Liverpool legend-turned-pundit Steven Gerrard spoke about the influence Sergio Busquets has at the heart of the Barcelona midfield. The likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have earned praise for their goalscoring exploits over the years, but Gerrard believes Busquets is equally influential in the Catalan ranks.
Speaking on BT Sport, Gerrard admitted that it was frustrating to find himself playing against Busquets with the Spaniard capable of maintain a tireless workrate over the course of 90 minutes, he said: “Having played against him, in the end you stop pressing him because it’s just so frustrating.
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Louis van Gaal urges Daley Blind to make the switch to Barcelona
Louis van Gaal has continued his war of words with former club Manchester United after urged compatriot Daley Blind to pursue a move to Barcelona. The Netherlands international has been on the periphery of the United first-team this term, and Van Gaal feels the versatile defender is better off joining the Spanish La Liga.
Van Gaal watched Barcelona outsmart Real Madrid by a 3-0 scoreline in the El Clasico, and shortly after the game, he stressed that Blind should move on from Old Trafford, where he has not started a Premier League match since August. He said: “Daley Blind is better off going to Barcelona, than staying with Man United. He is not even on the bench for United sometimes. Daley can play in more than one position and at Barcelona he would never be sat in the stand.”
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Valverde Ramps up Speculation about Barcelona Move for Griezmann
Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde has claimed that there was a possibility of his team trying to sign Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann in the coming transfer windows. The French superstar had been linked heavily with a move to Manchester United during the summer, but this did not materialise due to Atletico’s transfer ban. Since a departure for Griezmann in the summer would have left the club seriously short of options up front, they decided to persuade the Frenchman to stay at the club. However, Griezmann does not seem to be entirely happy at Atletico with the forward coming in with some poor performances.
Manchester United brought in Romelu Lukaku once they found out that they would not be able to bring in Griezmann in the summer. As a result, it is highly unlikely that the Red Devils will be in the market for the striker come the January transfer window or the summer. In this scenario, Barcelona are looking to take advantage of the situation by making an offer for the player. After having had a spectacular start to his life at Barcelona, manager Ernesto Valverde claims that Griezmann is a player who would fit in well at the Camp Nou. There have been previous transfers between Atletico and Barcelona with the recent high profile switch being Arda Turan.
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Jordi Alba feels he is better off without Neymar
Spain international Jordi Alba has said that he is enjoying himself at Barcelona following Neymar’s decision to join Paris Saint-Germain in the summer. The Brazil international made a shock choice to join the French giants in August after triggered the £198m release clause in his contract.
Initial suggestions were Barcelona would struggle in the absence of their key attack, but they have come out in flying colours in this season’s La Liga with Alba being one of their influential players. Alba is currently joint top of the assist charts with four alongside skipper Lionel Messi, and he appears to be enjoying life under new coach Ernesto Valverde.
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Thomas Vermaelen admits summer transfer interest
Barcelona defender Thomas Vermaelen has confirmed that there were a string of clubs interested in his signature during the summer transfer window.
However, the Catalan giants blocked his exit as they did not have sufficient backup in the central defensive department.
Speaking to La DerniereHeure, the Belgium international explained his intention to leave: “The club told me I couldn’t leave, I had to stay despite the future of various clubs. Now I am not playing, so I am in a difficult situation. I can’t play with Barca B, where I could get some form because the Spanish legislation doesn’t allow it. It’s a regrettable situation. “Of course I would like to play more [club] football to be in a good rhythm with the national team. Vincent’s (Kompany) not here and so I have a bigger chance of playing.”
Vermaelen spent the entirety of the previous campaign on loan with Roma, where he started quickly off the blocks. However, a reckless red card in a Champions League game against FC Porto did him no favours, and he quickly dropped down the pecking order. Continue reading
Ousmane Dembele: ‘Lionel Messi is not from this world’
Barcelona’s new signing Ousmane Dembele is excited to link up with his new teammates having been inspired by their performances over the years.
The 20-year-old sealed his move to Camp Nou for an initial fee of £97m, just weeks after Neymar’s departure to Paris Saint-Germain on a world-record sum.
Borussia Dortmund were initially reluctant to part ways with the former Rennes man, but the Frenchman took matters into his own hands by refusing to take part in training to push through his dream move. Speaking to Sport, the youngster has fond memories of Barcelona stalwarts Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi and takes them as his inspirations.
He told Sport: “I remember two games especially. One against Chelsea, when Iniesta scored the goal to qualify for the Champions League final. When I see Andres now I remember it. I can’t wait to tell him. And the other was a Champions League game against Arsenal. Barcelona had not done great in the first leg but in the second leg they produced a brilliant performance, with four goals from Messi. That’s when I realised Messi’s not from this world. It was incredible.” Continue reading
Could Barcelona Realistically Lose Star Man Lionel Messi?
Lionel Messi has long been regarded as the best footballer on the planet, since bursting on to the scene for Barcelona’s first team back in 2004. It was former Catalans coach Frank Rijkaard that handed the Argentine his senior debut at the Nou Camp and kicked off what would become a truly illustrious career at the pinnacle of the sport.
Messi quickly established himself as a future star within the Barca ranks and shot to stardom with his incredible dribbling skills, a silky left foot and his dynamic ability going forward. Since becoming the club’s then-record youngest goalscorer in history, Messi has rallied to huge success on Spanish soil. Continue reading
Gerard Pique unsure of Neymar future at Barcelona
Barcelona defender Gerard Pique admits that he is in the dark over Neymar would stay at the club beyond the summer.
The Brazil international is the subject of interest from Paris Saint-Germain, who are willing to match his £196m release clause in order to take him to Parc des Princes.
Earlier this week, Pique had posted an Instagram picture alongside the Brazilian with the caption, ‘he stays’, and this led to suggestions that the player would stay put at Camp Nou for the upcoming season. However, Pique himself has placed doubts on the future of Neymar by insisting that it was more of his opinion that trust that the attacker would ignore interest from Les Parisiens.
Speaking in his press-conference ahead of the Manchester United friendly, Pique admitted that it is Neymar’s choice to pick his new club, but he would personally ignore a move to a league which is not of a high standard, he said: “My Instagram post was a gut thing. I want Neymar to stay. [It’s my] Personal opinion from conversations I’ve had with him. It’s my intuition. It was nothing official, it doesn’t depend on me. Continue reading
Ernesto Valverde has no plansfor Jeremy Mathieu
It seems like Jeremy Mathieu´s time in Camp Nou is over as the recently selected coach Ernesto Valverde does not have any plans for him and an exit from the Spanish club appears to be certain at this point in time.
Jeremy Mathieu´s relationship with Barcelona began on July 23 of 2014 as the French defender was signed on that date for a fee of €20 million and from there on out, he has managed to make over 60 appearances in 3 seasons.
During the period of time that Jeremy Mathieu wore the Barcelona jersey, he was able to help the club in lifting various pieces of silverware including: La Liga and the UEFA Champions League just to name a few.
Even though the contract of Mathieu at Camp Nou extends until June of 2018, it´s very likely that the French defender is not going to be staying with them for what his contract has stated.
It´s rumored that Jeremy Mathieu has already found his next club with the Portuguese outfit Sporting Lisboa turning into the most realistic team that Mathieu especially taking into consideration the fact that reports are spreading around claiming that he has even passed medical exams after having spent a few weeks training with Sporting Lisboaduring his vacation.
Ernesto Valverde does not value highly Jeremy Mathieu but there is 1 player is specific that the 53 year old Spanish manager wants to keep hold off for as long as possible and not surprisingly, it´s LionelMessi who recently got married withAntonellaRoccuzzo that decided to sign a new 4 year contract extension which is going to keep the Argentinean player with Barcelona at least until 2021.
Gerard’s Deulofeu’s agent unhappy with Barcelona link
Gerard Deulofeu’s representative Gines Carvajal is concerned by the ongoing interest from Barcelona as it could potentially harm his client’s chances of making the Spain World Cup squad.
The Everton winger failed to make himself a regular under Ronald Koeman in the first half of the previous campaign, and he was therein allowed to join AC Milan on a short-term loan to gain valuable first-team experience. At San Siro, the former La Masia graduate managed to make a huge impression with four goals in the Serie A, and this earned him a recall to the Spain squad after a three-year wait.
Deulofeu is due to be sold on his return to Goodison this summer, but Barcelona have the first refusal on his contract, meaning that they could re-sign him for a £10.2m fee during the upcoming transfer window. However, the clause is said to have some complications as Barcelona cannot loan or sell the player outright, and he will have to stick with the first-team for at least one season. New Barca boss Ernesto Valverde is a huge admirer of Deulofeu, but his agent is nevertheless angry over the ongoing interest as it could diminish his client’s World Cup hopes. Continue reading