FC Barcelona Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread

Morf

Mgoraf wrote: »

Liverpool, Real Madrid and Valencia are all keeping tabs on Keirrison, with los Che tabling an offer in the winter market that was rejected by Traffic

http://goal.com/en/news/12/spain/2009/03/27/1177457/barcelona-reach-initial-keirrison-agreement-report

This might make the article seem a little less trustworthy.

eZe^

Nahhh ^^

Mgoraf wrote: »

goal.com/en/news/12/spain/2009/03/27/1177457/barcelona-reach-initial-keirrison-agreement-report

That's what makes it untrustworthy. :pac::pac:

redout

Does this make it any more acceptable ? I couldnt give a toss who reports it. BBC and Sky are full with enough rubbish and speculation themselves.

Barca near Keirrison deal

Barcelona have reached an initial agreement with Palmeiras for striker Keirrison.

The Spanish giants are set to make a concrete bid for the 20-year-old Brazilian in the coming weeks after agreeing initial terms.

Barcelona director of football Txiki Begiristain met with the player's agency Traffic Sports in South America to discuss clauses and conditions related to the highly-rated striker's progress.

Keirrison, who has enjoyed a successful season with the Brazilian side, looks set for a summer move to Camp Nou with contract talks nearing a conclusion.

Dream
Delighted with the prospect of a move to La Liga, the young striker revealed his childhood dream of playing for Barcelona.

"I would really like to play alongside Lionel Messi," Keirrison told Sport. "He is the best player in the world.

"Since I was very young I have wanted to play in a country and with a great club and, while I have nothing against any others, I have always identified with Barcelona.

"I have seen a lot of games when Romario and Ronaldo were there and that made me dream that one day I would play in a great club like Barcelona."

Liverpool, Real Madrid and Valencia have been keeping tabs on the youngster's progress, with Los Che having an earlier bid rejected.

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11827_5106974,00.html

Kerrison will look good on the bench next season so! :pac: Given the current form of everyone at the club I can't see Pep dropping anyone.

Mgoraf

Victor Valdes' agent has told Barcelona that unless talks begin over a new contract, then the club could risk seeing him join one of a number of teams that are interested in his services.

The Catalan goalkeeper's contract expires in 2010 and the Blaugrana are believed to be keen to start negotiations over an extension this summer, but his representative, Gines Carvajal, is not convinced.

After several months without any word, Valdes' agent has spoken out in what has to be seen as a bid to push the club into action.

"For eight months, nothing has been said about the renewal," Carvajal told RAC 1.

"Victor and I are only thinking about Barça.

"But he is an extraordinary goalkeeper that is good enough to play for Barcelona and I know that there are four or five clubs looking for keepers."

One club that has been mentioned is Manchester United, as they may consider looking for an experienced replacement for Edwin van der Sar while promoting Ben Foster at the same time.

Also reported to be watching the situation are Manchester City, while AC Milan and Chelsea could also consider making a summer enquiry for the Barça custodian

JPA

Valdes is decent but I always think Barca could do better.
I'm not sure what the opinion of him is in Spain.
It's hard to improve the rest of the team but Keeper they definitely could.
They were linked with Cech a month ago but that was just speculation.

An Citeog

JPA wrote: »

Valdes is decent but I always think Barca could do better.
I'm not sure what the opinion of him is in Spain.
It's hard to improve the rest of the team but Keeper they definitely could.
They were linked with Cech a month ago but that was just speculation.

Valdes being Catalan means that unless someone a lot better than him becomes available, he wont be replaced. He's a very good shot stopper but unfortunately, he's also prone to some costly errors in big games.

redout

Jesus the thought of him been linked with United sends shivers down my spine. In Spain he is quite low down the list and doesnt make the Spanish squad. The top three in order are Casillas, Reina then Palop at Sevilla. I think he is a good keeper but makes more than his share of mistakes and shows bad judgement at times. This season he has done quite well. The Juninho free-kick was blown out of proportion (still think it was unintentional) and then the following game he did actually make a mistake and the press jumped on that to and made it bigger than it really was. I actually think this has been his most consistant season.

EDIT: If Barca are looking for a keeper then I would go with Renan at Valencia. He looks promising and is young.

Mgoraf

Diego Lopez is ahead of Palop aint he Redout?

I'd have him as well ahead of Renan too. Maybe not as he's ex-Real though

redout

Mgoraf wrote: »

Diego Lopez is ahead of Palop aint he Redout?

I'd have him as well ahead of Renan too. Maybe not as he's ex-Real though

Well not at Euro 2008. He wasnt even in the squad. Pretty sure Palop has usually been third. Lopez maybe coming in contention this season as he has been performing good.

EDIT: In fact Lopez was in the Spain squad that played Turkey last night and seemingly it was his first ever call-up to the national team.

gimmick

News of The World saying Fabregas is not saying no to a move to Spain. it alludes to the fact he has not said no to Real either. But the entire story looks like a fabricated bit of lazy journalism

THE GREAT CESCAPE
I won't rule out move to Spain, says Cesc Fabregas

By ANDY DUNN, 28/03/2009
CESC FABREGAS has cast a huge doubt over his Arsenal future by refusing to rule out a move to Barcelona or Real Madrid.

The Gunners captain is a top target for both Spanish giants and, under FIFA rules, could walk out next January unless boss Arsene Wenger persuades him to sign a new deal this summer.

And Fabregas said: "I would not close the door on anybody. Every player evaluates how things have gone and thinks about whether he is happy or whether he can improve his situation.

"I can't control what people say about me but it's a huge honour two of the biggest clubs in football are talking about me."

The Spaniard's £55,000-a-week Arsenal contract expires in 2014 but under FIFA rules, he could buy it out in October when he has served three years.

That would allow him to move in the January 2010 transfer window for a cut-price £16million.

Midfielder Fabregas, 21, has been a wanted man in Spain since helping them win the 2008 European Championship - and Wenger admits he must renew the player's contract at the end of this season or risk losing him.

The Frenchman insisted: "January 2010 is a long time away. We will extend Cesc's contract at the end of the season."
Idol

Arsenal signed Fabregas from Barcelona and the player admits current Barca boss Pep Guardiola 'is and always will be my idol'. But he denied he ever promised Real he would sign for them.

Speaking yesterday he said: "I never gave my word I would join Real Madrid. If Arsene Wenger asks me to stay, I am sure I will."

redout

gimmick wrote: »

News of The World saying Fabregas is not saying no to a move to Spain. it alludes to the fact he has not said no to Real either. But the entire story looks like a fabricated bit of lazy journalism

I read in the same paper that the captaincy/winning euro 2008 has gone to his head seemingly and he thinks he is god.

gimmick

He barely played in Euro 2008 though? Most a sub if memory serves, which if correct, makes the story all the more silly. There is absolutely nothing solid said in the article though, leastly anything to suggest he is in talks with Real.

far more importantly, and redout and Eze would be the best to answer this I think, I have the ol doll almost convinced to do a driving holiday in Spain mid May. Is trying to get tickets for the cup final a fantasy, or are they available? If I got a pair the holiday deal is closed

redout

gimmick wrote: »

He barely played in Euro 2008 though? Most a sub if memory serves, which if correct, makes the story all the more silly. There is absolutely nothing solid said in the article though, leastly anything to suggest he is in talks with Real.

far more importantly, and redout and Eze would be the best to answer this I think, I have the ol doll almost convinced to do a driving holiday in Spain mid May. Is trying to get tickets for the cup final a fantasy, or are they available? If I got a pair the holiday deal is closed

He was on the bench for a lot of the tournament but took part in every game I think. He started in the final and had one goal and 3 assists in the tournament so I think he played very well. Scored the winning peno against Italy in the Q/Final. Think he was Giles/Dunphy player of the tournament if I remember.

The Spanish FA have said they wont change venue for the final despite protests. I am keeping my eye out for the tickets. Will let you know when I hear anything.

gimmick

Thanks. BTW, The RTE POTT was Marcos Senna.

gimmick

Hmm, article is about 2 weeks old, but a very interesting read. Do not think it was posted here at the time

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/mar/15/bunyodkor-uzbekistan-rivaldo-craig-murray

Death and glory

Political connections and energy resources have put Bunyodkor on the fast track to super club status

Last week several British newspapers carried a story about a "row" between Fifa and the Premier League over the badge on Manchester United's shirt. United had won the Fifa World Club Cup last December and the world governing body wanted them to advertise the fact by wearing a new logo. The Premier League said "no thanks".

The football public here would probably side with their own competition, if they had an opinion at all. The World Club Cup might be worth something to United as it gives them the opportunity to aim for a quin rather than a quad this season, but to most fans it is an impostor, a "made-up" tournament that has no history, no integrity. It is known only for having put a dent in the FA Cup when United prioritised their Fifa matches in Brazil over domestic commitments in 2000. It is seen as something of a joke.

Elsewhere in the world, it is taken more seriously. The next tournament is nine months away, and nowhere is that gestation period more important than in Uzbekistan, the Asian outpost that is home to one of the most remarkable clubs in world football. Bunyodkor of Tashkent, the Uzbek capital, would like nothing more than to take on Manchester United, or even better their mentors and "partners", Barcelona, in the next Fifa World Club Cup. Judging by their progress so far, they might just do it. That would be some rare good news for a country that features high on the list of hellholes for Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and others. Just what the despotic Uzbek government wants.

Four years ago Bunyodkor did not exist. They won promotion from the amateur second division at the first attempt, finished runners-up in cup and league next time out, and in their third season won the double, with a run to the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League to boot. They have a former World Cup winner in the team, alongside the Asian footballer of the year. Now they are getting serious.

Bunyodkor are building a new $150m stadium, despite the fact that their current 15,000-capacity home, built in a few months, is less than a year old. A friendly against Barcelona, whose president, Joan Laporta, flew in to lay the first brick last August, will mark the official opening of their new home this summer.

Other Barcelona connections abound. Lionel Messi, Carles Puyol and Andrés Iniesta were joined by Arsenal's Cesc Fábregas last summer in flying to Tashkent, for a reported €1m (about £700,000 at the time) each, to pull on the club shirt for publicity purposes and hold a football skills masterclass for the locals. Bunyodkor made further headlines with an audacious attempt to sign Samuel Eto'o on a short-term contract. There was much amusement around the world at the idea but they were not joking.

"My head started spinning when I heard what they offered – $25m to play for two or three months," Eto'o told the French television station Telefoot after flying to Tashkent, where he, too, gave a skills session.

Rebuffed by Eto'o, the Uzbek club turned to Rivaldo, a key man in Brazil's 2002 World Cup-winning side. At the age of 36 he was never going to refuse their offer of €10m for two years.

They had another World Cup legend, Zico, as coach for four months, before he moved on take over at CSKA Moscow, favourites to win this season's Uefa Cup.

By the time Rivaldo arrived, Bunyodkor's plan to become a "super club" was already in action. They had set up a three-year partnership deal with Barcelona – with the help of Emmanuel Petit acting as an intermediary – and the club's new badge even copies the shape of the Barcelona emblem.

Last Wednesday, when Barcelona thrashed Lyon to move into the quarter-finals of the Uefa Champions League, Bunyodkor – whose name means "creator" in Uzbek – began their second AFC campaign with a 2-1 defeat of the Saudi champions, Al Ettifaq.

What is going on here? Where does the money come from, and why is this happening in Uzbekistan? A glance at the club's lavish website, which is available in English, gives a clue. There are eight sponsors' logos on the site, all eight of them for gas companies. But that is not half the story…

It is not easy to get into Uzbekistan, which borders Afghanistan. The average weekly wage is below £25, unemployment is estimated by the World Bank at 40 per cent, and nearly a third of the population live below the poverty line. When Observer Sport paid a visit recently, the first thing the Bunyodkor sporting director, Azamat Abduraimov, said was, "You can't write about the heads of the club. We have a little censorship."

And plenty else besides.

European Union sanctions against Uzbekistan were lifted recently, much to the dismay of Craig Murray, the outspoken former British ambassador in Tashkent who has campaigned against the government. Murray says the Uzbek security services use "sheer brutality" against anybody who steps out of line, especially those aligned to the Islamic party Hizb-ut-Tahrir. Torture is widespread, say Amnesty International. The BBC website is barred.

A post-mortem commissioned by the British embassy showed that two dissidents had been boiled alive in 2002. In 2005 hundreds of people were shot down at a public gathering in Andizhan, and there has been no inquiry into the massacre.

Football has visibly become more important to the government in recent years. The autocratic Uzbek president, Islam Karimov, signed a decree which provided tax breaks for football two years ago.

So who is behind Budyonkor? It is not the Arsenal shareholder Alisher Usmanov, the only Uzbek known to football fans in Britain. Speaking at the opening of an exhibition of Turner paintings he sponsored in Moscow, the Arsenal man said he was not Bunyodkor's backer and did not know who was.

"It is very good," he says of Zico and Rivaldo moving to Uzbekistan. "They are great players and can teach a lot." Usmanov may have been out of Uzbekistan for too long. As one fan from Bunyodkor's city rivals, Pakhtakor, says, "Everyone knows who owns the club."

Football officials are unwilling to pull back the curtain and discuss the club's backers. "In Uzbekistan most people are very scared of those in power as they have shown more than once how they deal with those who think differently," says Danil Kislov, editor of the Uzbek dissident news website, ferghana.ru. "It is better to keep quiet. It is a closed society and will remain so for long time."

The nominal owner is Miradil Djalalov, the head of Zeromax, a Switzerland-based company that has the biggest private business in Uzbekistan. The company works in oil, gas and cotton, the latter being Uzbekistan's biggest industry, and runs Uzgazoil, which has petrol stations all over the country. Djalalov is an immensely powerful businessman known locally simply as Odil. And behind him?

Gulnara Karimova, daughter of President Karimov and a would-be successor, is said to be ultimately responsible for the club's rise. Zeromax is widely considered to be controlled by her and dissidents say she is worth billions. Bunyodkor's remarkable rise could not have happened without extremely close ties to the government. "It's part of a campaign by the president to win popularity for his daughter," says Murray. "I hear that she will eventually replace him as president. The regime is trying to win popularity by the old-fashioned bread-and-circuses method."

Karimova is part It girl, part Margaret Thatcher. She is an Uzbek diplomat in Geneva, has her own jewellery line, sings, hosts parties and charity events, designs clothes and has huge business interests. She is said to have controlled Uzbekistan's largest mobile-telephone network and the gold-mining sector. According to a report in The Guardian she is seen as "the only person who can protect the assets of her father's family and cronies".

She acknowledged in a recent interview that human rights is a difficult area but says the situation in Uzbekistan is complicated, not least because of the threat of Islamic fundamentalist violence. Her involvement would make Bunyodkor a repressive government's secret project rather than the secret play toy of a mysterious multi-millionaire. "It is to show the world what does not exist," says Kislov. "That Uzbekistan is very successful."

Late last year, Bunyodkor flew down to Namangan, 200 miles south east of Tashkent in the Fergana Valley, for their last game of the season. Fans set out in cars for the four-hour drive through a mountain pass and past cotton trees stripped bare after the harvest. The Fergana Valley is the heart of Uzbekistan, home to a large proportion of the country's 27m population, and the site of the Andizhan massacre. It is the most passionate football supporting area in the country.

On the way into the valley, all cars – buses are not allowed because of the dangers of the mountain roads – are stopped for a check of documents. A visiting foreigner is noted down by hand in a large book before the car drives through. Signs along the mountain route warn that photography is prohibited.

Abdurahmon Fazilov, head of the Bunyodkor supporters' club, gives a barely believable account of life as a fan. Nobody drinks, he says, very few smoke, and the Bunyodkor followers always clean up after themselves at matches. As for chanting: "It's a team game, so nobody is allowed to sing about individual players, only the team as a whole."

On hearing this, a fan of Tashkent rivals Pakhtakor snorts with laughter. He tells of fights between the two sets of supporters. One report shown to The Observer by Kislov claims that Pakhtakor players were threatened with a pistol by Djalalov after they equalised against Bunyodkor in a game last August. A website floats the theory from an Uzbek football insider that the Bunyodkor fans are a way for the government to use fans as political support.

At half-time in Namangan, two rheumy-eyed home fans stand grumbling about the game and the referee's bias in favour of Bunyodkor. "It's the team of Karimov's daughter," says one fan with a hangdog look before the Bunyodkor media spokesman appears from nowhere to cut the conversation.

The following day, at training, a relaxed Rivaldo is happy to talk. "When I told my family [about Bunyodkor's offer] they were a bit shocked, they wanted to know what sort of country it was," he says. "There are people who say it is not a developed country but it has turned out not to be true."

Rivaldo's new home is bigger than the one he had in Athens, where he played for AEK, and he has brought along his own Brazilian chef. Zico arrived for four months last September after a call from Rivaldo and negotiations led by Djalalov. Uzbekistan was not a complete leap in the dark for him as he had admired the national team from afar in the 1990s when he was coach of Japan.

"It was a lot worse in Japan [than in Uzbekistan] when I went there," reveals Zico, who moved to Sumitomo in 1992, before the start of the J-League and the arrival of Gary Lineker, who was used to promote the game there in the same way as Rivaldo in the Uzbek Oliy Liga. "There is a public which loves football."

Murray is shocked that Barcelona, who have a shirt sponsorship arrangement with Unicef, should be involved with Bunyodkor.

"I am absolutely appalled," he says. "It would be like linking up with Adolf Hitler to promote a Berlin team in the 1930s – it really is astonishing even in the money-mad world of football to be quite that blind to morality."

Barcelona did not respond to requests for a reply to Murray's comments. They did say, through spokesman José Miguel Teres: "We have a cooperation contract with Uzbekistan. There is some technical assistance from our side for the trainers and managers and a friendly game in Uzbekistan to be played in the coming months." The deal is believed to be worth €5m to Barcelona.

Football is a powerful force in Uzbekistan, but the Bunyodkor project is seen as an extravagance too far in a country where many are on or below the breadline. "If you have money like this to pay a foreign footballer then you have the money to pay the people decent wages," says Kislov.

"It is luxury in the face of poverty."

redout

They sound a well dodgy setup.

eZe^

The whole Uzbeki deal hasn't seemed right from the beginning with millions being payed for a behind closed doors friendly, bizarre photo shoots of our players in Uzbekistan. How Laporta can justify using the club for this kind of stunt is beyond me, surely all the money we're receiving isn't worth the damage to our reputation that will be incurred by this kind of story? Quite frankly I think it's an almighty ballsup on the part of Laporta and I'd rather have a commercial sponsor on the shirt than be associated with this kind of project.

yahoo_moe

eZe^ wrote: »

surely all the money we're receiving isn't worth the damage to our reputation that will be incurred by this kind of story?

But it's not exactly a mainstream thing so the Barca reputation isn't taking that much of a hammering over it... yet, anyway. Ask football fans in Ireland or the UK and I'm guessing the majority wouldn't have heard of the partnership - at best, a small percentage will remember the Eto'o story from last summer. Even fans in Spain wouldn't all know about it, I'd imagine?

As for the money factor, that documentary that was done on Laporta's first year in charge showed that it's a very commercially-driven management... so I reckon the relationship will last the 3 years at least.

eZe^

yahoo_moe wrote: »

But it's not exactly a mainstream thing so the Barca reputation isn't taking that much of a hammering over it... yet, anyway. Ask football fans in Ireland or the UK and I'm guessing the majority wouldn't have heard of the partnership - at best, a small percentage will remember the Eto'o story from last summer. Even fans in Spain wouldn't all know about it, I'd imagine?

As for the money factor, that documentary that was done on Laporta's first year in charge showed that it's a very commercially-driven management... so I reckon the relationship will last the 3 years at least.

This relationship should cease to exist right now. It's a bad image for the club, how can anybody maintain the 'Mes Que Un Club' motto and look down at the people who are seen as less 'admirable' than us when we are selfishly receiving financial backing from a dodgey club in an area of the world where people are poverty striken. It's not fair at all, and I always knew Laporta was a crook, all Spanish presidents are. This is an absolute disgrace, and it's times like these where I'm ashamed to be a Barca supporter.

gimmick

Sunsport saying Eto'o is a likely £18m target for Liverpool. That being said, the story looks a bit wishy washy with words like "sunsport understand" and so on....

Personally, I hope Barca nail down his long term contract very soon. Great scorer.

eZe^

Lol, 18 million? City would give us at least 50... ;)

redout

I dont get why a player moves from Barca to Liverpool unless your looking for a step down.

eZe^

redout wrote: »

I dont get why a player moves from Barca to Liverpool unless your looking for a step down.

gimmick

New challenge blah blah blah. Money is a definite factor. Plus maybe he sees Liverpool as a more likely way of picking up a few more CL medals given their recent prowess in the competition.

While Man City would probably offer crazy more money than Liverpool, moving there will do nothing for his career. They will never win anything of note.

In the article I am on about "a source close to Eto'o reveals his admiration for Benitez".

TBH, its a non story imo.

eZe^

Agreed considering Samu himself stated he wanted to stay at the club for many years. If he does, I can see him breaking into the top 2 scorers of all time for Barca, which would be a huge achievement for an African player in Spain.

redout

I really believe that it is man especially if taking the time since Liverpool last won a league title in 1990.

Liverpool since last league title
0 league titles
3 FA cup
3 League cup
1 Uefa cup
1 European cup

FC Barcelona over the same period
8 league titles
2 Copa del Rey
1 CWC
2 European cups

yahoo_moe

eZe^ wrote: »

This relationship should cease to exist right now... This is an absolute disgrace, and it's times like these where I'm ashamed to be a Barca supporter.

I'm not saying it's right - I'm saying I think it'll continue

And redout, I think a better comparison would be comparing Liverpool and Barca over the last 4 years or so since Benitez has been there as there's really no point trying to bring in Liverpool's failures under, say, Roy Evans or whoever into how Eto'o would see the club. Although it still wouldn't take account of future ambition, money, etc.

Either way, I reckon he'll stay - probably the best move for him and for the club so I think it'll happen.

redout

yahoo_moe wrote: »

And redout, I think a better comparison would be comparing Liverpool and Barca over the last 4 years or so since Benitez has been there as there's really no point trying to bring in Liverpool's failures under, say, Roy Evans or whoever into how Eto'o would see the club. Although it still wouldn't take account of future ambition, money, etc.

I dont see why as Barca are still more succesful than Liverpool over the period since Benitez took over. They have won their league twice and Liverpool have not even been close.

FC Barca
2 league titles
1 European Cup

Liverpool
1 FA cup
1 European cup

eZe^

yahoo_moe wrote: »

I'm not saying it's right - I'm saying I think it'll continue

Of course it'll continue, Laporta is a slimey lowlife, like all La Liga presidents. I shouldn't have to sit idly by and accept it though, it's a terrible situation.