Més que un Club - F.C. Barcelona

[ChristopherWH]

After recent specualtion due to Josep Guardiola not signing a new contract, it is official that he is no longer the manager at Camp Nou. He says that his decision to step down is due to the interest in a new challenge and the fact that he believes that the Barça team can get a new injection of motivation with a new leader.

Media is already starting to speculate who will take his place, with many placing their money on Luis Enrique to return from Rome.
Others have spoken of sightings of both Romario and Luis Figo in the city during the recent days.

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President Sandro Rosell has made an official statement, outing Diego Armando Maradona as the new manager at Camp Nou, stating that a team that is by some called the best team ever, should be lead by one of the best players ever to grace the game.
A player, manager and person who understands that football is more than a game, it's an art, a lifestyle, a religion. That is how I would describe Maradona, Sandro says.


​

 

[ChristopherWH]

Barcelona Pre-Season

For the pre-season we started to play in Spain, flew to the U.S. East Coast, then over to Uzbekistan and ended up in Saudi Arabia.
Winning every game is of course a positive, especially since we were out of form at the start, and a lot of young players were getting some first team experience for the coming season. Only two goals conceded as well, in the last to games but did fairly well none the less. The highlight being a 5-0 win against New York Red Bulls.

Lionel Messi were our best player, scoring a total of four goals, closely followed by Alexis Sanchez at three, all while Abidal played very solid in the defence.

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Summer Transfer Widow

I am looking to play a lot of our own products this season and have moved Gerard Deulofeu, Rafinha, Cristian Tello, Martín Montoya, Marc Bartra, Kiko Femenia and Andreu Fontás to the first team in hopes of them getting some rotation and improve as players.

To give room for these youngsters, some more experienced players had to leave namely Maxwell, Seydou Keita and José Manuel Pinto. Also Ibrahim Afellay left on a lone.

As Pinto left, I needed another second goalkeeper, and the choice fell on Gladbach's Marc-André ter Stegen who will be in training with Valdes to learn the ropes around here, and just as Pinto, before him, I will look to play him in all the cup games.
And to cover up for the loss of Maxwell, i took in another Brazilian left defender, Gabriel Silva from Palmeiras who will learn from Abidal while rotating with him.

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A Look at the Team

The core of the team is already set since years back, we have Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta and Messi. The real core, however a player I'd like to highlight in this team is Abidal I've always liked him from seeing him before, but now that I get to work with him... He's a real warrior, never gives up and has a terrific work rate and physiqe.
If he keeps fit I am sure he will play a very important role in any success we have at the club.

With the new additions of Fábregas and Alexis Sánchez, we have even more power up front, it is a welcome addition in our battle against Real Madrid and the top teams in Europe as we have to keep in touch with them as they buy players as well. Young players are good and all, but experience can't be forced, the younglings need some older players to look up too, and hopefully we can provide that for them. I intend to have a really extensive tutoring programme going on with most of our old players having an apprentice of sorts to take care of and teach what they can.



Xavi, Lionel Messi, Andrés Iniesta - F.C. Barcelona Golden Trio​

 

[Gabriel Sutton]

Hi mate, following with interest if u want you can have a look at my story: Manchester City- world domination project cheers

 

[ChristopherWH]

Thank you, sure will do!

 

[ChristopherWH]

August

My first month of competative games here in Barcelona will be full of challenges, first off there is the double meeting with our rivals Real Madrid in the Super Cup. After that we are up against Europa League champions FC Porto from Portugal and then to finish it off we have our league premiere against Villareal. It will be a busy month full och top-class games.

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Supercopa

Leg 1
Real Madrid 1 - 1 Barcelona
Mesut Özil (2)
Andrés Iniesta (59)

Attendance: 80,357

MoM: Pepe (7.8)

- - - - - -

Leg 2
Barcelona 2 - 1 Real Madrid
Pedro (37, 103)
Fábio Coentrão

Attendance: 96,610

MoM: Pedro (9.0)

After being totally run over in the first leg, we were lucky to get a draw and our defending in that game, combined with Real Madrids inefficiency, probably won us this Supercopa. The second game were a total mirror of the first one, with us dominating but still struggling to score and it took until extra time before we were able to score the winning goal and bring home another trophy, my first as well.

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European Super Cup

FC Porto 0 - 2Barcelona
Steven Defour O.G. (35)
David Villa (90+1)

Attendance: 18,521

MoM: Gerard Piqué (8.5)

And there it is, our second trophy out of two soo far this season, although we created a fair amount of chances we didn't manage to score a goal, on our own, until Porto had a corner where their goalkeeper went forward to help try to score a goal, they failed and the ball landed on the feet of David Villa who shot from deep down in our own half and managed to hit target, a cool goal but no real positives about or game other than that we got a win and played a solid defence.


David Villa - Scored a long range effort to secure a Barcelona victory in Monaco

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La Liga

Barcelona 3 - 0 Villarreal
Xavi (10)
Mario Red Card (33)
Ángel Second Yellow Card (44)
Alexis Sánchez (55)
Cesc Fábregas (90+2)

Attendance: 90,235

MoM: Cesc Fábregas (8.3)

A total domination from our side in a game where Villarreal were barely allowed to breath between attacks, a good solid three goal win with two La Liga debutants scoring for us, Sánchez & Fábregas as well as one from our midfield director, Xavi.
The game certainly got easy for us as they got two players sent off in the first half, by playing rough that's what you have to risk.

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Summary



A good first month with no losses at all, and that's all against very tough opposition, Real Madrid, Porto and Villarreal are all top class teams who have business out in European Tournaments the coming season.

I thought I'd share with you, all the transfers that were made during this summer window, in La Liga. Well all over a worth of € 1 Million.



Most interesting signings, if you don't count the ones I made myself, is the Málaga signings of Cristian Ledesma and Douglas. Two top class signings showing signs of Málaga meaning serious business this season, with new economic muscle they might prove a solid contender. Time will tell.​

 

[The Ultime FM God]

Like the look of this story, keep it up

 

[ChristopherWH]

@The Ultime FM God Thank you, will do!

 

[ChristopherWH]

September

With the league finally underway, this month we will also play our first Champions League game.
We were seeded to group D with Romanian Otelul, Russian Zenit and Danish FC Köbenhavn.
On the paper it's a group we should win without problems, but everyone knows that it's tough to travel to eastern Europe and play as well as we do home in Spain, due to the difference in climat and ofcourse their dedicated fans cheering them on with vigour. We will do our best, and I know we are capable of winning every game we play.

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La Liga

Real Sociedad 0 - 0 Barcelona
Daníel Alves Second Yellow Card (90+4)

Attendance: 32,000

MoM: Gerard Piqué (7.3)

A close fought game where we were never really allowed to pass the ball around, a high pressuring Sociedad left us little time with the ball. This affected our attacking game and we were not capable of creating many chances. They played very well and sacrificed themselves in every duel and it gave results, in the very last minutes of the game they had a very good chance in the making but Daníel Alves took a tactical foul and got sent off, but he perhaps saved us from defeat this game.
I have to look for an alternative method of playing when we are not capable of going forward.
Good game by Sociedad.

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Ah our Champions League season is just about to begin, this is a terrific tournament with top teams from all over Europe and this time we are going to play the Romanian Champions Otelul. For this season they have lost two players without strengthening their squad with any at all. Cornel Rapa have signed for Torino and is doing a good job there so we can be thankful he's left them. Hopefully this'll leave us a little more room when attacking on our left flank.
Their best player, if you ask me, is Gabriel Paraschiv, a veteran midfielder with much experience who can play both offensive and defensive. He hates to lose and is sure to inspire his teammates with his fighting spirit.
Now let's welcome them to Camp Nou.

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Champions League

Barcelona 2 - 0 Otelul
Lionel Messi (Pen 10)
David Villa (84)

Attendance: 73,218

MoM: Javier Mascherano (8.0)

We had a very good game today and were allowed to keep the ball for the most of the time, and while we came to a lot of finishes we didn't manage to get even half of them on target. 22-0 in shot statistics and of those we managed to get 5 on target, and 2 in goal, one of which was from the penalty spot. On a penalty created by Mascherano.
While I would've liked to get some better aim on the finishin I'm glad we took three points today. I am sure they will be pumped up for revenge on The Otelul Stadium later when we visit them.

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Back to the league we are home staying home in Barcelona to greet Osasuna who comes here with two losses in the bag at the hands of Atlético Madrid and Real Sporting. Their Iranian international, Javad Nekounam will be a man we have to look out form, with a terrific work rate and stamina he's sure to be running at us all game long, never giving up. Players like that are always an inspiration and a terrific one to have in the squad.

- - - - -

La Liga

Barcelona 4 -1 Osasuna
Kike Sola (9)
Andrés Iniesta (28)
Pedro (36)
Miguel Flaño Red Card (49)
Carles Puyol Red Card (51)
Lionel Messi (57)
Gerard Piqué (75)
Marc Bertrán Second Yellow Card(77)

Attendance: 90,834

MoM: Xavi (8.9)

A clear win for us that reflected the match statistics. We had possession of the ball for most of the time and capitalized on it. But this was after the fact that Osasuna shocked us with an early goal, thankfully the fellows picked themselves up and by the time Iniesta scored, we were starting to pile on the pressure. It was a game with many cards shown, first they got Flaño sent off after an ugly tackle from behind that could've seriously injured Iniesta but he managed to get up again. Puyol got sent off two minutes later after a air duel where he let his arm fly around a bit too much, a harsh card but not necessarily wrong. Later on Bertrán got sent of after getting a second yellow card.
Glad to see Piqué score from a corner, it's positive to see that we can win some air duels as well, even though we have a very short team.


Xavi - Leads Barcelona forward with two assists

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Now we are going to Mestalla to play a game against Valencia who've played three games with two wins and a tough 0 -3 defeat against Real Sporting in their last game. These games are always a joy to watch for the neutral person, with two teams who like playing technical and offensive football.
With players like Roberto Soldado and Pablo Hernández, it's always a danger when they come forward with the ball. Another player to look out for is the Messi look-alike Pablo Piatti, with great technique and pace he's able to slip past defenders from time to time and create scaring chances for his Valencia.

La Liga

Valencia 1 - 4 Barcelona
Lionel Messi (15, Pen 32)
Gerard Piqué (37)
Pablo Hernández (47)
Sergio Busquets (69)

Attendance: 55,000

MoM: Lionel Messi (8.9)

Another win and another four goals scored, we're having a good time at the moment. Valencia decided to play an offensive football which gave us a bit too much space in their half, we capitalized on it and got an early lead with a well placed shot from Messi.
Piqué got another corner goal, after first being headed by Marc Bartra, who played instead of Puyol who was not allowed to come due to his red card, he got an easy time heading the ball into an open goal.
After that Valencia still tried to go forward and it ended up resulting in a goal by Hernández and a rekindled hope for them. The result stood until half time and after Busquets scored his first for the season in the 69th minute, the Valencia players showed signs of giving up, and we took the tempo down a bit and didn't manage to score on any of our late game chances.

A thing to note is that Valencia decided to not start with Soldado on the field, why I do not know, seems odd since he got on in the 56th minute and didn't seem to be suffering from any sort of injury or tiredness, perhaps he's out of form or something.

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Now we are going to play a home game against another of the title contendors, Atlético Madrid.
With worlds class players in the last decades, like Fernando Torres, Diego Forlan, Sergio Agüero and now Falcao, they've been trying to cement themselves in the top of La Liga with different results. While they often can play good and win against any other team in the league, they are inconsistent and can lose to anyone as well. What the reason is for this, I have no idea, perhaps they lack a real leader figure, perhaps they do not have a large enough squad, perhaps it's their tactics that are flawed.

La Liga

Barcelona 3 - 0 Atlético Madrid
Xavi (12)
Cesc Fábregas (17)
Lionel Messi (49)

Attendance: 102,080

MoM: Xavi (8.8)

A won midfield assured us that this game were never in any danger. With two of our midfielders scoring and Iniesta getting two assists while Xavi got one, it really was their day, every pass hit the target and they intercepted every try for an attack by Atlético.
It was never really a contest and they should be glad they didn't concede more, because their defending was really abysmal all game long.
This game still doesn't give us the number one spot though, as Real Madrid have gone and won all their games soo far, it's looking to be a tough fight for the spot this season, with Higuaín and Cristiano Ronaldo scoring goals like crazy. They've soo far never won with less than four goals scored and twice scored five, and six goals in their premiere against Zaragoza.

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We're going to Russia now, St. Petersburg, and the weather is supposed to be both rainy and gusty at a 11 degree celsius. It won't be pleasant and we will have to fight for a point in this game. Their Italian manager, Luciano Spaletti is a tactical mastermind and is sure to prepare his men to perfection, and with both their strikers, Kerzhakov and Bukharov (Both Alexandr) in good form, we have to be real careful not to concede any goals. They have been really inactive this season, on the transfer market, only selling one player, Danny to Manchester City for €21.5 million, and buying none.

Champions League

Zenit 1 - 2 Barcelona
Roman Shirkov (Pen 30)
Lionel Messi (32, 65)
Alexandr Anyukov Second Yellow Card (62)

Attendance: 22,025

MoM: Lionel Messi (8.8)

A really tough game as we knew beforehand. We were more on the defensive than on offence, and we were lucky as not to concede any more goals. We are also blessed with the best player in the world, Lionel Messi, who scored twice in the few chances we had, and got us the win.
To win in Russia is very difficult, and I'm very happy we are flying home with three points in the baggage.

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Summary

We are still trailing in the league, two points behind Real Madrid after our draw against Real Sociedad, and they really do not seem to be stopping any time soon. Other than them, Villarreal are showing signs of something good soo far this season, after losing to us in the premiere, they've notched up three wins and a draw as well as winning against Genk and drawing Leverkusen in their Champions League group where they also have Manchester United to beat, a tough group indeed.

On the other hand, talking about the Champions League, Real Madrig lost their first game away against Shakhtar with 0-1 after a goal by Brazilian Fernandinho but after that they went on to crush Croatian Dinamo with a convincing 3-0 win.

In Serie A, my favorite team Napoli is going strong. Winning against Roma 2-0, A.C. Milan 3-0, Juventus 2-1 and Manchester City 3-2. All in a row! Really magnificent, fantastic really. That Cavani is a real gem of a player, scoring in every different way while also fighting all over the field and helps out wherever he can, maybe he is Barcelona material in the future? We'll see.

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Thank you all for reading, and please leave a comment if you like or dislike it, constructive critique is welcome!

Diego Armando Maradona







​

 

[ChristopherWH]

I am really sorry to say that I'll already stop with this story, I am a Barcelona fan soo I thought I could enjoy it, but I figured out that when telling a story, of me winning every single game almost all the time, it's bound to get dull. I'll return with another team but as I said, sorry for the quick ending.