TheNewsGuru

Tag: Barca

  • I don’t care about Man Utd or Man City – Pedri

    I don’t care about Man Utd or Man City – Pedri

    Barcelona youngster Pedri has declared his commitment to remain with the La Liga giant.

    The midfielder said he was happy to have signed a new contract at Camp Nou despite big offers from elsewhere.

    “Interest from Manchester United, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain? I am happy at Barça, this is my dream,” the Spain midfielder said.

    On Ansu Fati and Gavi, Pedri is convinced they will fight for the Golden Boy next year.

    “[Ansu] and Gavi will compete for the next Golden Boy together with [Jude] Bellingham, a player that I really appreciated,” he added.

    On Ansu, he continued: “I have a wonderful relationship with him, he’s had some incredibly bad luck (with injuries). But he has extraordinary mental strength.”

  • Xavi blasts players : You don’t know what it means to play for Barca

    Xavi blasts players : You don’t know what it means to play for Barca

    Barcelona coach Xavi blasted his players during last night’s Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.

    The 3-0 loss saw Barca tumbled out of the competition.

    Sport says at the end of the first half Xavi did not hesitate to raise his voice at his players.

    “Some of you don’t understand what it means to play for Barça,” he said.

    But the reality is that the speech did not work. The team not only did not react in the second half and at times appeared to give up.

    After the game, Xavi opted for a less aggressive stance. He hardly addressed the players, though gave a short but forceful message, at a decibel level much lower than that shown during the break.

  • La Liga: Barca enduring worst season run in 18 years

    La Liga: Barca enduring worst season run in 18 years

    La Liga side Barcelona are enduring their worst season run in 18 years.

    Barca only have 23 points from 16 game weeks (one of which is postponed to play before Christmas, against Sevilla). The worst they have achieved since 2002-03, 18 years ago.

    On that occasion Barcelona played week 16 in January 2003, with 22 points after beating Recreativo Huelva. The team had Louis van Gaal in charge but he was sacked and Radomir Antic came in to get to sixth place and UEFA Cup qualification.

    The next season was not much better. Frank Rijkaard’s side had 23 points after 16 weeks, but ended up turning it around to come second, with Valencia winning the title.

  • Ronald Koeman didn’t deserve Barca sack – Jordi Alba

    Ronald Koeman didn’t deserve Barca sack – Jordi Alba

    Barcelona fullback Jordi Alba insists former coach Ronald Koeman didn’t deserve to be sacked.

    Despite being dismissed and replaced by Xavi Hernandez, leaving the Blaugrana in a troubled position domestically and in the Champions League, Alba didn’t want to have a bad word said about his former coach.

    “No,” Alba said, asked if he thought the change to Xavi should have been made earlier. “I think Koeman did a very good job.

    “We won the Copa Del Rey when nobody expected us to, and every coach has their own style. I’m grateful to Koeman for what he did with me and the whole team.”

    Despite his affection for Koeman, Alba did express his excitement with Xavi’s arrival on the bench.

    “Now we have a new coach because the president decided to have one and I’m happy that Xavi is here,” Alba added. “He had to come here, because he knows the club.

    “I’m very happy with his arrival and I’m sure he’ll help us a lot.”

    Speaking more about Xavi, Alba admitted that he has limited knowledge of the former midfielder as a coach.

    “I’ve only known him [as a coach] for a week,” Alba said. “He was always very intensely into football as a player, and now as a coach.

    “He has emphasised the importance of talking to everyone, especially those who don’t play.

    “That’s a positive for the whole team to buy into and to get back to being ourselves. We did well against Espanyol, now we have to improve a lot. I think he has good ideas.”

  • Barca coach Xavi to go back to Al Sadd

    Barca coach Xavi to go back to Al Sadd

    Barcelona coach Xavi wants to go back to former club Al Sadd to strengthen his attack.

    Sport says he knows they need more goal threat up front and is interested in bringing Algerian forward Baghdad Bounedjah to Barça from his former side Al Sadd.

    He was the top scorer there last season and this campaign has 11 goals and three assists in 705 minutes.

    He’s a complete forward and an Algerian international.

    With Kun Aguero’s future in the air, Martin Braithwaite and Ansu Fati injured, Barcelona are lacking up front and don’t have a lot to spend.

  • Barca director denies Aguero retirement claims

    Barca director denies Aguero retirement claims

    Barcelona director of football Mateu Alemany has denied claims Sergio Aguero has retired.

    Journalist Gerard Romero is reporting Aguero is going to retire.

    But Alemany has dismissed the claims.

    He said, “You have to respect the situation a lot and give the to Kun. The medics will evaluate him. Accelerating anything is imprudent, let the medics and Kun be calm.

    “Now it’s not clear and it’s very delicate. He has out support, we’ll see if it goes well or not. There’s no news.

    “Wait, please.”

  • Barca table top bid for Karim Adeyemi

    Barca table top bid for Karim Adeyemi

    La Liga side Barcelona are moving for RB Salzburg striker Karim Adeyemi.

    Sport1 says Barca have offered €40m for the Germany international, with the aim of signing him at the end of the season.

    The bid is €5m more than what Borussia Dortmund recently tabled.

    Barca have also tabled a five-year contract offer to Adeyemi’s management team, which far outstrips what Dortmund have offered.

    Agents for Adeyemi were in Spain earlier this month to meet with Barca directors.

  • La Liga formally approve Barca appointment of Xavi

    La Liga formally approve Barca appointment of Xavi

    LaLiga has formally approved the appointment of Xavi as Barcelona coach.

    LaLiga’s Department of Financial control have on Monday given the green light to Barcelona’s appointment of Xavi as the club’s new coach, COPE have revealed.

    The payment of €5 million to Al Sadd to release Xavi from his contract complies with all the requisites demanded by the Spanish league, the information adds.

    The clause was paid by Xavi and Barça, as confirmed by president Joan Laporta, although he did not reveal the percentages paid by each party.

    Xavi’s registration as Barça’s new coach will not be official in the coming hours and he will occupy the place vacated by Sergi Barjuan, who took over following Ronald Koeman’s dismissal.

    Xavi’s first game on the bench will be the Catalan derby against RCD Espanyol at Camp Nou this weekend in LaLiga.

  • La Liga: Dani Alves joins Barca for €1-a-month

    La Liga: Dani Alves joins Barca for €1-a-month

    Dani Alves is re-signing for Barcelona on a wage of €1-a-month.

    The Brazilian right-back, 38, becomes former team-mate Xavi’s first signing as Nou Camp boss.

    Alves will start training at the struggling LaLiga side next week – but won’t be allowed to play until January 1.

    A club statement read: “Barcelona and Dani Alves have reached an agreement in principle for the player to join the football first team for the remainder of the current season.

    “The Brazilian will be joining training from next week but will not be able to play until January.”

    Alves most-recently played for Sao Paulo in his native Brazil, but left in September.

  • Barca identify three Chelsea stars for January move

    Barca identify three Chelsea stars for January move

    La Liga side Barcelona have plans to raid Chelsea in January for a new loan signing.

    Sport says Barca have already drafted up a list of alternatives should they fail to land Manchester City’s England international Raheem Sterling.

    Barca could turn to Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi or Christian Pulisic to bolster their attacking ranks.

    Ziyech or Pulisic seem more realistic, with Blues boss Thomas Tuchel desperate to hold onto academy product Hudson-Odoi.

    The Chelsea trio have played just 1,547 minutes between them this season across all competitions.

    Hudson-Odoi takes up 800 of those minutes.

    And Pulisic has played just 180, missing the majority of the season so far through injury.