi and Bojan combined beautifully. Toure was a tower of strength, behind and in-front. And Pedro confirmed himself as one of the great revelations of the season, potentially one of the best Spanish wingers since Gento. In the few last minutes he was allowed to play, Iniesta showed his genius mastery of the ball, and why he will be so important to the Spanish side in South Africa. Finally, Victor Valdes pulled off an amazing save, throwing himself the full length of the goal, making up for early nerves, and justifying his place in the Spanish selection.
Elsewhere, Henry’s perfectly calculated cross, and Ibrahimovic’s inability to capitalise on it, summarised the sad and the ugly of the season. The sadness in knowing that Henry, who in his prime at Arsenal played some of the best football we could ever hope to see in the Premier League, has reached the end of the road at Barcelona. The ugliness of Ibrahimovic’s stumbling play, so out of step and spirit with the rest of the team- a terrible waste of money. Bring on Villa, and Cesc, if possible.
Other enduring images of last night?
Laporta glowing like a Cheshire cat, the look of a man who can claim responsibility, along with Pepe Guardiola, for a job well done and who retains high hopes politically.
Clemente in the dug-out, reduced to impotence. How far away must have seemed those glory days of the early 1980’s.
Messi, shaking the Cava from his hair and showing a a touch of annoyance at feeling its sting in his eyes. A player already thinking of being fit and ready for the next, biggest challenge of his life: playing with Maradona’s Argentina in the World Cup. Much will rest on Messi’s shoulders, just as it did at Barca for most of the season.
From the end of a spectacular last season, many cules expected Barca to repeat their performance again this season. But I had two reasons why we were going to struggle. One the sale of eto’o for Ibrahimovic and two because every other manager would have sleepless nights,record every game barca plays and skip sunday lunches just so that their team could compete against Barca and to be compared to the team that won 6 titles in a single season.
But being a person that does not loose faith in people and organisations (apart from politics)I remained faithfull.
As for reason one, most Barca fans loved Eto’o but he wanted to be bigger than the club although he had passion to win. To sell him to inter in exchange for Ibra plus a huge amont of money is the type of business deal most would call of as risky. Sure Ibra was great in the first few games but soon he looked like a different person on the pitch. Lack of concentration and wasted chances soon made him the scapegoat for many a matches. But still faith is something WE need to have. I’m happy we didnt go down the same route as Real in buying some of the more talented footballers in a spending spree just to loose the La Liga title to Barca, get chucked out by a third division team in the Copa del Reya and bow down to Lyon in the Champions League (a final that should be a reminder that is being played on their home ground).
Reason Two is mainly aimed at one manager and that is Mourinho. for a manager of his stature to say and I quote “A dream is more pure than an obsession, an obsession is more about pride. Barça achieved a dream winning the Champions League in Paris and Rome last year but this time it is more about Madrid and playing at the Santiago Bernabeu, this is an obsession,”
Well Mr.Mourinho aka self-proclaimed “special one” I beleive You have a bigger obsession than us. He lives off his self-obsession and would die to beat Barca. He really didn’t care about getting to Champions league final more than beating Barca. To anger the Barca faithfull and to re-ignite the rivalry between him and the club is in a way his own obsession.
I say let him take the Madrid job, let him torment us and let him talk utter nonsense in pre-match conferences. Real have more pride in their status and they won’t tolerate the arrogance that oozes out of Mourinho.
With the signing of Villa from Valencia and the possible return of Cesc Fabrigas, the La Liga is tipped to be an even more exciting League to watch next season.
Once a Cule always a Cule
Visca
For decades, since the sixties, they have been plundering all the other clubs securing the “best” players, in a viscious campaign to become the best football club. Who do they think they are? Vila, Cesc (whats going to happen to the swede who only cost 80 million euros). After all the President and his junta are only a bunch of arrogant Catalans who think they are the best in the world, when in fact they are just some provincial “chip-on-the-shoulders” small time businessmen.
Great blog with an even better title: “Why are Barcelona so annoying?” Read it and you can understand why this arrogant club is so boring, arrogant and annoying!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/may/22/barcelona-cesc-fabregas-barney-ronay