Tag: Lionel Messi

MESSI FINALLY RETURNS TO BARCELONA AFTER SUMMER HOLIDAY

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Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi has returned to the club after completing his holidays this summer. The star attacker is expected to join up with the rest of the Barca squad in their preparations as they continue their pre-season games ahead of the new La Liga season. Messi has been a center of so much speculation in recent times both on and off the pitch having already been linked with an exit from the Camp Nou. However, his return to the club is a huge relief to the fans who have always been urging him to not leave anytime soon.

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https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E16sOvEWYAE0eTn.jpg

Although he is currently a free agent, Messi is expected to sign a new contract extension at the club, as confirmed by President Joan Laporta some weeks ago. There have been talks regarding him signing a new deal but there have also been a few problems encountered as well. Messi’s recently-expired contract is a hefty one and Barcelona were told that they would need to cut down players’ wages if they want to sign the Argentina international superstar under another deal.

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MESSI READY TO TAKE PAY-CUT TO SIGN NEW DEAL

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Barcelona captain Lionel Messi is reportedly considering his future at the club and may have decided he would fancy a contract extension instead of pushing for a move away from the club. Messi has been one of the major topics in world football since the closing stages of the last football season after announcing in an interview that he is tired at the Camp Nou and wants to leave Barcelona.

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https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EguTnxYU8AAZzpS.jpg

Following the transfer saga that erupted last summer, many thought this season would be his last one at the club after they were finally able to convince him to stay behind for at least this season. After the interview, he was told that he can’t just leave the club and will have to play for at least one more season, as per the details contained in the last contract he sighed at the Spanish giants.
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BARCELONA, TOP THREEWORST TRANSFER BALANCE

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Spanish giants Barcelona have been ranked as one of the top three worst transfer balance dating back to five years ago, according to the report from CIES football observatory. The Catalans are one of the worst teams in European football with a negative transfer balance. This is coming on the back of the news that Barcelona are neck deep in debts of around $1.5bn. Since 2016, Barcelona have a transfer deficit of $571m. It was revealed that Barcelona splashed the sum of $1.42m on transfers within the period under review and recouped $849m in the sales of players to put the club in third place for transfer deficit behind the Manchester duo of Manchester United and Manchester City.


Premier League leaders Manchester City are the kings of transfer deficit as they have spent $765m more than the sales made from the transfers of their players. Manchester United are in second place with a negative transfer balance of $711m. Manchester City spent  $1.22bn on transfers within the period of the last five years, while the Red Devils spent $1.008bn under the same period. As observed by CIES, the debts incurred by Barcelona is not entirely due to the lucrative contract given to star player Lionel Messi in 2016. Continue reading →

MESSI MAKES TEAM OF THE DECADE

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Barcelona skipper Lionel Messi has been named on the list of CONMEBOL Team of the Decade joining the likes of former Barcelona teammates Neymar Jr and Javier Mascherano. The CONMEBOL Team of the Decade is for the period of the last ten years. The players were selected based on their performances from 2011 to 2020.


The list of the eleven players for the CONMEBOL Team of the Decade was compiled by the InternationalFederation of Football and Statistics (IFFHS). Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi is widely regarded by a lot of football stakeholders as the best player in the history of the game and it’s not surprising that the petite Argentine national team skipper has made the South American Team of the Decade. Continue reading →

Frank Lampard says Lionel Messi is the most incredible player he has ever faced

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Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has said that Lionel Messi is the most incredible player he had faced during his playing career. The 41-year-old suffered an embarrassing 4-0 league defeat to Manchester United during his managerial debut with the Blues last weekend but he is hoping to redeem himself in the forthcoming European Super Cup clash with Liverpool.

Speaking ahead of that game, Lampard was asked about the best player he had faced during his playing career and he happened to mention three players including Messi, who is reckoned as the best of the rest, he said: “Can I give you two answers? It’ll actually be three. The first one is Messi because he was the most incredible player – it was like you were playing against someone who’s not on the same level as all of us. The two players I always remember having the hardest time against were Xavi and [Andres] Iniesta at Barcelona. They just played football around you, and you didn’t get near them. It was football that wasn’t normal to me; it was different from anything else I came up against.”

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Ernesto Valverde expects more from Barcelona team after Eibar draw

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Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has said that he expects more from the team after they could only muster a 2-2 draw against Eibar during the final matchday of the season. The Catalan giants field a strong lineup for the game despite wrapping up the title and they could not seal the three points despite Lionel Messi starring with another brace.

 

Speaking after the game, Valverde said that every game presents with a different challenge and Eibar had the impetus against them, given they had nothing to lose. He added that his team need to be much better for the Copa del Rey final against Valencia next weekend, considering they struggled against Eibar in the second period and could have paid the price.
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Alonso speaks on Liverpool’s Champions League challenge against Barcelona

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Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso believes the Reds have the quality to tackle Barcelona at the semi-final stage of the Champions League. The Merseyside giants reached their second Champions League semi-final on the bounce after beating Porto by a convincing 6-1 aggregate scoreline and they are now set to face their toughest challenge yet.

Speaking to the club’s official website, Alonso said that the Reds have the recent experience of reaching the current stage of the competition and this should give them a boost ahead of their challenge against the Spanish champions, he said: “Yes, they can, because they reached the final last year so now they know how it feels to be there. But we will see. It’s going to be a great, great semi-final to watch and [I’m] really looking forward to it.”
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Lionel Messi not tempted to pursue Serie A challenge set by Ronaldo

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Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi has said that he is comfortable with his position at the Catalan giants and does not seek to leave the club anytime soon. The Argentina international was recently urged by Cristiano Ronaldo to take up a fresh challenge in the Serie A but Messi appears content to prolong his stay with the Spanish champions.

In an interview covered by Marca, Messi said that Real Madrid are a great club but they have been hampered this campaign with Ronaldo’s departure reducing their impact in the forward department, he quipped: “At the beginning of the season I said they are a great club, one of the best in the world and with a lot of great players, but anyone would miss Cristiano. He scores a lot of goals and gives you many other things so it doesn’t surprise me.”
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Ernesto Valverde Laments Draw with Valencia

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Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde was disappointed to see his team only get a 1-1 draw with Valencia during the weekend. The result has extended at the club’s winless run in the league to an incredible four matches. Lionel Messi was able to come up with a crucial equaliser that helped Barcelona pick up at least point. It took only two minutes for Valencia to score in the match but it was Messi who came up with the equaliser in the first half. Even though Barcelona were unable to find a winner in the game, they were able to look at Real Madrid also drop points during the weekend.

Valverde is coming under immense pressure on already and one of the few joys for Barcelona came in the Champions League where they have picked up back-to-back wins. The summer witnessed several changes in the Barcelona setup and they seem to have missed the magic that made them champions last season. The failure to win the recent matches has been characterised by a lack of creativity and Barcelona are now behind Sevilla going into the international break. Valverde lamented Valencia scoring from one of the few mistakes that Barcelona committed in the match and he is confident of the team recovering back to their best in the near future.
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Ajax midfielder confirms desire to play alongside Lionel Messi

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Ajax midfielder Frenkie de Jong has revealed that he would like to play alongside Lionel Messi at Barcelona in the future. The Netherlands international was the subject of two failed bids from the Spanish champions during the summer and reports have suggested that the Blaugrana could make a renewed attempt at the turn of the year.

Speaking to Ajax’s television channel, De Jong hinted that he would like to make the switch to a bigger club in the future whilst highlighting his preference to play alongside Barcelona legend Messi, he said:”If you end up at a superior club, you will play with world class players all over the pitch. But for me, honestly, I would like to play with Messi one day.”
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