La Liga Discussion Thread 2014/15 Season.

miralize

Stolen from /r/Barca

A small timeline of what has happened based on different articles.

Friday
Messi Neymar and Alves return to training 2 days after the rest of the squad

Sunday
Messi Neymar and Alves Benched.
Messi confronts Lucho, they argue, tensions rise.
Argument continues after match, with both Lucho and Barcas Psychiatrist
Zubizarreta takes jabs against Bartomeu during post match interview

Monday
Open training, everyone but Rafinha and Messi attends, claimed he had “gastric problems”
Lucho is not happy, contemplates taking disciplinary action against Messi, Team Captains advise him to reconsider.
Zubizarreta is let go by the club.
Puyol announces he’s resigning shortly after.
Several sources report that Lucho lost the dressing room and threatened to choose between him or Messi.
Messi starts following Chelsea, Filipe Luis and Curtois on instagram, putting pressure on the board.
Board gives Luis Enrique and ultimatum, to improve situation in dressing room, and win next 2 matches.
Reports of an anonymous player in the squad mentioning that Lucho is the worst coach he has had.

Tuesday
Messi trains at the Ciutat Esportiva for 90 minutes alone.
Cryuff arrives at Barcelona (the timing is impeccable)
Reports that Lucho was hired even thought Zubizarreta was against it.
Cope reporting that the board have reached out to Messi telling him to relax, Lucho only got few hours left.
Ter-Stegen showing support to Messi on instagram.
Olympiakos coach Míchel was fired (probably unrelated but, again timing is too perfect)
Upcoming days
Wednesday
Captains set to meet with Messi and Lucho to talks things through.
Luis Enrique pre-Elche game press conference
Bartomeu press conference, topics: Sports Director, possible elections (rumored).

Turtwig

I think it's undisputed that Ronaldo is by far the superior athlete to Messi and possibly many other a footballer. He's inspirational in that sense.

Andersonisgod

Here we go! A wizard is never late nor is he early, he arrives precisely on time and here on cue is the grand master of Barcelona, Johan Cruyff. Let's not forget it is Cruyff's legacy that brought us to greatness and it is the abandonment of his philosophy that has led to this destruction.

Enrique nears the end of a tumultuous reign as Barcelona coach, a reign during which he has managed to infuriate a squad of champions and has somehow provoked the mild-mannered Messi to open warfare. How he's managed to do all this in a relatively short space of time is astounding.

The walls now close in around the board. The unelected president has had his show trial, he has tried to save himself by sacrificing Zubizarreta, it is not nearly enough. Now his coach is about to be removed, still it is not enough. Revolution brews in the Camp Nou, the atmosphere Thursday night will be very interesting. Leading this revolution is Lionel Messi. Who could have thought that the shy, unassuming boy who came from Rosario to Barcelona, who cried when childhood Pique played a prank on him hid all of his belongings, who was desperately homesick for a long time and looked far too small to be a professional player, who then would have believed that now it is this boy who has come to the rescue of his adopted home. This generation of players were the greatest the club has ever had on the pitch, off the pitch they have proven worthy of the same tag. Enough is enough, Messi has had enough. For too long they have made a mockery of a great club, they've destroyed traditions, they've acted in the kind of underhanded manner unbecoming of Barcelona. Messi has brought things to a head, they are on the edge. Elections in 2015 must now be inevitable, it's time for Barca to go back to being Barca and we as fans should rise as one to applaud Messi. The boy has exceeded all expectations on the pitch and off it.

Andersonisgod

speedboatchase wrote: »

What about the arrogance of not showing up for training because you weren't in the starting XI?

If you truly think that's the sole reason then you are woefully ill-informed.

Slicemeister

Is this Aesops Fables I'm reading?

Turtwig

Graham Hunter wrote:

recent years have seen Barcelona divorce themselves from their spiritual leader, Cruyff; cause Pep Guardiola to feel alienated then leave his post as manager; lose their elected president Rosell over the way Neymar was recruited to the club; misjudge the consecutive coaching appointments of Gerardo Martino and Luis Enrique; disgracefully mishandle Eric Abidal's contractual situation; sack Antoni Rossich, their director general; receive from FIFA a ban from the transfer market and lose at the Court for Arbitration for Sport a hopeless appeal, which was formulated simply to suspend the ban so that the club could restock the squad last summer; haemorrhage football credibility and competitiveness; alienate their best ever goalkeeper; sack their director of football and, finally, mishandle Messi so comprehensively that there is a real danger he opts to leave.

It is a heinous list and one which is condensed; not even the full roll of dishonour.

That's quite the summation.

Andersonisgod

Turtwig wrote: »

That's quite the summation.

It is and, as I said, Hunter couldn't be more correct nor more better informed of matters from within Barcelona.

It is a summarization too. You could write a lot more about each of those actions.

Ulysses Gaze

Olympiakos coach Míchel was fired (probably unrelated but, again timing is too perfect)

I really can't see Barca hiring a Real Madrid legend as their coach!

Talib Fiasco

If Messi is confined to the sh*tter then what business does he have being at training...charity event or not, the player's health comes first.

miralize

Talib Fiasco wrote: »

If Messi is confined to the sh*tter then what business does he have being at training...charity event or not, the player's health comes first.

Graham Hunter says its the go to excuse for wanting to get out of training. Messi is not innocent in this but neither is Enrique. He should have told Messi that by taking extended holidays, it would mean missing the game versus Sociedad. Apparently he didn't until Messi came back..

HalloweenJack

If you don't speak Spanish, the phrase above Zubi is "I'm stupid". It's actually part of the slogan for the Spanish version of PowerCity which is "I'm not stupid".

Turtwig

Love the cigarette in Mathieu's mouth. Barca joined some EU smoke free initiative, didn't they? He's been defending his right to smoke since he joined the club. Another PR mess.

Blatter

Mathieu, Hummels, Mangala, Kompany, Subotic, Sakho, Bonera (?), Mexes, Demichelis.

Can anybody else name the others in that pic above?

Headshot

Rami

Andersonisgod

Celebrate! Celebrate one and all for today is the day the establishment fell. Like rats they boarded our proud vessel, they gnawed away at the very heart of the ship until finally holes emerged and we became submerged in mediocrity, they ate their piece of the pie with no regard for history or honor, they would have seen us sink to the bottom of the ocean. Only then, in our darkest hour, an unlikely hero arrived, his name is Lionel Messi. How many times has Messi been the conquering hero on the pitch? Today may be his greatest ever victory, more than winning a football match, more than guiding Barcelona to cup glory, today Lionel Messi has saved an entire club. At Barcelona, Lionel Messi is everything, the club and the cules around the world owe him a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid, today Messi has proven that beyond doubt or question he is Barcelona to his very core. Messi No Es Toca!

Lets dust off Joan Laporta, now could be his moment. The talk of Oscar Garcia too is so encouraging, he is a proper Cruyffista, potentially the right man to lead us back to the promise land.

Enrique is now a lame duck manager, his comments typically contrived, he is no true Barcelona manager, his time will come just as Bartomeu has given us an end date for his presidency. Elections 2015, the club is saved, the club will rise again because this is more than just a club.

gimmick

What happened to encourage such a verbose rambling?

SlickRic

um, nothing happened.

we got a 'Messi is happy' statement, which we were always going to get, and an election, which we knew was being called, being called.

are you taking the "Messi is happy" statement as proof that:

1. everything is hunky-dory; and
2. Luis Enrique is leaving?

also, we got given the "Enrique is working on a project" line, so he could well be staying.

the conference was as vague and by-the-book PR as humanly possible.

Donnielighto

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Just imagine how bad Enrique must be if he has driven Messi to open warfare. Enrique can't go on, he must go.

Imagine how bad messi is if he's actually acting the bollix like this.

Andersonisgod

SlickRic wrote: »

um, nothing happened.

we got a 'Messi is happy' statement, which we were always going to get, and an election, which we knew was being called, being called.

are you taking the "Messi is happy" statement as proof that:

1. everything is hunky-dory; and
2. Luis Enrique is leaving?

also, we got given the "Enrique is working on a project" line, so he could well be staying.

the conference was as vague and by-the-book PR as humanly possible.

Incorrect. The chance of an election being called seemed slim, indeed it was only moments before the conference (which was delayed) that it leaked that this would be the day an election was called.

Far from run of the mill, this is the day many of us have waited for since 2010, today is the day we see a future beyond Rosell and his disciples. In the space of a few days Zubizarreta is gone, the board have bowed to incredible fan pressure, Enrique may see out the season but that's the absolute maximum amount of time he will have as Barcelona manager. An election isn't as flashy in some football cultures as sacking the manager but this is far bigger, it's a monumental moment for the club and it's fans who have endured a cocktail of disgrace and mediocrity for far too long. Today the fans won, the cules won and Messi their great champion.

SlickRic

Messi wasn't their champion in the way you're describing.

he just doesn't like Enrique and his methods, because they aren't winning games. just like he didn't like Martino because they weren't winning games.

Messi is used to winning and being the best, and by the looks of it, when that doesn't happen, he simply gets píssed off.

to make it any more than that is silly in the extreme.

if Alex Ferguson were managing them, and all was going swimmingly, Messi would be just fine. it's nothing to do with him being a "Cruyffista" or whatever.

he likes winning. end of.

Donnielighto

Barcelona:

Més Que Uno Player?

miralize

If Johan Cruyff can come back (in any capacity), I think we should be title winning by 2016/17. I would love to see him in a DoF or President role

Turtwig

SlickRic wrote: »

just like he didn't like Martino because they weren't winning games.

Except they were. Real Madrid lost twice to them. Atletico Madrid were they only team they consistently couldn't beat/stalemated and the same could said for every club about that team. Real Madrid squeaked into extra time in the UCL by a whisker. In the first half of the season under Tata they went 20 games+ unbeaten. They also looked solid and coherent. The problem for Tata was they were conceding possession, Messi was playing on the wing and far less influential than before. Barca, were all the better because of it. When they reverted to type Messi and the Catalan press were happier but the team suffered in the long run because of it.

In essence, Tata wasn't liked because of his pragmatism. It's not clear how much distaste or love Messi had for him. As a lot of the Catalan press were using him as a scapegoat.

Ulysses Gaze

SlickRic wrote: »

Messi wasn't their champion in the way you're describing.

he just doesn't like Enrique and his methods, because they aren't winning games. just like he didn't like Martino because they weren't winning games.

Messi is used to winning and being the best, and by the looks of it, when that doesn't happen, he simply gets píssed off.

to make it any more than that is silly in the extreme.

if Alex Ferguson were managing them, and all was going swimmingly, Messi would be just fine. it's nothing to do with him being a "Cruyffista" or whatever.

he likes winning. end of.

Was Martino not hired at Messi's behest?

Edit - Article here - Not definitive proof

http://http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2374942/Barcelona-confirm-Gerardo-Martino-manager.html

Turtwig

Anyone using Sky Go or equiv having problems streaming the Atleti Real game?

Mushy

Turtwig wrote: »

Anyone using Sky Go or equiv having problems streaming the Atleti Real game?

Possibly late, but I always restart the modem before using sky go. Have never had matches buffer since doing that, and always top quality.

klose

Would have atleti as favourites on Sunday for the barca tie, real had ludicrous amounts of possession and rarely threatened, very solid performance from simeones men. With what's going on at barca couple with that I think barca could well lose again.

Ulysses Gaze

So Messi starts. Will be interesting to see what happens tonight.

Turtwig

He scores and proceeds to hug Luis Enrique. :pac:

Andersonisgod

Sergi Roberto? Messi on the right?

Headshot

I have big doubts that Suarez will be big player for Barca for years to come. I dont think its suits him at Barca tbh

Ulysses Gaze

Headshot wrote: »

I have big doubts that Suarez will be big player for Barca for years to come. I dont think its suits him at Barca tbh

Probably has a lot to do with Lyis Enrique and how he sets the team up to play.

Mars Bar

Some goal

dfx-

Headshot wrote: »

I have big doubts that Suarez will be big player for Barca for years to come. I dont think its suits him at Barca tbh

Barca's play may not suit him, but that's exactly why he might be of use. Something different. Two very similar goals now against Apoel and Elche

Ulysses Gaze

Some pass by Messi for Alba there.

ebbsy

dfx- wrote: »

Barca's play may not suit him, but that's exactly why he might be of use. Something different. Two very similar goals now against Apoel and Elche

And a lot of assists as well remember.

This game is as one sided as I have seen in a long time. A real mullering.

Andersonisgod

The Camp Nou rises as one to applaud the all time La Liga goalscorer, Lionel Messi, receiving his award.

kfallon

Andersonisgod wrote: »

The Camp Nou rises as one to applaud the all time La Liga goalscorer, Lionel Messi, receiving his award.

His own fans stand up to applaud their favourite player....amazing!!!

klose

Barca 1 up through neymar.

Strange seeing messi being shunted right to accomadate suarez through the middle.

Andersonisgod

Yes! Massive goal! Messi beats Godin, his cross eventually finds Neymar and he makes no mistake. It's a fantastic start for the blaugrana, Messi looks especially dangerous.

Andersonisgod

Clearly they plan to try to kick Messi out of the game, it'll need to be quite a punt, these first 20 minutes have been his.

Gonzovision

Definite handball....

klose

Blatent hand ball but 2-0 to barca, they're exploiting an out of position jesus gamez.

Fudge You

Busquets does himself no favours. Why does he act like that constantly

Andersonisgod

Goal! 2-0! Suarez! 90,00+ Catalans, his teammates and coaches all bow to Lionel Messi, it's a masterclass from the master.

Mushy

Yeah would say handball alright but definitely hard for the ref to see it at speed. The pass to Suarez was sweet!

TheCitizen

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Goal! 2-0! Suarez! 90,00+ Catalans, his teammates and coaches all bow to Lionel Messi, it's a masterclass from the master.

Bedwetter. Weren't you calling for Enrique to be sacked the last day Barca were playing, last day they were beaten, by Real Sociedad I meant

klose

A cheat! A cheat! A blatent handball and now an elbow to the back of gamez head?

CSF

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Goal! 2-0! Suarez! 90,00+ Catalans, his teammates and coaches all bow to Lionel Messi, it's a masterclass from the master.

Well nobody can say he isn't the true heir to Maradona now.

CSF

Just seen the elbow, Messi has turned into a right nasty little character.