Tag Archives: #Messi; #FCBarcelona

Messi Money

Posted on August 11, 2021 in the Blog, Football Writing category

  The Tokyo Olympics and the move by Messi from FC Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain provide examples to be followed and cautionary tales, writes Jimmy Burns.   Even for those of who have managed only a cursory armchair TV look-in during the Tokyo Olympics between navigating our August break through competing and disruptive terrain of Test cricket, the Lions tour of South Africa , and Covid protocols, the event has served as a reminder of the sheer joy of sport played in its essence along with much else. Mostly very …

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Cristiano takes the lead, for now

Posted on June 20, 2018 in the Uncategorized category

One thing I’ve learnt after tracking Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi’s extraordinary sporting record, is never to write off one or the other, because each has a proven capacity to get back up with  another surprise demonstration of their genius. It’s been the case for the last ten years during which they have developed into an unprecedented rivalry , together busting every major record in the game. The World Cup in Russia so far belongs to Cristiano, who , at the age of 33, today broke further goal scoring records-that …

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Barca’s Sad Night

Posted on April 20, 2017 in the Blog, Football category

Compared to the heroism of the ‘Remontada’ against PSG,last night’s defeat at the hands of Juventus was sadly a much more mundane affair. It was huge of Barca fans in the Nou Camp to wave their flags and chant for the team as the final seconds ticked away, but the occasion did not really warrant it. Barca was crushed i their own stadium.You don’t expect that in the Nou Camp, let alone in the Champion’s League. Last night’s match showed Juventus magnificently resilient in defence and Barca less that heroic …

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Cristiano vs Messi: An imagined rivalry?

Posted on December 19, 2016 in the Blog, Misc category

Cristiano vs Messi: An imagined rivalry? When it comes to sport, there is nothing like an iconic rivalry to fuel  the global popularity of football. This past weekend, Cristiano  Ronaldo and Lionel Messi fought their latest battle to  be considered the world’s best player  in war of attrition that has lasted more than a decade. But this was no gladiatorial duel  consciously played out in a  frenzied colosseum,  but  a commercial construct which had the two star players separated  over   a distance of thousands of miles and playing in  different …

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The Beauty of Messi

Posted on March 19, 2015 in the Football category

The Beautyof Messi It was my wife, not a football fan, with me on the night, who summed it all up. “Messi is beautiful.” Now,  that the player is not exactly adonis, still less a narcissist, we all know. He is short and scraggly, long-nosed, walks with a stoop, and has a tendency to clear his throat by spitting, or on a bad day, seemingly throwing up. Nor does he set you on fire when he speaks, with his squeeky Rosario accent, far less musical and evocative than that of …

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