i was going to blow it out but fuck it. we only care about the news and the discussions anyway. so lets get it.

post transfers, new contracts, interesting rumors, what your team needs or anything interesting in the soccer world.

it's all over after this weekend.

obviously we need a CM. hot rumors are we're looking at Thiago Alcantara, Ilkay Gundogan & Kevin Strootman. either way i think we're going to need multiple purchases in this area.

hopefully Moyes doesn't bring in any Everton players. i don't want them, but i expect there to be 1 or 2. probably Baines. hopefully not Fellaini though.

from reports, were looking to make a big signing to give Moyes something positive to ride in on as far as the fans go. but we arent bent on it. were eyeing Ronaldo and Bale very closely. i think part of this depends on if we actually ditch Rooney which at this point i wouldnt mind at all.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22261981

They're claiming injury, but I'm not buying it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jan/23/wilfried-zaha-manchester-united

It's going to be interesting who's on the outs there. I've heard Di Maria, Higuain and Coentrao will definitely be moving.

Benzema and Modric. will probably get a few offers too.
They can't give Kaka away lol.

Time for the new Galactico set to roll in. Isco is basically a given. But they're also looking at Bale, Cavani, Vidal, Aguero, Falcao...basically anybody that's a star. I expect them to flash 100m easily.

this summer after the Copa Del Ray.

That's all I really care about right now.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/may/20/gareth-bale-tottenham-contract

looks like he's staying for one more year with a £50m release clause taking effect next summer fair play to him for sticking around for another go with spurs.

good on him though.
i wonder what kind of targets spurs will have. he needs some help.

but, yeah, i'm pleased with his decision. shows some loyalty for a change.

spurs desperately need to get him some help up top. preferably someone willing to make runs and move a little bit. benteke and damiao have been mentioned. should be an interesting summer.

not that this is the worst idea ever, since Rooney as a Lampard-type midfield would be intriguing, but I have severe doubts about this move regardless.
And this is just the 1st...

l'equipe is annoying with their gossipy ways, but I find them generally reliable when it comes to breaking transfer news

but anyway...Rooney. I'm kinda meh on him because of the knucklehead factor but I still hate him less than Ronaldo and a whole lot less than Nasri (also, he's eons better than Nasri).

What's irking me is that we don't seem to be in on the Falcao sweepstakes.

there won't be outrage since this was done progressively (to recap: UNICEF=>Qatar Foundation=>Qatar Airways), and announced at the start of the season, but still it's weird to see this bastion of non-commercialism finally fall. I do like the Catalan away shirts tho

http://www.footballkitnews.com/8804/new-barcelona-kits-13-14-nike-barca-home-away-senyera-shirts-2013-2014/

like this throwback: http://image-load-balancer.worldsportshops.com/Datafeeds/Graphics/Products/ImageCache/600x600/37318.jpg

their 09/10 kits are their best in the recent memory. especially that home one.

still absolutely sucks and should have never happened. But wheb the qatar deal was struck was when it happened. Id rather the airline than the bullshit non profit. Just be honest, it was for money.

Anyway, love the catalan away kit. And very smart to announce that the same time as the airline so all the debate is about that.

As for transfers. Feels like the same shit, another year. Abidal is supposedly leaving (sad) so a cb abnd i would like a less aggressive fullback because alba abd alves are too much alike. I guess neymar just t get it over with and I want a supersub striker. Someone willing to come off the bench for twenty minutes abd poach some goals.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

just because they seem to be going for all the major assholes in international futbol...Robben's probably next too

also, lol@you acting all blasé about Neymar

on alves: I hate to see him go, but at the same time, montoya fits the team's need better. i think he got scapegoated a bit more than he deserved when the system wasn't really set for two offensive fullbacks and two slow CBs. i want speed at CB if you're gonna do that. also, another taller guy would be nice!

on neymar: I'm blase just because it's been a "done deal" for two years. he's an otherworldly talent, but we're probably gonna overpay and where does he play? Actually, let me take that back. If he takes Pedro's spot, it could work, but i doubt that happens. So does he replace alexis? then alexis was a bust/gets sold for peanuts and I don't believe that's smart. he comes in and we have to assume Villa's gone, but I'm still left with a whole shit ton of awesome attackers, none of who really are the type to bring width or an aerial threat. and a thin midfield that'll probably be thinner because of how much smoke there is around thiago possibly leaving (sad), another year old for xavi, and a backline that's got some poor design problems. Neymar's an excellent talent, but it's not the need for the squad. he's a luxury--like buying a mink coat with your last dollar to spend on clothes in March when you don't have any raincoats. not smart--but he'll be awesome and it'll be fun to watch him.

the smart money is spent on the backline--a RB or LB who provides additional height on set pieces and a CB who is faster than Bartra and Pique.
-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

why, i'm not sure considering we've already got Zaha coming in.

i think he'd be a better fit with us than you guys though.

Neymar is not needed. Not needed at all. While I'm sure he'll be fun to watch, we need a center back. Preferably Thiago Silva. I'm still mad we didn't go after him harder last summer. And that ship may have sailed.

If Alves has to go, I'm ok with it. Jordi Alba is doing a very similar thing on the other flank, and is younger, (so far) less injury prone, and maybe even faster. It already doesn't work well with two wingbacks who go forward so often.

Thiago needs to stay. Period. Do not even listen to offers for him.

FOH is gonna be Leo's sole answer to anybody approaching him about it.

reportedly PSG and Barca are after him

What can you tell me?

he's 19, was considered very promising while he was w/Corinthians and pushed Burdisso to the bench in his first season with Roma, that's about all I got. Statistically, their defense did not have a good season (56 goals conceded is a lot, and what kept them from making the CL next year, given that they scored 71), but I didn't watch them enough to know if he was the weak link or not.

where's KingKahn, he's the resident Roma expert around here, he would know...

KingKahn is not alone. Actually, Marquinhos was not that highly thought of when he was brought on; Roma signed Castan before the Libertadores final last year and he said, "This other kid is better than me." There is a 99% likelihood that his recommendation is the best thing he will ever do for the club.

Marquinhos is really interesting to watch in that he is not at all physically imposing yet often perfectly positioned and wins a lot of balls without taking risks. The problem with the number of goals conceded by Roma this year lies in the mess that was the overall communication and understanding of how to cover for so many guys pushing forward, not necessarily because this kid can't play defense (I am not going to look up statistics because I do have a bit of work to do, but I can say fairly confidently that the goal rate dropped significantly once Zeman departed). He also lost some time due to injury, but all in all he's the kind of player whose value shot up enormously this year and who looks like an all round solid center back for years and years to come. It's a damn shame that Roma isn't the kind of club that can keep him around.

I didn't buy this past years kit, but I'm buying this one.
Just don't know if I want
Xavi
Messi
Iniesta
or another Thiago.

I have a Ronaldinho, a blank one, a training, and a Thiago.
I haven't bought a Messi because... it's Messi. But I think I should... because it's Messi. Xavi doesn't have too much time left with the club. And Iniesta is very under-appreciated.

not that they sold out to a sponsor-- the economics of the game these days is such that they couldn't realistically expect to compete with these polito-oligarchical teams without the corporate signage -- but at least qatar airways could upgrade their logo game? Shit looks atrocious. And here I thought Qatar Foundation's logo could've used some work.

smh.

nm

I want him to go to Madrid in my heart of hearts -- the upside is too big for FCB

wouldn't be surprised if he outspends everybody, including Real

they've been talking about Falcao (but he denied, recently...guessing he's set on going to Madrid) and Carlito Tevez (who said he's interested)

now they're talking about Rodriguez (the other Colombian Bol) and Moutinho. Menez, too, which would piss me off.

not sure how the rest of the team stacks up but their offense might be a problem in Brazil

>not sure how the rest of the team stacks up but their offense
>might be a problem in Brazil
>
That's a serious strike force up front.

http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2045309&mesg_id=2045309&listing_type=search#2046265

The spine of the team (GK, cb, dmf, striker) has to be shored up. Everyone knows how inconsistent our keepers have been...Sczenzny may get there eventually but he isn't right now. Mertesacker can be in the mix at CB but we need better to pair along with Koscielny. Dmf is a spot I've been griping about for years...we NEED a strong, dominant holding midfielder who can boss the game, act as a calming influence, and allow Wilshere to play forward. Arteta has done an admirable job but he's out of position. Upfront, need need need a clinical, game-changing striker.

At RB, Sagna is not the answer.

Of shit to address


>At RB, Sagna is not the answer.


I just want a world-class FB, defensive mid, and striker... Everything else is more than OK if you add those 3 pieces. And if I could only have one it would be a defensive mid fielder, not even sure what potential candidates are but that would solve so much

Jovetic looks to be more likely imo (with both sides clearly posturing to dictate the transfer fee) but Higuain is looking like a possibility as well (reports are saying he's waiting for the team to announce the new coach before he makes his final decision).

He'd be really useful. Clinical.

I watch RM all the time. I never seen a striker miss so much basic shit.

> I never seen a striker miss so much
>basic shit.

Now...Giroud had a pretty solid year all things considered...but cotdamn, if he didn't miss some sitters.

this year is the least i've ever watched arsenal. usually yall are my 2nd/3rd most watched.

that (somewhat) makes up for his scoring droughts (except the one he's having w/France is getting ridiculous)

Higuain is useless when he doesn't score

Higuain will be playing centrally with a ton of support behind him...we need someone who can spearhead that forward line by being a scoring threat.

it's not like the Giroud/Benzi pairing has been setting shit on fire with France

but for that kind of job description, there's better (and maybe cheaper) than Higuain out there...

like Edson Cavani for instance.
or Aubameyang (to keep w/Arsene's long standing tradition of pillaging the French league). Aubameyang gives you more than poaching, too.

All I know about him is that he has been linked to a move to La Liga.

but this is a decent highlights package
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMzuck1BxMk

also, he's swaggy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdI1htCRbJs

with all that said, I hope he stays with Sainté for their CL run (if they make it). If not, I hope Leonardo is on the case.

That's the last thing we fucking need but the papers keep talking about us being tied to midfielders. If there's one place we don't need help. If there's one position we need!

Also... the papers were just today talking about City being interested in Thiago. No. Do not do that.

Looks like we'll be releasing/selling lots of players this summer... which is good. But we seriously need to let our youth play a lot of these games against smaller clubs. I know it looks real nice to have 8-0 thrashings, but let Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Pique, Puyol, Dany etc. rest. We have players that play those positions who just don't get much tick... then when they're needed to cover for injured players, they will be much better equipped. Tello and Thago get time. They both need more though. Bartra and Montoya desperately need more time. Fontas will be coming back from loan and will need time

I think Bale may stay, and if they can get Leandro Daimao from Internacional, and get rid of that bum Ade...they might be alright.

Richard Dunne has been told he's free to go at the end of the month when his contract runs out, as have Eric Lichaj ( =( ), Simon Dawkins and Andy Marshall (who didn't play anyway, but whatever). Shay Given, Steven Ireland and Darren Bent are being told to have their agents find a good move for them.

Villa are supposedly looking at Aaron Cresswell from Ipswich, and Luke Murphy from Crewe, who partnered previously with current player Ashley Westwood.

Meanwhile, Lambert is looking to extend/improve the wages of Christian Benteke and Andi Weimann, who were vital to our season. The latter's agent has been making noise in the papers, while Benteke has said that if Villa stay up (check), he'll stay on.

damn the production line doesnt stop. so many ballers.

ATHLETIC CLUB: Iker Muniain Goñi
CLUB ATLETICO MADRID SAD: Jorge Resurrección Merodio "Koke"
FC BARCELONA: Torralbo Martin Montoya, Marc Bartra Aregall, Cristian Tello Herrera, Marc Muniesa Martínez and Thiago Alcantara do Nascimento
BAYER 04 LEVERKUSEN: Daniel Carvajal Ramos
Benfica FC: Rodrigo Moreno Machado
Getafe CF SAD: Pablo Sarabia Garcia and Alvaro Vazquez Garcia
REAL MADRID CF: Jose I. Fernández Iglesias "Nacho" Martín and Alvaro Morata
MALAGA CF SAD: Ignacio Camacho and Francisco Román Alarcón Barnola "Isco"
MANCHESTER UNITED FC: David de Gea Quintana
SEVILLA FC SAD: Alberto Moreno Pérez
SAD REAL FOOTBALL COMPANY: Asier Illarramendi and Iñigo Martínez Andonegui
VALENCIA CF SAD: Sergio Canales Madrazo
VILLARREAL CF SAD: Diego Mariño Villar
WIGAN ATHLETIC FC: Joel Robles Blázquez
REAL ZARAGOZA SAD: Alvaro Gonzalez Soberon

http://hereisthecity.com/2013/05/23/manchester-united-target-james-rodriguez-to-be-sold-in-70-millio/

here's the funny shit though. Porto owed Sporting 25% sell-on for Moutinho. so they sold Rodriguez for 69m and Moutinho for 1m basically lmao.

they're also looking for a new GK and are talking to Valdes AND Diego Lopez

Russian Bol giveth not a fuck

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

I guess that's to be expected between rivals, but it seems that there should be some kind of rule against it...

>here's the funny shit though. Porto owed Sporting 25% sell-on
>for Moutinho. so they sold Rodriguez for 69m and Moutinho for
>1m basically lmao.

per Porto's official site, it's 35M for Rodriguez, 25M for Moutinho
brush up on your Portuguese:
http://www.fcporto.pt/Noticias/Futebol/noticiafutebol_fcpjamesmoutinhomonaco_240513_75592.asp

It's really that easy.

But that would have been really messed up, and Sporting would have sued, and they probably would have won.

45M for Rodriguez, not 35

I think that breaks the record for the French league (Pastore, 2 years ago)

Man United refinancing $290M+ of high-interest debt. Interest of around 2.8% instead of 8%+. Saving approx £10m/yr in payments. Man United's debt is £370M. Bank has refinanced £192.34M of bonds to lower interest rate. Club to pay around £10m less in interest payments. Am told Man United's annual interest payments to come down from £31M to about £21M with new loan from Bank of America.

for those of you who care about that type of stuff

barcastuff twitter (normally pretty good) is quoting his dad as saying Santos is refusing to tell and they're planning to move for free next summer...wtf?

also, fwiw, thaigo not planning to leave this summer. that can obviously change. i really hope it doesn't.

barcastuff 3h
Neymar da Silva (father): "In a year, we can leave, and in six months, we can sign a pre-contract. I'm sure Santos are aware of that."
barcastuff ‏@barcastuff 3h
Neymar da Silva (father): "We wanted an answer from Santos, and they gave it yesterday saying they won't sell the player. Life goes on."
barcastuff ‏@barcastuff 3h
Neymar (Santos): "I know you (journalists) have thousand questions, but today I'll let my father answer them." #fcblive

barca supposedly offered 25 mil. others had it as 17 + two friendlies. maybe 25 + friendlies?

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

i didnt realize Benteke knocked in 23 this season. i knew he was good but damn.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2329964/Christian-Benteke-casts-doubt-Aston-Villa-future-admitting-consider-Arsenal.html#ixzz2UAUaypiu

He said: 'If Aston Villa say I must stay, I won't necessarily accept that. I do not in any way want to feel I didn't get the most out of my career.'

Meanwhile, in the Daily Express, he added: 'I hope that if I leave my club a deal can be done more quickly than the one last year.

'There is no point in me getting into a tug-of-war with Villa, and I don’t think there is any need for one. If the chance comes up for me to join a club like Arsenal, I am convinced that we can reach a compromise where everybody comes out a winner.'

Benteke continued: 'I have asked my agent not to bother me with transfer talk while I am away on Belgium duty. It’s now down to him to do his job. I have known him since I was 14 years old, and I have complete confidence in him.'

Villa boss Paul Lambert has been steadfast in his belief that his star man, who has three years remaining on his contract, will still be at the club next season.

Reflecting on his future, he added: 'Of course playing the World Cup is in my head. But I have no fear of falling out of the team. With my family, I will decide where my future lies.'

.

The remarks left his agent right narked: "This always happens when he goes away with the national team. I'd prefer he didn't speak to journalists but the Belgian team insist he does a press conference."

http://www.proudtobeavillan.co.uk/article.asp?a=980

Basically, he was saying that if Arsenal did come in and Villa wanted to ship him off, he hopes that Villa wouldn't dick him around like Genk did last year.

He also called for Lukaku to join him (now, whether that's with Benteke getting sold to Chelsea, or Lukaku loaned to Villa is anyone's guess).

guess it's going to be Capello for PSG, unless they play hard ball w/Ancelotti (which would be my preferred solution)

He's got * edit: Santos has accepted* 2 bids and is considering both of them from his office a few km from the Santos stadium. Santos club brass are awaiting his arrival there after dinner w his fam and he's supposed to announce then.

One bid is obviously Barca, the other supposedly Madrid but I wouldn't be surprised if there was some nouveau-rich french (psg, monaco) bids thrown in to up the absurdity (rumor has it Madrid is offering to put him on CRy's wage structure, par exemple).

really, i'm cool either way. maybe neymar will surprise me if he comes to barca, but that money saved on a potential transfer + the rumored penalty due to FCB + how much better spent that money could be spent... should he choose another team ... yo.

lol @ that though. also, looks like he's trying to outshine himself by sleeping on it.

word on the streets is it's actually his pops trying to drive the fee up and has been since the days of yore. whatever.

messi still pees on your face, though, you insufferable twat.

i was worried about you for a second

or was it just a case of the hurt feeeeeelings?

id never stooped so low as to label you an insufferable twat in public before that, elsewise, as insufferably twattish as you might be, i'd labeled you mad, upset, french, and delusional. some might consider these terms synonymous.

health is as it is. so "convenient" that i missed barca getting knocked out of the CL*. Here I am, shocked that they made it that far. Whatever. You and I both know that if Neymar goes to Madrid that unused cash is being immediately handed over to PSG for Silva, and as overpriced as that is, that's what I'd prefer.

*did notice PSG get their knees knocked by the big boys. gonna take a bit more cash to buy some experience, l'frogs! pardon!

hope it gets better

http://tracking.si.com/2013/05/24/neymar-agrees-with-barcelona/

Its not that he's a bad player, I feel like has been spoiled in Brazil and will have problems adjusting to living outside of Brazil...that in turn will affect his play

He has a gift for the spectacular when given space, which Brazilian defenses tend to give him. He'll be quite good, but the cautionary tales of soccer wunderkinds who were never able to adjust and evolve in order to be in the top echelon is long, and he could fall on either side of that divide.

Its something special about him. I just hope they give him a platform to flourish rather than make him another of messi's background singers.

he's basically an advanced AMF at this point, the full realization of that "false 9" role.

lot of it has to do with keeping him rested, since he can just roam in that position.

>Its something special about him. I just hope they give him a
>platform to flourish rather than make him another of messi's
>background singers.

he's like 50/50 owned or something like that.
plus there's that alleged 10m deposit they made last year.
Barca forked out quite a bit for him.

Madrid tried to hijack the deal but Neymar wanted to play w/ Messi.

swiping the relevant bits
http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer/laliga/story/neymar-ends-two-year-transfer-saga-with-barcelona-move-052513

In soccer, contracts are usually just a bargaining point to start from. So Barca’s representatives in South America got to work, helped by club president Sandro Rosell having built contacts in the region when he worked there for Nike in the late 1990s. This - reportedly - lead to Barca paying a €10 million ‘deposit’ to Neymar's representatives and agreeing salary terms of €7 million per year.

A deal still remained to be done between the clubs however, with negotiations now extra complicated as Santos had brought in help from ‘third parties’ to help pay his wages. While the exact details remain a closely guarded secret - investors including DIS, Teisa, Sonda and the player’s own father collectively ‘owned’ about half his rights.

...

Madrid club figures were remaining officially silent on the topic, as the club dealt with the departure of Jose Mourinho and signing of likely new coach Carlo Ancelotti. But again, well placed sources in the Spanish media had it that Madrid’s ‘representatives’ had not given up the fight yet - and were prepared to go to €100 million, even repaying the ‘deposit’ Barca had already put down.

those third-party owners weren't happy w the valuation at 18m and 22m ... don't think it includes the 10m deposit though, so it's basically 35m as far as i know.

still think the money would've been better spent on silva, though.

still hope he proves me wrong.

it's not like they need the money

ac milan was in financial shambles, hence the package deal.

i was pretty sure he was coming to barcelona, i thought after 3 years of no centrebacks, perhaps they'd land who i thought was the best CB in global football.

also, his agent contacted barcelona two weeks ago and put them on notice. problem is PSG is expecting a PSG-level transfer fee (see: why i was sort of hoping the neymar thing wouldnt happen)

WTF?!

barca overpaying YET AGAIN. at least this means no more big, overpaid signings this year, right? CAN WE JUST GET A CB AND BE DONE?
-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

that's going to hurt

I really wanted them to challenge the Barça/RealMad hegemony.
Lots of moves I don't like already this year
Gotze
Neymar
Falcao

Don't like any of these moves.

Can't really blame him for taking that kind of money and being able to live in that incredible location....but man, I really wanted to see him challenge himself.

good news. dude's about to get paid.

we have scouts at the game right now.
Thiago is giving Neymar #11.
we have reps there to meet w/ Barca execs and Thiago's agent.

http://i.minus.com/ikCEHPOap3YoO.gif

all courtesy of @712insider, the most reliable source i've come across for transfer rumors.


From RedCafe
The press gossip is basically that Barca's management know they've screwed up. If he'd played 60% of matches this season the release clause would be 90m, not 18m. They're now in damage limitation mode - particularly because Real Madrid are sniffing around.

They've resigned themselves to losing him, hence the articles last week. They'd sooner lose him to a PL club. They've suggested to him that if he insists on leaving then if he goes to the right PL club, they can come and rescue him later. United are on their "safe" clubs list.

*keeps fingers crossed*

Please no.

though that "we'll come back for you" idea is amusing to me.

Medicals before the transfers are official, apparently.

all_stah, yall need to slide Courtois over to Barca fyi.

140m payday for winning the playoff promotion. and we get their best player *asshole grin*

tell me thats a typo

edit- holy shit ... 120m GBP. damn i knew promotion was serious but BPL taking it to another level.

Whoever finishes last will make about as much as Man Utd earned this season, around 60m.

i know, i know, i know. it's better for the competitiveness of the league. i think the difference from 1st to 20th was like 60m to 40m. that's it.

but it handicaps the fuck out of us. we could be on that RM/Barca level if we could negotiate our own TV deal.

spread the love around.

united has separate sponsors for their training shirts at old trafford and their training shirts wherever the fuck they actually train at. they're good.

- apparently Thiago's release clause would jump to 90m if he played this weekend as it'd trigger a certain stipulation, but he's already joined up w/ the U21 team so he wont be playing. an indication for where his head lies? take that how you will. whatever happens, we wont know officially until late June. but we are going forward w/ this.
- were also going after Strootman still too.
- City offering Dzeko as part-exchange to Napoli for Cavani (PLEASE GOD DONT HAPPEN lol)
- Lewandowski to sign for Bayern this week (i really wish these guys would stick w/ Dortmund. could've built something special.)
- Essien following Mourinho back to Chelsea
- Newcastle sniffing around striker Eder from Braga.
- Valdes to Monaco (already mentioned, but idk why they'd want him to be honest)
- Barca's already selling Neymar 11 shirts. i was hoping he'd pick some silly number like 77.
- Real may be interested in Suarez. Can't imagine Liverpool would sell him though.
- Bayern have come out and said that Robben isnt going anywhere.

according to barcastuff twitter, which is pretty good for this stuff.

Neymar's number isn't assigned yet. people could pick whatever number they wanted, fwiw. most picked 11 because it's his number, but a lot took 7 on the assumption Villa's leaving.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

per barcastuff:

barcastuff ‏@barcastuff 5h

5 Barcelona players won't be available for the last league game due to national team obligations: Alves, Montoya, Bartra, Thiago, and Tello.

----

but i don't think he's leaving. he just played his 100th game and xavi basically named him his heir apparent in the postgame presser ... money makes a man do strange things, so it's not concrete, but i'd be surprised.

annnd then therss this:

barcastuff ‏@barcastuff 2h

ESP U21 players will be released from Wednesday to Sunday, which means Montoya, Bartra, Thiago and Tello are available for Malaga game.

IOENO.

to serve in xavi's metronomic and all-too-essential (to fcb hegemony, at least) capacity, though?

he's also very young (shit i was surprised he was still eligible for the u21s).

he's more of an iniesta-style player imo.

the likes of xavi we won't ever see again, not even when he coaches!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHsIzHLctgI

it's amazing how much he's developed. true world class player.

http://i.imgur.com/frnXxyM.gif

club america's coach reacting to their mexican title victory over cruz azul lol.

another one
http://i.minus.com/ibmaGaASDtiOiU.gif

Florentino Pérez: "Everybody knows I speak with all the media. But I do it in private"
Florentino Pérez: "There are journalists that want to have a greater influence on RM than they should have"
Florentino Pérez: "Unfortunately the situation on the 3 years I wasn't here was not good and I had to come back"
Florentino Pérez: "Mourinho has not asked a euro (for ending the contract). He has already said that and I'm saying it now"
Florentino Pérez: "I don't know if Karanka will leave or stay"
Florentino Pérez: "Mourinho's departure is of mutual agreement. Nobody has to pay nobody"
Florentino Pérez: "I've never heard anybody say that Casillas leaks"
Florentino Pérez: "Cristiano is our best player with difference. He has had an exemplary behavior"
Florentino Pérez: "All of our players speak wonders to me about Mourinho"
Florentino Pérez: "José Mourinho has taken us to our rightful place. In all his years we've reached CL semifinals"
Florentino Pérez: "We want Zidane to lead our sporting project for the next four years"
Florentino Pérez: "The coach and Zidane will decide Kaká's future"
Florentino Pérez: "Kaká arrived 4 years ago alongside Benzema and Cristiano. Between these players we've increased our income in 30%"
Florentino Pérez: "If somebody wants Coentrão they'll have to pay the clause on his contract"
Florentino Pérez: "Falcao is a very good player, but I've heard he's signing with Monaco"
Florentino Pérez: "I think Isco is a great player but we have a lot of other players in his position"
Florentino Pérez: "Carvajal is coming to Real Madrid. He's one of our own"
Florentino Pérez: "Mourinho hasn't done any damage to the club's image. What happens is that when he makes a mistake it transcends globally"
Florentino Pérez: "When Mourinho makes a mistake he apologizes for it"
Florentino Pérez: "Around Real Madrid untrue stories are created"
Florentino Pérez: "Real Madrid is so grand that a lot of people want to become famous at the expense of the club"
Florentino Pérez: "Cazorla? We have Özil, who is very hard to substitute"
Florentino Pérez: "there is the thought of two great signings and also promoting some of the cantera kids"
Florentino Pérez: "Zidane does not want Jesé to go away"
Florentino Pérez: "There has not been any offers from any club about any player. We have not spoken with anybody from Juventus"
Florentino Pérez: "I like Klopp, but his players are kids and not Real Madrid's"
Florentino Pérez: "Mourinho will be remembered for his work"
Florentino Pérez: "I think Toril is spectacular, he wants to remain in the cantera"
Florentino Pérez: "A lot of your journalist partners have hurt Casillas more than helping him"
Florentino Pérez: "The club thinks Casillas is the best GK in the world, but we can't intervene on the coach choices"
Florentino Pérez: "Barcelona's media helps Barça. Madrid's media does not help Real Madrid"
Florentino Pérez: "Cristiano is the best in the world and I want to build around him a champion Real Madrid"
Florentino Pérez: "All the coaches have the same amount of power. What changes is each personality"
Florentino Pérez: "Replacing Xabi Alonso will not be easy and that will be the future trouble of Real Madrid"
Florentino Pérez: "There are things that I dislike, like the pressure some want to have over this club"
Florentino Pérez: "This year some of the media have gone too far with us"
Florentino Pérez: "Mourinho has always wanted to protect the players"
Florentino Pérez: "The greatness of Real Madrid is its independence"
Florentino Pérez: "Neymar is a magnificent player. I could've sign him if the conditions did not alter the club's ecosystem"
Florentino Pérez:" (Neymar)We had to pay his club, his father, an investers fund. Adding the tax expenses it would have cost us more than €150 million"

http://www.totalbarca.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/1369697179068-250x78.jpg

great move if it happens.

i used to dislike this guy because he reminded me too much of CRy aka Tristiano Llorando, but he's growing on me.

It's not open quite yet, is it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transfer_window#Current_schedules_and_exceptions

i honestly dont think it even matters anymore since everyone is cooking throughout the year.

I know, I know...somewhat underwhelming compared to the previous three players they snagged, but it seems not a day goes by without them making a new announcement. Gotdamn.

hopefully a leverage move with spurs, but reveals no deal is done with tottenham and that gareth thinks madrid is his dream move yadda yadda yadda.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/may/29/gareth-bale-tottenham-hotspur-real-madrid

Gareth Bale's agent, Jonathan Barnett, has appeared on Marca TV to express his willingness to listen to an offer from Real Madrid for his client. Barnett, the chairman of the Stellar Group that represents Bale, said there had been no discussions as yet regarding a new contract at Tottenham Hotspur for the Wales international and he added that in his view, Bale was "worth more than Neymar … he's a better player than him." The Brazil forward has just completed a high-profile transfer from Santos to Barcelona.

Barnett spoke on the Futboleros show late on Tuesday night and although he said that Bale had three years to run on his Tottenham contract, it felt worrying for the London club that he should discuss the forward's future on a TV station with close links to Real. The Spanish club have long coveted Bale and the 23-year-old himself has always considered Real as the dream move if he were to leave Tottenham, who he joined from Southampton in 2007.

Real signed the midfielder Luka Modric from Tottenham last summer for £30m and there is the strong belief at the Bernabéu that Bale will now follow, even though the Tottenham chairman, Daniel Levy, has insisted that the player is not for sale or, at least, that it would take world-record money to prise him from White Hart Lane. Real set the mark in 2009 when they paid £80m to take Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United.

Real's confidence is based on their knowledge of Bale's admiration for them and, also, the intermediary work that Zinedine Zidane has put in on the prospective deal. The club employs Zidane in an ambassadorial capacity. Real, who have parted company with José Mourinho, intend to back their new manager with a marquee signing. Carlo Ancelotti of Paris St-Germain is the favourite to take over from Mourinho.

"If Florentino is interested in Gareth Bale, it would be an honour and we'd listen," Barnett said. "But his contract is with Tottenham. We aren't free to talk with anybody at the moment, that's the point we're at.

"I can understand a lot of teams are interested in him. He's a great player but he has a contract with Tottenham. I don't know if there has been a bid . What I do know is that the player has three years left on his contract."

Barnett was asked whether he was negotiating a new contract with Tottenham for Bale; Levy is known for his readiness to reward players after stand-out performances and Bale has just had the season of his life. His 26 goals in all competitions for Tottenham, plus five more for Wales, helped him to become the PFA's Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year, together with the Football Writers' Association's Player of the Year. "No, we haven't spoken with anybody," Barnett replied.

Barnett went on to discuss Bale's market value in relation to Neymar and how much the former may cost. The Neymar deal is complicated, with the basic fee to Santos and the other economic partners being €28m but the monies rising sharply with add-ons.

"Bale is a better player than Neymar and he's demonstrated it in one of the best leagues in the world," Barnett said. "I would imagine clubs want him not just because they missed out on Neymar but because of how good he is. He should be the first option, we'll see … Bale is worth more than Neymar.

"Bale is very relaxed … he's enjoying a deserved holiday. He only wants to be happy and enjoy his football."

Tottenham remain determined to fend off Real and Bale's other admirers, while they push ahead with their incoming business for next season. Their top target is still the Brazil and Internacional striker Leandro Damiao, who they have tried to sign for the past few transfer windows. Further talks between Inter and Tottenham have taken place and Levy is hopeful of closing a deal for around £18m.

André Villas-Boas, the Tottenham manager, has a very good relationship with Bale, and he has endeavoured to help him to enjoy his football; he gave him a free role in behind the striker in the closing stages of the season. Bale's respect for Villas-Boas was reflected when he named his new-born daughter Alba Violet, meaning that she shared her initials with the Portuguese. Villas-Boas has maintained that there is no chance of Tottenham losing Bale this summer and he would be horrified if they did.

The club's failure to qualify for the Champions League was a blow to their hopes, though, as Bale is eager to play regularly in Europe's elite competition. He enjoyed his first taste of it in 2010-11, when his performances first attracted the attention of the continent's biggest clubs. Bale is realistic about his chances of playing at the major international tournaments with Wales, which has heightened his focus on the Champions League.

thank you ba(s)le(d) agent

it's on some lebron james vs. carmelo shit.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

lawd have fun negotiating w/ THAT dude.

not sure how he's gonna work w ronaldo though.

>not sure how he's gonna work w ronaldo though.

if RM was moving CR7, it makes some sense to me, but they still have so many options in attack that bale could/would get lost. with CR7 there, it's worse ... even with the possible packaging of di maria to spurs.

at liverpool. i like bringing in kolo toure to shore up the defense. if he can bring to the back what gerrard has done at mid while these younger players develop, i'll be pleased. i'm a fan of the youth movement and am hopeful they can sign that greek kid as well.

but i wish someone could wave a magic wand and make these carroll and suarez headaches go away.

suarez is actually a great player when hes not biting people.

And unlike King Kenny's plan, this one seems based on not overpaying.

It's going to be a pretty slow climb for a club that fell as far as LFC did, especially financially speaking. The club was almost put into fucking receivership at one point, you know?

But I like that the club seems to be trying to build a foundation.

I hope we sell Suarez and bring in someone else, even if there's a talent dropoff.

>
>I hope we sell Suarez and bring in someone else, even if
>there's a talent dropoff.
>

i dont buy it though.

He says he wanted to stay but the club had other ideas. Contract not renewed. He'll likely play in France for a year or two and then return to Barcelona as a part of the technical staff. Hate to see him go out, but I do applaud Barça standing with him and letting him see out his contract through the cancer and surgeries. He looked surprisingly good in the few matches he played this year, and he should play in the final game this weekend.

He's gonna come back to run the global academies in 1 or 2 years.

Great guy.

Merci, Abi

https://twitter.com/danaeboronat/status/340063781034020864/photo/1

Was just announced that after being forced to retire due to Leukemia diagnosed last season, he'll be on as an assistant to fellow club legend Gordon Cowans at the Villa Academy.

And PSG poached our groundskeeper, who was named best in England something like 5 years running.

this fool mushed/pushed a referee after a contentious decision in a league game, verdict came out today

the rumor was, if it was going to be a long suspension, the Qataris would dump Leo and keep Ancelotti (whose main reason for wanting to leave, besides getting a shot at Madrid, is that he can't stand Leonardo), giving him full control; otherwise, they would give the coaching job to Leo himself.

sooooo...9 months qualifies as LONG AS SHIT. THANK YOU BASED LIGUE 1.

PLEASE FOLLOW THROUGH, QATARIS. Get rid of Leo's pompous ass, give the keys to the mister (and as for you, mister, you know what to do...FREE MENEZ).

and leave on a free transfer. WTF, dude?!?! let the team sell so you don't cost an additional 10-15 million to replace. goddam.

meanwhile, puyol plans to play till he's 40. captain caveman will never die, except he kinda doesn't have it. though he's claiming to have played through injury all season. maybe a summer off will help. still, the backline and goalkeeper position are a hot mess right now and barca's not really doing anything to inspire confidence there.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

Likely just realizes that there aren't that many tasty destinations for a keeper out there right now.

in other news, the Falcao move is officially official now.

I thought the other teams were demanding a tax-equivalent payment before they accepted them back?

the professional league and the federation initially were working together to try and get them to move their headquarters to France, so that they would be submitted to the same tax rules...

but then Le Graet (the president of the federation) supposedly decided to wing it and told them all could be settled for a mere 200M euros. That leaked out, so now he's saying Monaco was actually behind that proposal...not sure who to believe, but in any case, the league is pissed off because they likely would not see much of that money AND I'm guessing it's peanuts compared to what Monaco will save in taxes if the new French tax rules stay, anyway.

I don't see it ending with them still in second division, though.

"I call the big one Bitey" - Homer Simpson

God I would love to get £50M for Suarez and have him off their hands.

To blame the media without putting any onus on your ridiculous actions which dragged your club's name through the mud, as they put their neck out for you, while further trying to act like Madrid is knocking at his door when it's actually vice-versa....I mean, this dude is just appalling. What a genuine piece of shit.

all of this.

if LFC can even get half of that, i would still call it a good day.

I'm not sure what other conclusion to come to.

He has the emotions and maturity of a pre-teen.

is he worse of a character than Balotelli?

far far worse.

and his off the field antics make him likable not despicable, Suarez on the other hand is just a full fledged heel. Not sure how they're comparable.

That was last season

http://www.chelseafc.com/news-article/article/3199099/title/mourinho-appointed

they're basically buying the entire Porto squad
they're still after a bunch of other players too (Marchisio and Cabaye being the most famous names)

in other Ligue 1 news, PSG is looking to buy Lucas Digne from Lille (19 year old left back with a lot of talent)...and the word is Silva did say (in 'private' conversations, supposedly) that he was very interested in a move to Barcelona. If Leonardo lets him go (for any price), he's officially a dumbass.

i give him a month before he gets homesick lol.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jun/03/jesus-navas-manchester-city-signs-17m

i liked Neymar
oh well

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22760770

i thought the tablecloth was bad. i'll never complain about ours again.

http://www.footyheadlines.com/2013/02/liverpool-13-14-home-away-third-shirts.html

when i saw that away kit. ouch that's bad.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

For a team like LFC with such a rich history, there's no need for anything like this. It looks like a checkered flag. Let FC Le Mans do some crazy ish like this.

The third kit is even worse.

I don't know about what Warrior is doing. I kinda like what they did with Sevilla though.

http://www.footyheadlines.com/2013/04/sevilla-13-14-home-away-warrior-shirts.html

>Let
>FC Le Mans do some crazy ish like this.
>
>I don't know about what Warrior is doing. I kinda like what
>they did with Sevilla though.
>
>http://www.footyheadlines.com/2013/04/sevilla-13-14-home-away-warrior-shirts.html

nah fam, that's ugly as well.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

they're right in the article, this is going back to the worst of the early 90s. Gotdamn, that's awful.

who is Warriors? is this one of those new Chinese brands?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrior_Sports

for what it's worth.

of all the lacrosse manufacturers.

http://www.footballshirtculture.com/13/14-kits/sevilla-2013-2014-warrior-home-and-away-football-shirts.html

i kinda like that though.

those two are horrible

got way too much time on his hand but i'm just gonna crib the post since the site is migrating to a new forum. it doesn't say a lot that we don't already know, but it's nice to have the numbers behind it.

----
I read the article in The Sun's by Paul Jigging earlier and being a football nerd I wanted to do my own research to look at the issue at hand.

I've looked at players aged 21 or younger (as of today) who have recorded 1min or more in their domestic league and listed their nationality (including dual nationalities).


https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/30654692/cafsoccer/nationality_chart.jpg

I've now looked to see how many minutes the players are getting and averaged it out as a percentage.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/30654692/cafsoccer/playing_chart.jpg

So on average, an English U21 player is playing 14% of the Premier League. While a German U21 player is playing 19.4% of the Bundesliga. Worrying times for English football and highlights the real issues we face. Not only are we producing less players, but we're also playing them less often. We are last in every category. Also for a league famed for our pace and energy, we actually play the least amount of kids (joint with Spain).

If you combine all 5 leagues together you can look at the bigger picture.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/30654692/cafsoccer/nationality_total_chart.jpg

---
What I also found interesting is that almost 50% of the players in the Premier League are foreign. Only Serie A has worst stats, but they play more youngsters and thus still have more Italians coming through.

I've been wanting to make a thread based on this ever since I noticed the issue through Soccermanager months ago. But wanted to wait till the season was through before posting a review.

There's no labels anywhere.

because we just signed him. all i know is that i couldnt sign him in FM.

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11667/8760132/Transfer-news-Manchester-United-poised-to-seal-move-for-Guillermo-Varela

Varela spent time on trial at Old Trafford at the end of last season and he is know to have impressed United's coaching staff.

Now the 20-year-old full-back is flying to England to finalise the move for a reported £1million fee.

Penarol club treasurer Rodolfo Catino is travelling with Varela to conclude the deal on their behalf.

He Tweeted on Wednesday: "In San Pablo airport waiting for the connection to London, with Guille (Varela) about to board."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jun/06/fernandinho-signs-manchester-city-sport

straight silly money.

Shaktar must have been like, "yes, please, he's all yours."

Insider ‏@ 712insider 3m
Arsenal have activated Marouane Fellaini's release clause. (Source: Times)


Wayne Veysey ‏@wayneveysey 2m
Key to Fellaini deal is that buy-out clause is £22million for a club who finished in top four.

the wages will be tell a lot about how serious Arsenal is about spending dat guap.

>Insider ‏@ 712insider 3m
>Arsenal have activated Marouane Fellaini's release clause.
>(Source: Times)
>
>
>Wayne Veysey ‏@wayneveysey 2m
>Key to Fellaini deal is that buy-out clause is £22million for
>a club who finished in top four.
>
> the wages will be tell a lot about how serious Arsenal is
>about spending dat guap.

I fucks with dude, and addresses a real need in terms of "creative toughness"

>"creative toughness"

prototype for that (besides a bunch of germans) probably being Vieira

>>"creative toughness"
>
>prototype for that (besides a bunch of germans) probably being
>Vieira
>
>
Yep, Shit our boy Redondo fits in that spectrum real well, might have him as the poster boy

(shit had me doing the YouTube/memory lane search, not much, cept this:
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=Hv_xCdzGhhY&desktop_uri=/watch?v=Hv_xCdzGhhY EDIT, this is better, but for the love of god put it on MUTE! : http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wcRa_1HtwFA&desktop_uri=/watch?v=wcRa_1HtwFA )


my dog Yaya too...

I'll be honest, I was always glad he missed the '98 cup over some stupid hair controversy, because with him, Argentina might have gone all the way

didn't know he could have been in the '90 one too (I'm reading he declined because he wanted to finish getting his law degree)

If this shit actually happens...will make me one of the happiest people on this planet. A ball-winning, strong DMF who can also link up instantly with the offense either through a linking pass or run. This is exactly what we need and what I've been asking for.

for 22m we can pass on him, but he'd be an essential buy and an integral figure for yall. if he can make the step up to that Champions League level game.

none of our MFs head the ball

Group A
Brazil
Japan
Mexico
Italy

Group B
Spain
Uruguay
Nigeria
Tahiti

Looking forward to this. Tahiti's going to get reamed but other than that all the matchups look pretty good.

>Looking forward to this. Tahiti's going to get reamed but
>other than that all the matchups look pretty good.

although it would be fantastic to see Marama Vahirua score against Spain and bust out the Tahitian rower celebration

Ben Fairthorne @BFairthorne 382d
French/English agents have spoken this morning, and 100% M'Vila will be an Arsenal player. If I am wrong, will delete account. #arsenal
M'Vila 100% will be an #Arsenal player. My old boss flew over for the euros today, French agent confirmed it. Announced post euros. End of.
Nothing has changed M'Vila will still be an #Arsenal player. No doubt.

with Fellaini IDK why this would be necessary. seems like that rumors been bubbling for a few summers now though.

I love him as a player..think Arsene can get the best out of him as a fellow Frenchman.

Transfer Centre @CentreTransfer 3h
BREAKING NEWS: Real Madrid have signed Gareth Bale for €90m. (François Gallardo; FIFA agent) #Transfers

please do not be true. i don't want to live in a world where Bale is the most expensive player ever lol.

i like twitter rumors too much.

one more year. cmon.

>please do not be true. i don't want to live in a world where
>Bale is the most expensive player ever lol.

PSG is about to break the bank for Ronaldo. FML.

If true, holy shit that's a lot of money.

along w/Higuain and someone else

i mean shit yall made Giroud's sorry ass get decent numbers. Higuain is damn good (very underrated imo) and he'd do work for yall. i hope that rumor comes to reality.

Good finisher who also understands movement....exactly what we need.

This team has no alphas. Naymar has been given the keys too early. This year at Barca will need to be a huge growth/leap making one for him.

I fucks with my man Fred, but if he is your striker ... You ain't winning a WC. Oscar is clearly the best player not named Silva, but seems like they insist on subordinating him for Neymar. Don't know how I feel about Hulk either... Shit


Also, damn this France team is boring as shit, Ribery at least brought some zest and energy . ShitI as bad as Nasri fell off this year, he'd make this a bit more fun to watch.

They play like a team coached by Dechamps to play like he did

Brazil are about to embarrass themselves next year.

where has the flash gone?

Neymar is good... but he's no Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Romario...

No Zico, Socrates.

I think Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, and Marcelo are the best players on the squad... which is terrible for Brasil! None of them are gonna win games for you. All are good a role players, but they cannot be your best players.

I can't even remember a single name off of that team
I think people will remember Neymar and Thiago Silva when all is said and done

But to your point, that's the second worst squad of my lifetime... though I didn't watch then, so I guess "worst performance" might be more apt. They did have the noteworthy players I mentioned though.

there was actually a bunch of decent guys on that team

they had such a shit showing I couldn't remember any of them was on there (not only the 3 you mentioned, but Careca & Valdo were good players too)

>ShitI as bad as Nasri fell off
>this year, he'd make this a bit more fun to watch.
>

and Nasri was always ass, btw.

too bad he only plays 4 or 5 games a year (and one w/France every 2 years). a tragedy, even.

They've been wrong before but Myles is no rumormonger. Reason given is so Cesc can start every game and also be near his GF and daughter.

From ANR's lips to God's ears.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

Cesc is a better player but Afro man is a much "bigger" need

WTf is going on, he's your best player and is treated like an ancillary figure.

Also David Luis is the worst. What's the story with Dante from Bayern, him and Thiago Silva would Make one of the best center back pairings IMO

BREAKING: #Chelsea are currently considering two undisclosed bids for Juan #Mata. Reports #Jose wants €30M for the #Spain int. #CFC #RMCF

i am baffled

between hazard, oscar and mata, someone was going to be left on the bench as none of the three could really move back to CM.

just a thought. makes more playing time for lukaku and mo is keen to get him back to chelsea though lukaku ain't having it.

still seems weird to me.

daily fail and all...but they got quotes!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2337742/Romelu-Lukaku-wants-stay-Chelsea.html



'I always said my ambition was to play for Chelsea, and now I will go back to Stamford Bridge and try and play even more games than I did at West Brom,' he said, after Belgium's 2-1 win over Serbia last night. 'If I can score a few early on, it can turn into a really good season for me.
'I have had a good conversation with Jose Mourinho, and I know it's up to me to show I'm worth a place. It is the World Cup next year, and I need to be playing. But if I don't get in the Chelsea team often enough, then I won't deserve to be in the national squad.

'I am not afraid of that. I am determined to succeed with Chelsea next season. I want to prove myself. People will compare me with Didier Drogba, and he was always my hero. But I am my own man, and I want to be known for what I do.'

last i had read a week or so ago was lukaku was determined to go back out on loan for regular playing time, thus ensuring a spot on the belgium WC squad.

hope it works for him. lukaku is a beast and should be playing regularly. problem is the team won't be crafted around him at chelsea, so he may not get the same kind of attention as he did at west brom.

> the team won't be crafted around him at
>chelsea, so he may not get the same kind of attention as he
>did at west brom.

especially not if Mou sees Lukaku as the next Drogba, in which case he'll be the main man.

guess it goes to explain moving mata, but you still have hazard/oscar to appease. should be interesting, but mo has the beginnings of his classic spine, v2.0 if lukaku does develop.

prob not gonna happen but yeezus please!

Insider ‏@712insider 14m
BREAKING NEWS'; REPORTS IN SPAIN UNDERSTAND MADRID WILL SELL RONALDO FOR 75 MILLION AND SPEND THAT MONEY ON BALE

i wont believe it until i see it though. god i cant wait to have a proper #7 again.

unless of course they sell to PSG. in that case i'd be crushed.

he's going to end up in Paris and I'm probably going to stop caring about them altogether.

lol@Florentino Perez claiming he was like Di Stefano to Real the other day (i.e. non transferable) while working overtime on selling him behind the scenes.

Chevy (shirt sponsors in 2014) & Nike are eager to pitch in for marketing purposes, and that new TV deal kicks in soon so EPL money is about to go through the roof. i say do it.

although i'd be lying if i said i could see us dropping 50 mil on a player let alone 75. i hope so.

the latest rumor is Monaco is ready to pay 100M euros and give Ronaldo 20M a year (from the Independent, see http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/exclusive-monaco-set-to-make-world-record-85m-bid-for-real-madrids-cristiano-ronaldo-8654657.html)

super interested to see how this pans out

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

this would be the perfect combo of hate for him, but he's not around at all. damn.

also, Jonathan Dos Santos still refusing to leave on a loan even. it's like the bizarro version of his older brother--gio leaves against barca's wishes, kinda disappears as a club player (and possibly national side too now?). JDS refuses to leave, disappears as a prospect. smdh.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

lewandowski or bust.

plus we don't really need a forward all that much. dump the money on thiago silva!

http://www.elperiodico.com/es/noticias/barca/segun-fiscalia-futbolista-podria-haber-ocultado-millones-euros-2415732

for the Spanish challenged: he and his dad used a bunch of phony companies declared in Uruguay and Belize to hide the image rights money he earned from 2006 to 2009. He would owe 4M to the state. I guess it won't hurt him too too much.

i figured they'd hand him walking papers as soon as the game ended last night

There's no way you'd be able to get a new coach a week before a major tournament.

Vela sitting at home cheesing like shit that they cant score because he hates Chepo.

Lock his ass up!

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/13/sports/soccer/spanish-court-files-tax-evasion-charges-against-messi.html?_r=0

MADRID — Lionel Messi, the F.C. Barcelona star, and his father face a tax evasion investigation, after a prosecutor accused them Wednesday of defrauding the state of about 4 million euros.

The state prosecutor Raquel Amadao said that Messi and his father, Jorge Horacio Messi, used a network of offshore companies to avoid paying Spanish taxes on some of his advertising contracts.

The complaint focuses on Spanish tax returns filed between 2007 and 2009, but the prosecutor is accusing Messi’s father of setting up offshore structures to dodge taxes on some of his son’s publicity contracts as early as 2005, when Messi was still underage. Messi, who will be 26 later this month, is from Argentina but moved to Spain when he was 13. He denied any wrongdoing.

“We are surprised because we have never committed any infringement,” Messi wrote on his Facebook account Wednesday.

The complaint against Messi comes amid a crusade by Spain’s cash-strapped authorities against on tax evasion. A prolonged recession has also reduced Spain’s tax revenues and made it harder for the country to clean up its public finances and comply with budgetary targets agreed with Brussels. Over the past two years, dozens of fraud court cases have been launched, centering on politicians, businessmen and even the son-in-law of King Juan Carlos.

Last month, the government said that tax payers had declared assets held abroad worth 87.7 billion euros, or $117 billion, equivalent to 9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, in line with legislation passed last year that set much more stringent rules on the disclosure of overseas assets.

The finances of Spanish soccer have also been in the spotlight as the economic crisis has deepened, with the country’s clubs owing the Finance Ministry about 750 million euros in taxes, as well as accumulating 16.6 million euros in late social security payments.

Many of Spain’s struggling clubs have complained about the uneven split in television and other revenues, with Barcelona and Real Madrid receiving about half the total under the current TV licensing system.

This year, Messi extended his contract with Barcelona by another two years. He has won four FIFA world player of the year awards and recently led Barcelona to another Spanish league title, despite struggling with an injury toward the end of the season.

The prosecutor filed the complaint with a court in Gava, a suburb of Barcelona where Messi lives. A local judge must now decide whether the complaint justifies starting a trial. Under Spanish law, a conviction for large-scale tax evasion can result not only in a hefty fine but also jail sentencing for as long as six years.

reality though is that his corporate tax lawyer was trying to get shady

all good

FOUR!

man, fuck Spain.

y'all should watch

Thiago Alcantara's gonna be another cesc--let go even though errybody knew he's special and then rebought years later for a shitton of money.

just promise him time. christ. he can play. KEEP HIM!

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

I hate all the conflicting reports coming out of Spain. I just need all parties involved to come out and say he's staying.

and all copa. why the fuck not? it's not like he's not good enough. xavi and iniesta can use the rest. instead, he talks about wanting a smaller squad. wtf????
-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

Playing Adriano, and even Song in the backline despite having Bartra.

He needs to get this one right.

no way yall let him leave w/o a fight. FUCK.

He's playing like he's got something to prove.

One source said he wants more PT ahead of the World Cup. Which makes sense, except for it's still probably gonna be a while before he gets any tick with La Roja's senior squad. Too many ahead of him.
Xavi, Iniesta, Cesc, Mata, Silva, Javi Martinez, Santi Cazorla...

Xavi has already come out and said Thiago needs to stay. If there's anyone who he should listen to on the matter...
Deco was playing over Xavi in 2006.

...pretty much.

Zidane's not ready, so Pulis is the obvious choice.

Now, there's no swipe to support this theory. There is, however, a swipe to suggest he's going to Bilbao, which is also in Spain.

http://hereisthecity.com/2013/06/17/cf-tony-pulis-to-athletic-bilbao/

National newspaper reports have suggested that recently ousted Stoke manager Tony Pulis will be looking to put himself forward for the Athletic Bilbao job, now that the position has been vacated by Argentinian manager Marcelo Bielsa.

Despite the 55-year-old’s success with the Potters during his seven year stint at the club, there was a unified opinion from fans that his style of play lacked any sophistication or prowess. Securing Stoke in the Premier League, an FA Cup final and Europa League football couldn’t placate the paying spectators.

It is thought that a move to Bilbao would help the Welshman develop new management skills and adopt a new playing style, helping him regain his reputation on the continent, before a move back to England and hopefully a new job in the Premier League.

However, this idea is going to be particularly hard to sell to Los Leones fans who have become more accustomed to the ingenuity and charismatic football that outgoing manager Bielsa brought to the club almost two years ago.

Marcelo Bielsa had just finished his journey as Chilean national coach and came on a wave of adulation, having managed to get La Roja to qualify for the World Cup in South Africa (their first appearance at the competition in the 21st century) and becoming a national hero in the South American country.

His imagination and creativity, especially with tactics, was welcomed at Athletic Bilbao and in his first season he took them on an incredible run in Europe. They reached the final of the Europa League, slaying Lokomotiv Moscow, Manchester United, Schalke and Sporting Lisbon on their way, before succumbing to a 3-0 defeat in the final against Atletico Madrid.

Bielsa also managed to match a tenth place finish in La Liga with an appearance in the final of that year’s Copa del Rey where they faced Barcelona, unfortunately going on to lose 3-0 to the Catalan club. His achievements that season led Barcelona manager Pep Gaurdiola to state he was “the best manager in the world” and Athletic Bilbao striker, Fernando Llorente, say that he was a “genius”.

Unfortunately for Pulis, no comments from Gaurdiola were forthcoming. He was lambasted in the British press and by football fans all over the country for his direct play and long ball tactics (which you could argue was hardly an affliction just his Stoke team suffered from) and stories regularly leaked out of the dressing room about confrontations with players.

There is not any doubt that Pulis would like another opportunity to manage again and earn back the reputation he glowed with when he got Stoke promoted, but the possibility of joining Athletic Bilbao look slim.

The fans in northern Spain have been spoilt with much finer delicacies, and may find the baggage the Welshman would arrive with too hard to swallow.

all i have to say about ours is good fucking luck Moyes. there's a start for your ass.
but if we can somehow make it through that first half in decent shape than the back half is niiiiiiiice.


Manchester United fixtures 2013-14
17/08/2013 15:00 Swansea City (a)
24/08/2013 15:00 Chelsea (h)
31/08/2013 15:00 Liverpool (a)
14/09/2013 15:00 Crystal Palace (h)
21/09/2013 15:00 Manchester City (a)
28/09/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (h)
05/10/2013 15:00 Sunderland (a)
19/10/2013 15:00 Southampton (h)
26/10/2013 15:00 Stoke City (h)
02/11/2013 15:00 Fulham (a)
09/11/2013 15:00 Arsenal (h)
23/11/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (a)
30/11/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (a)
03/12/2013 19:45 Everton (h)
07/12/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (h)
14/12/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (a)
21/12/2013 15:00 West Ham United (h)
26/12/2013 15:00 Hull City (a)
28/12/2013 15:00 Norwich City (a)
01/01/2014 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (h)
11/01/2014 15:00 Swansea City (h)
18/01/2014 15:00 Chelsea (a)
28/01/2014 19:45 Cardiff City (h)
01/02/2014 15:00 Stoke City (a)
08/02/2014 15:00 Fulham (h)
11/02/2014 19:45 Arsenal (a)
22/02/2014 15:00 Crystal Palace (a)
01/03/2014 15:00 Manchester City (h)
08/03/2014 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (a)
15/03/2014 15:00 Liverpool (h)
22/03/2014 15:00 West Ham United (a)
29/03/2014 15:00 Aston Villa (h)
05/04/2014 15:00 Newcastle United (a)
12/04/2014 15:00 Hull City (h)
19/04/2014 15:00 Everton (a)
26/04/2014 15:00 Norwich City (h)
03/05/2014 15:00 Sunderland (h)
11/05/2014 15:00 Southampton (a)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jun/19/andy-carroll-completes-west-ham-move

i'm interested to see what the financial terms are, but liverpool's offseason is starting to pick up a nice head of steam. toure deal done, aspas all but a formality, mkhitaryan a likelihood, looking at mignolet, and now this porto striker atsu.

just that one albatross to get rid of...

Jokingly I hope...



http://www.totalbarca.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/See-you-in-Manchseter-Thiago.jpg

http://i.minus.com/iwPWpObE0xfGA.gif

secret agent De Gea FTW.

lawd we about to have a real midfield again

*prays*
*prepares to assassinate de gea*
*prays more*
*weeps silently*

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

De Gea: "We've been joking about Thiago joining, but Barça know they have a great player and I don't think they'll let him go."

Or is it "shukran"?


Frank Rijkaard (last fired by Saudi Arabia) and Marco Van Basteen (last coached Heerenveen to 8th last year) are the new targets.

Jesus, Leonardo is that toxic? Somewhere, Sven must be printing his resume and writing his own check.

that's per Capello's son (who's also his agent)

the new coach is Laurent Blanc. Three years ago, I'd have been excited. Now, after the way things ended with France...not so much.

Vilanova's only transfer request is PSG centre back Thiago Silva. Willing to accept Thiago's exit if Barcelona sign the defender. (sport)

via @barcastuff

I'm starting to accept the fact that Thiago Alcantara is leaving. He thinks it's in him to make the WC squad for 2014, but as his tender young age and considering those in front of him on the squad sheet, it's not happening. La Furia have a formula that works, so best he could hope for is a long-term injury to one of his fellow CMs and even if he were riding the pine 50-50 w/ Xavi he'd still be considered for that last-minute call-up. Being heavily courted by one of the most storied clubs in the world and offered about twice as much money and a guaranteed spot in the starting lineup would definitely turn anybody's head, let alone a 22yr old captain of his u21 team who just shone as brightly as he did this summer.

I understand if he bounces. That said, could we -- any of us -- imagine Xavi wearing the rossoneri? Exactly.

But hey, we've needed a world class tried-and-true CB for about 3 years. If we can use some of that sale of Thiago to United (Moyes gonna let us throw a buyback clause in there?) to smooth this deal w the petroligarchs over, so be it. When it comes down to the come down, we're in FAR more need of a centreback than we are for a deep lying, scheming-on becoming an attacking CM. *sigh* maybe Cesc should stick around then.

And Silva is THAT DUDE. He's wanted Barcelona since before came in w the last minute petro dollars last season!

C'mon baby baby cmonnn baby baby cmonnnnn

As much as I want him to, he's said he's staying at PSG.
I hope I'm wrong, but...

The Alcantara situation... as I've mentioned several other times here, is bothering the fuck outta me.

thank you based Madrid for not letting City get him.

http://espnfc.com/news/story?id=1484245&cc=5901

Wack.
I'm tired of the established order over good players going to 1 of 6 teams (including my own squad).

I'm not a fan of Blanc to say the least, but since this is pretty much a 1 year deal, I'm not as mad as I might've been. Still, my interest level in this team is dangerously low

I used to like him as a coach, but the way he handled the 2012 euro was a disgrace, so I'm not all that excited. Hopefully he will be down with the FREE MENEZ movement, though.

not a great track record as far as his end of tenures go

gotta wait until July 1 where we "reveal" him like nobody knows who our next manager is. before we announce Strootman and Thiago.

why wasn't he revealed weeks ago so we can fucking get on w/ it.

Nice to see that ugly fucker got his wish to be closer to home, equatorial-ly, I guess.

guess we'll see how much tevez (and his wife/wag/whatever) want to be someplace other than manchester.

that english player tax is a motherfucker. 12m is too much for him as it is.

Really too bad. I like(d) him.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jun/27/isco-joining-real-madrid

he's coming, his wages are getting tripled, whats the holdup?

did he make any other big signing announcement?

http://instagram.com/p/bJ30r4kYH8/#

http://i.imgur.com/OtvIAZ6.gif

http://cdn2.mocksession.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/AVB-EXCITEMENT.gif

http://www.whoateallthepies.tv/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/avb-push.gif

http://www.thedenimkit.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/avb-man-u-celebration.gif

It's a good buy, and hopefully he will be playing next to Sandro next year.

http://i.imgur.com/IsqUG.gif

Very solid move

so says the most reliable Man Utd twitter rumor account @corrienationstr

http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1490412/thiago-silva-agent-talks-barca-move?cc=5901

Though Bruce would have been the better tactical match if Bob were still the US manager.

Well....

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/south-american-football-referee-beheaded-fans-killing-player-084120459.html

South American Football - Referee beheaded by fans for killing player
There were absolutely horrific scenes at an amateur football match in Brazil when spectators lynched a referee and put his head on a stake after he had killed a player.

The barely believable incident happened in Maranhao, Brazil, last Sunday.

According to reports in Brazil, referee Otavio Jordao da Silva (20) fatally stabbed footballer Josenir dos Santos Abreu (30) during a heated moment of a match.

Santos Abreu is believed to have argued and then struck the referee after being unhappy with a decision.

It is believed the referee was carrying a knife throughout the match and fatally stabbed the player in retaliation.

Santos Abreu was rushed to hospital but died from injuries on the way.

Outraged by the incident, some spectators then apparently decided to inflict a gruesome revenge on the referee.

According to reports, the referee was tied up, beaten, stoned and quartered. They then put his head on a stake and planted it in the middle of the pitch.

One man, Luiz Moraes de Souza, 27, has been arrested over the incident. He has admitted to assaulting the referee but denied killing the man. Police are searching for two more suspects.

They are currently viewing video footage of the incident filmed by a witness with a mobile phone.

In a statement, the regional delegate of Santa Ines, Valter Costa, who is looking after the case, said: "One crime never justifies another crime. Actions likes this do not collaborate with the legality of state law."

>In a statement, the regional delegate of Santa Ines, Valter
>Costa, who is looking after the case, said: "One crime never
>justifies another crime. Actions likes this do not collaborate
>with the legality of state law."

how do you say 'bath salts' in Portuguese ?

"dismembered referee" on liveleak

Just knowing it exists is enough.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23222924

BBC picked it up, so may have a shred of truth in it. Still highly doubtful but if it's true, probably an elaborate bluff to accelerate the Higuain move.

ALL THAT SAID, would welcome him with open arms. As long as he doesn't bite them. Har har.

hate him when he's on another team, love him when he's on yours.

>Still
>highly doubtful but if it's true, probably an elaborate bluff
>to accelerate the Higuain move.

We know 30 million isn't getting Suarez lol

also, Abidal to Monaco has been confirmed

I wish it could've been villaXfalaco though...
That would've been a fucking strike force.

Hope he does well.

why?

I guess you could say Zlatan is not that young, so you have to prepare for the future, but since it seems they're going to buy a shiny new striker every summer regardless of who's on the team already, that doesn't really make sense.

in any case, assuming they play with two defensive midfielders (Blaise + Verratti, or maybe Cabaye since they're reportedly looking to sign him too) and that both Cavani and Ibra play (Blanc already declared they had compatible profiles), that leaves 2 spots open for Pastore/Menez/Lavezzi/Lucas. I know Menez' agent must be getting busy right now.

still after Lucas Digne for left back (that'd be good)

as for Silva, I don't think they'll let him go this year at all, but if they do, it won't be for 32 mil. Barca is going to have to up the ante if they really want him (they may be able to use the MU money they'll be getting for the other Thiago).

does that mean Lewandowski is coming...

4 year deal, undisclosed fee. But it's thought they got him for cheap with some loophole since they got Tomas Pina from Mallorca too.

I was hoping he'd team up with David Villa at Atleti but I hope this works out for him.

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11677/8814213/Aston-Villa-confirm-Christian-Benteke-has-handed-in-a-transfer-request

so...Chelsea? Spurs? teh Arse?

Translation: No, Spurs, we don't want Jermaine Defoe. Though we miiiiiiight take Lukaku if Chelsea want to offer him.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jul/09/christian-benteke-tottenham-spurs-villa

Christian Benteke will cost £25m - and no swap deals - Villa tell Spurs
• Villa want cash-only deal with White Hart Lane club
• Chelsea may have a chance if Romelu Lukaku is included

Aston Villa have made it clear that Tottenham Hotspur will have to break their transfer record for the second time this summer if they want to sign Christian Benteke. The Midlands club are determined to dig their heels in over Benteke's future, after the Belgian international submitted a transfer request on Monday, and they have no intention of settling for anything less than £25m.

Tottenham have tracked Benteke for months, and the player is understood to favour a move to White Hart Lane, where he would be guaranteed regular football, yet there are doubts about whether they will be able to meet Villa's valuation, especially after they spent £17m on the Brazilian Paulinho this month. One way to finance the transfer would be to include a player, possibly Jermain Defoe, but that sort of deal is of no interest to Villa, who will demand that Spurs pay the fee in full.

Randy Lerner, Villa's owner, is determined to adopt the same hardline stance that frustrated Liverpool in 2008, when Gareth Barry ended up missing out on a move to Anfield. Villa demanded £18m for Barry and refused to budge on that figure, forcing Liverpool to eventually concede defeat in their attempts to sign the England international, who went on to join Manchester City for £12m a year later.

Villa's position on Benteke, who has three years left on his contract, poses a major challenge for Tottenham. André Villas-Boas is desperate to recruit a top-class centre-forward, and the Spurs manager believes Benteke has all the attributes to succeed at White Hart Lane. Perhaps crucially, Benteke has also emerged as the most viable option for Spurs at a time when they have missed out on David Villa and, for a variety of reasons, are no closer to signing Leandro Damião, Roberto Soldado or Loïc Rémy.

Tottenham could yet face competition from Chelsea and Arsenal, who watched Benteke before he joined Villa from Genk in a £7m deal last August. In the case of Chelsea it is possible that Villa would feel differently about a makeweight if Romelu Lukaku, who spent last season on loan at West Bromwich Albion, was included as part of the package.

Should Benteke leave Villa, his departure will have no bearing on Darren Bent's future. Villa remain keen to offload Bent whom Alan Pardew, the Newcastle manager, admitted is on a list of five strikers – which also includes Rémy – that the club are interested in signing. Wolfsburg are also monitoring Bent's situation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRaiE3ZrzrQ

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23253963

other than that, Sports (the Catalan sports rag) says Thiago and Barca would have an agreement (5 years at 9 mil a year) and that Thiago will lobby Paris to let him go.

are more or less reliable than others?
It seems to me that they're all full of shit to varying degrees, but...

I called 'Sports' a rag mostly because I'm gonna be mad if they're right (they probably are, based on what Thiago's agent said, then again, it's not just up to Thiago).

even if their tendency to gossip about locker rooms feuds is annoying as shit, I find l'equipe to be pretty accurate when it comes to transfers. Carriere Dello Sport, too.

I have really no clue when it comes to British or Spanish papers.

interesting.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2359028/Wilfried-Bony-complete-12m-Swansea-switch-24-hours-striker-pictured-shirt.html

will do well. more goals than Jozy

I think Ibra's awesome, but I would not be mad at that, as the Edinson Cavani move would make a whole lot more sense. He might not be quite as great as Zlatan, but he's much younger, so the swap would be a good thing and there would not be such a glut up front.

Benzema is reevaluating life choices as I type.

also, Thiago Silva's camp denied what Sports reported yesterday. For what it's worth (probably not much).

CRy not gonna be happy, if true. Too many goals for Ibra.

This might be the contigency to still ship his unhappy ass out of town without retaining Bale.

and provides a clear upgrade over Benzi, who should really think about leaving, like Higuain. I'm sad to come to this conclusion, but he's not good enough to get consistent playing time on a team like Real.

Ibra likes to scale back sometimes and participate in play making in the midfield, but so does Benzema, and when you have great, intelligent players like Ozil, Di Maria and Ronaldo (no matter how hatable he is), that's never a problem.

from an ego standpoint, Ibra will most likely step on some toes, but they're used to that type of star shit in Madrid.

I cannot see that working out AT ALL. They would probably end up going at it on the pitch.

>I cannot see that working out AT ALL.

sheiiit.

So much for

(1) Pep not poaching players like he'd promised to

(2) Thiago leaving bc he wanted more playing time (BM midfield stacked!)

lol whatever.

just get off PSG and tell Silva to c'mere

Do I want Alcantara to stay? Of course. He's a generational talent and should play the Xavi role to the fullest, meaning waiting his turn patiently. Shit Xavi almost went to Milan but he knew this and now he's the metronome of a historical NT.

Club level though? Dear god we're playing Masch, Song, and Adriano at CB. How is this acceptable? Before his dx we were playing Abidal at CB.

We don't need a midfielder. WE'VE NEEDED A TRUE CB FOR 3 YEARS NOW.

Like stop putting that out into the universe if him actually signing somewhere else hasn't been announced.

5-7 years is extremely generous for our midfield. Tito has said that Xavi will be playing less this year. Iniesta is 29 and will start needing more and more rest soon enough. So yeah... Cesc is there but Thi needs to sit his narrow ass the fuck down.

But obviously we need a CB. I'm personally starting to cool on Silva though. He's about to be 29. Paying a huge amount for a 29 year old isn't the best move, imo. I'm curious about this Marquinhos kid though. And I wish the David Luiz stuff would go away as well. He isn't suitable for our squad.

That's our midfield in about 3 years.
c
I'm good w Marquinhos too but I wouldn't trust him in a CL semi for a few years.

I'm mostly posting these Thiago to ... statements to irritate nighttripper. Check this history of his reactions on this very thread lol

from his current DM one?
Hmmm...

i haven't seen the evidence.

>I'm mostly posting these Thiago to ... statements to irritate
>nighttripper. Check this history of his reactions on this very
>thread lol

now please proceed with more incoherent, supposedly mad making drivel

or maybe comment on how your boy swindles his dumb ass fans with the help of a shady Miami sports promotion company
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2013/07/lionel-messi-soldier-field-chicago-9-year-old-fa/

*dismisses any statements about my boy*

little dude, my frenchman from another opium-addled prostitute, you went from "what makes you think thiago silva would leave psg?" and mocking my statements that silva wanted to go to barcelona initially to "welp thiago said he wants to go to barcelona"

your team is new money. live it. love it. dont be a bitch about it though.

>little dude, my frenchman from another opium-addled
>prostitute,

you're not a funny guy. stop trying to be.

>you went from "what makes you think thiago silva
>would leave psg?" and mocking my statements that silva wanted
>to go to barcelona initially to "welp thiago said he wants to
>go to barcelona"
>

no, what I asked you (and as I said above, it was a sincere question) is, what makes you think PSG would let Silva go? I thought maybe you knew something I didn't, I should have known better. The fact that Thiago himself would rather play for Barcelona (provided the money is there, though...he's no dummy) is not a surprise for me.

>your team is new money. live it. love it. dont be a bitch
>about it though.

no shit, sherlock

with that said, Barca lives off the exact same new money these days

also...fyi: all this Catalan mystique you like to tout (as a dude of Indian descent from Cali, mind you) is nothing but bullshit nowadays. It meant something 40 years ago when Franco was ruling, but in our days, Catalans are Spain's tea partiers, bitching like sissies because they have to pay taxes that help support other, poorer regions.

bye now.

>>little dude, my frenchman from another opium-addled
>>prostitute,
>
>you're not a funny guy. stop trying to be.
>

o i hit a nerve? sorry chicago bulls fan that claims americans cant appreciate soccer because theyre from, well, where chicago is

>>you went from "what makes you think thiago silva
>>would leave psg?" and mocking my statements that silva
>wanted
>>to go to barcelona initially to "welp thiago said he wants
>to
>>go to barcelona"
>>
>
>no, what I asked you (and as I said above, it was a sincere
>question) is, what makes you think PSG would let Silva go? I
>thought maybe you knew something I didn't, I should have known
>better. The fact that Thiago himself would rather play for
>Barcelona (provided the money is there, though...he's no
>dummy) is not a surprise for me.
>

LOL that is not what you asked.

>>your team is new money. live it. love it. dont be a bitch
>>about it though.
>
>no shit, sherlock
>
>with that said, Barca lives off the exact same new money these
>days
>

oh god this leveling the new playing field is so fake. not even real madrid can compete with the funding from the arab states. real madrid only has the state of spain whilst sheikhs have oil to piss in. stop being so willfully naive.

barca is nowhere naar madrid and thus nowhere even close to the petroleum puppeteers of france/russia/emirates. stop pretending like you dont know.

shit competing w madrid is what got barca into debt to begin with.

DEBT. HAS PSG HEARD OF IT?

>also...fyi: all this Catalan mystique you like to tout (as a
>dude of Indian descent from Cali, mind you) is nothing but
>bullshit nowadays. It meant something 40 years ago when Franco
>was ruling, but in our days, Catalans are Spain's tea
>partiers, bitching like sissies because they have to pay taxes
>that help support other, poorer regions.
>
>bye now.

see subject because you really dont know shit about me. holler at guru for further misunderstanding.

and keep this in mind when your little kid is cheering for monaco.

also, you can't read. I literally quoted to you what I wrote above in this thread.
bye again, twat.

i am utterly disgusted at how tight were being.
especially when we seem to have no problem paying 15m for fucking second division wingers. or 18m for Ashley fucking Young.

it's clear that we do not understand how to play ball in the current climate of the transfer market.

in summary. PAY THE GODDAMN FUCKING VAT AND GET HIM.

I hope this means no more Khedira on the team. Maybe finally we can get rid of that fukn water carrying runner. You're welcome Germany....you too can get rid of him.

http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/Actualidad_Primer_Equipo_en/1330154564833/noticia/Noticia/Asier_Illarramendi,_Real_Madrid%E2%80%99s_new_player.htm

they even tried to sign thiago lol

got shut down w the quickness

but the point is to get that shit done

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000217603/article/shad-khan-jacksonville-jaguars-owner-buys-fulham

"Still, this adventure into London shows a desire to grow his revenue and potentially grow the Jaguars' name overseas. It's not fair to Jaguars fans, but the move will only increase speculation about the team someday moving overseas, too. London papers already are suggesting as much."

the jax jaguars though?

i know the nfl does have a game per season in london and id heard they were looking to expand that.

but we cant find 25m to pay for a world class CM in the making. a fucking steal in this market. i cant.

25 Million Euros. Atleast they made enough money from the sale. Maybe they'll stop trying to get Thiago Silva on the cheap.

http://www.marca.com/2013/07/14/en/football/barcelona/1373826275.html

Fuck you Rosell.

he's gonna get no more time at bayern than he did at barca. wtf. i generally side with pep over rosell, but this all sucked and everyone looks worse for it.

at least we didn't hand him away for free. fucking a. rafinha better fucking stay (after he returns from loan, of course). and sergi roberto better be what people think he can be. at least busquets' lack of pace won't cripple the defense as much when he moves forward into xavi's role, if that's really tito's plan.

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

Admittedly I haven't seen /that/ much of him... but the hype surrounding him doesn't match what I've seen. Unlike with Thi were you could see the shine just underneath the rough.

Bayern's midfield is stacked like Chelsea and Barca's are. Pep must've made some guarantees.

In short, fuck this.

And yea PSG are looking at Marquinhos because even they realize Silva would rather be w the gods.

He's the one who brought Thiago into the first team and then when he left, Tito (and let's not forget Roura) didn't use him as much. Preferring to run Xavi into the ground. Thiago's agent is Pep's brother so once Pep said "the only player I want is Thiago" it was over.

I can only hope that Rosell gets ousted and Pep and Thiago come back.

BREAKING - PSG & Roma have agreed on €32M + bonuses for Marquinhos, and the player himself has almost agreed terms, 5-year deal.

TransfersCenter ‏@TransfersCenter 6h
Edinson Cavani will arrive in Paris tomorrow for a medical. #PSG

Ibra & Silva out?

apparently Marquinhos is the business.
https://afootballfanthinkingaloud.wordpress.com/2013/04/26/marquinhos-defensive-prodigy-a-rare-breed-in-calcio/

>
> Silva out?
>

His agent said he would stay yesterday. Most likely a ploy to get Barcelona to stop bullshitting and make a serious offer (32 mil is not going to do it). If not...Mamadou Sakho really needs to find himself another club. Hopefully not anywhere in ligue 1.

just pure posturing....rumors about Ronaldo, Falcao, Thiago....all bullshit Glazers feed fans....we are not going to solve our midfield crisis...we will wait till August to sign some cheapos and create more rumors...make it look like we are doing something. Fuck this stupid shit about a 70 million pound warchest....we will not do shit worthwhile. We will end the transfer season by getting Fellaini and Baines...and call it a day.

you're not going to get any of those strikers. you've got rooney and rvp and nobody wants to compete w that.

the thiago thing did come out of nowhere, see my post earlier in this thread where nighty got mad.

who can really pass and be a nice bridge.......all the big talks and rumors about the big names is a tactic that has been used in the Glazer era to cover up for what we really need, and why we aren't paying good money to fix it. Baines is not as good as Evra in my opinion....but I understand him coming in..he fixes nothing....Fellaini will not fix our issues in central midfield..a good player to have, but our issues will still be there....

this is just a bid that we know they are gonna say no to...and then we can turn to the fans and say "see, we tried, we went after big names" ..It is bullshit.

Maybe he thinks Barcelona is too hot, and prefers playing in a cold drizzle.

makes pretty clear sense to me.

that seems like a great move to me on part of the MUFC. i'd be happy/excited about that.

25 million buy back stipulated in the transfer contract....so unless Cesc makes it clear he only wants to play for ManU, it's most likely not happening imo

i don't even need to read the espn article to know how dumb it is.

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

you'll see the case they made. i'll say "not needing him" wasn't their point.

the point was more for HIM not needing to be there, for his own good.

i assume it's this article: http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/manchesterunited/id/2417?cc=5901

Neymar doesn't affect Cesc's position--neymar's playing on the wing. Cesc's not playing on the wing. Neymar's taking Villa's minutes + Tello's and eating into Alexis and Pedro's minutes. Cesc's minutes are to spell Messi (that might get eaten into) but also to rotate with iniesta and xavi, both of whom can't play every game and .

cesc got the most minutes of any midfielder last season for barca. i wouldn't be surprised to see that again. cesc's spot on the national team also isn't in question. the only way it would be is to move to england and not be a star. that's how you get replaced by del bosque. who's going to take his spot on the team? cmon.

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014 -Rex LongFellow

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

yes, he can feel 2 emotions at once. #progress

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jul/16/wayne-rooney-angry-manchester-united

get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.
get rid of him.

oh yeah, get rid of him.

of course i don't believe it because there's no way we'd turn down Mata, let alone w/ another 10m on top right?

RIGHT????

*facepalm*

Not crazy about Luiz, but Mata would be a great option if the Cesc deal doesn't happen.

5 year contract, 15 mil transfer fee.

all goals scored by Cavani last season
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eOkgNMBMqjo

top 20 nicest goals scored by Falcao ever
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iM4EbgISU1M

obviously, two different compilations, but if you go by them...Cavani is a scoring machine, but Falcao's got more flair and scores nicer goals. *gasp* at how amazing some of this shit is (I'm guessing there would be a top 20 nicest goals by Cavani out there if he really scored stunners like that).

here's is the full l'equipe article this was taken from
it's in French but you can check out the graphs. Goals scored per season over the last 4 seasons, then a 2013 graph with avg time between goals/goals in open play/pk goals/shots per game/% of shots on target (pretty nice avgs there)/shots on posts)

http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Falcao-cavani-qui-est-le-meilleur/386334

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpe3yY6SIfY

but Falcao is definitely nicer with it. as far as general effectiveness they're about even.

some ill long range bombs in there...but yeah, Falcao seems to pull acrobatic/improvised stuff (back heels and such) on a more regular basis. That bicycle kick was textbook though.

http://metro.co.uk/2013/07/17/chelsea-transfer-news-blues-target-hulk-joins-monaco-3886950/?ITO=news-sitemap

£52m is a lot to pay for a a striker whose out of form and doesn't complement Falcao at all.

You know that they played together at Porto 2 years ago and won both the league and Europa, right?

shit feels like 5 or 6 to me.

I thought Falcao preceded Hulk.

'what you mean, lot to pay? I don't understand-uh' ((c) Russian bol)

http://i.imgur.com/XzrdJ.gif

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkB9OT2XVvA

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014 -Rex LongFellow

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

I think it was Bombastic who linked it up first in the Nyets thread
but it works for every Russian bolionnaire

star player/agent double speak translation: "Barcelona, if you really want ALLADIS *points to self in circular motion* you're going to need to up the ante, I'm not cheap 32M euros date"

not what I felt like when this all started, but Silva can go now, I wouldn't be mad at that at all. If he stays because Barcelona can't pay enough...that means Momo Sakho needs to go find himself some playing time elsewhere, which would be sad.

- Per Marca, Arsenal offered 26M euros for Higuain, Madrid wants 40. Arsenal don't want to go beyond their offer, so they're about to switch back to Suarez.
- Moyes hinted MU is still negotiating for Fabregas. As usual when it comes from one of the parties involved, to take w/a grain of salt.
- Kevin Gameiro to Sevilla seemed to be a sure thing a week or so ago, but it's lingering (why? ship him; he's got ZERO prospect of getting tick with Paris). So now they're looking at Bafe Gomis, like Newcastle.
- Arsenal would be very close to signing 20 yo Bernard from Atletico Mineiro. Bernard is just a funny nickname for a Brazilian dude. Don't know anything about him, but apparently he's coveted.
- Liverpool is after Ben Arfa. Not completely sure that'd be the right move for him...doesn't matter anyway, he's not getting any consideration for les bleus as long as Deschamps is the coach.

if Hulk can command 60M (although I have not seen any confirmation of that yet), 40M for Higuain is not that absurd. Although they're very different players, I feel they're about at the same level.

I haven't heard of any in play for Higuain.

after discovery of another cancer relapse. prayers for his health and eventual return

man...
positive energy to Tito...
and shit if this isn't an out and out terrible off-season.

losing alcantara//gaining neymar is going to be an aggregate wash in my opinion, though I hope otherwise. I have always valued the pseudo-closed culture that is fcb & can only hope that management keeps it 'real' (aka homegrown) w/ our manager-to-be. regardless, it is not a thought I endeavored to entertain, and I still cannot seem to consider it. god bless, tito e familia

I bet Jupp H would loove to step in as 1-year savior because, after winning the CL with Bayern last year, if he turnedaround to beat Bayern and win the CL with Barca this year -- wouldn't be the favored outcome but Barca will have as good a chance to do it as anyone -- he'd be a god.

Please no AVB or Roura. I think Mancini's good but he's not a fit for Barca.

How's everyone feel about Rubi?

Bielsa?? :)

Marquinhos officially official with Paris
Marseille got Gianelli Imbula (good Congolese midfielder)

i do love all the "committed to the club until 2017" talk.

http://cdn.uproxx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/leonard-dicaprio-dancing.gif

#277

AVB to Sky Sports News: 'Bale is not for sale, at any price' (Tottenham is talking about doubling his wages)

just stumbled upon this digging for transfer news. Apparently, this store sells Villa jerseys with no sponsor on them (if the product shipped actually matches the picture).

http://www.11footballclub.com/recherche?orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=aston+villa&submit_search=

I don't buy jerseys, but these two are official as fuck

The sponsor this year is pretty assy, and I really like the away this year (although I did also buy both kits last year- the BRIGHT ASS GREEN away was just too fun to pass up, and I got the home at the US tour stop in Philly).

I tried to check the Macron official store too, just because this piqued my curiosity, and they don't even have this year's kit, so I dunno

https://twitter.com/spursofficial/status/358935215265169410

don't think they would drop 40 mil, but who knows, they got Cavani money (which is how oil money indirectly drives prices up, even for players the Russians and Emirs don't bid on directly)

MU would be looking at Vucinic now (not sure if the Bale/Cesc was entirely posturing or not, but this seems like a more realistic target)

Roma would be ready to use some of the Marquinhos money on Gervinho

Apparently Napoli will shell out 35 million euros for Pipita. The teams have agreed on the price and Napoli needs to hammer out a deal with the player. I will miss him if he ends up leaving.

>don't think they would drop 40 mil, but who knows, they got
>Cavani money (which is how oil money indirectly drives prices
>up, even for players the Russians and Emirs don't bid on
>directly)

to replace Coentrao. That's if Coentrao ends up leaving.

http://as.com/diarioas/2013/07/21/english/1374421532_352936.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuevhPiZUC8

sigh.

Unconfirmed as of yet. But ALL the Spanish press is saying he's signed a 3 year contract.

I was hoping for Luis Enrique.

But, like most folks I'd venture, I don't know much of anything about Tata. Just that he coaches the Newell Old Boys (Leo's first club) and that he likes to playing attacking football, with a well organized defense. We'll see how this works out.

I was REALLY hoping for Luis Enrique though.

doesn't that mean he's defense-oriented? Word is he has Messi's support, dunno how much that played into the decision but that can't have hurt

was bielsma's main MF guy, like his xavi to pep, when he played. His Newell's team is barca style in Argentina, but Paraguay he played defensively because there was no way they could compete otherwise. A barca coach who is flexible in his tactics? Count me as excited.

plus, he might bring a good CB over from Newell? holy shit!

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014 -Rex LongFellow

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

didn't really get a chance.

-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014 -Rex LongFellow

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

his elementary school has produced documents that claim he's 29 instead of 27.

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/416482/Arsenal-boss-Arsene-Wenger-fails-at-the-sales

Would love to be proven wrong, but yeah this is turning into that same old tired tease

BTW That picture is awesome

Don't worry though..next year we'll have a 140 million "war-chest"!

I'm curious, are you hopping off the gunners' train if they do sign him?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/jul/23/tottenham-roberto-soldado-valencia

Tottenham Hotspur last night moved close to a deal to sign the Valencia striker Roberto Soldado. The Valencia president, Amadeo Salvo, admitted that the London club are "not far" from meeting the €30m (£26m) asking price which matches Soldado's official buy-out clause. Valencia would accept that figure as an agreement rather than an imposition, saving Spurs from having to pay tax on the fee.

Tottenham's director of football, Franco Baldini, travelled to Valencia on Monday morning, where he was met by Soldado's agent Alberto Toldrá. He then held meetings with Salvo in the afternoon, during which Spurs are understood to have improved their original bid of €24m.

The 28-year-old, who had previously admitted he would like to play in the Premier League and has been on the verge of leaving Valencia before, notably to Marseilles, has agreed terms in principle. He would earn around £3m a year.

On Monday morning the Valencia manager Miroslav Djukic had said: "I think Roberto is going to stay with us, although you can't rule anything out. I don't think anyone will pay the buy-out clause.

"From the start we've said that Soldado isn't for sale and that the only way he could go is that someone comes in, pays the clause and the player accepts to go."

But Baldini's visit puts a different complexion on the situation. Spurs will resist paying €30m and their chairman, Daniel Levy, has a reputation as a tough negotiator, prepared for talks to become drawn out in pursuit of the right price, while Valencia's financial crisis means that they have to sell. Soldado would follow David Silva, Juan Mata and David Villa in leaving the club.

If Spurs meet the buy-out clause, Valencia will be able to present the transfer as something that they were unable to prevent. Even if Spurs do not meet the official €30m valuation, the Spanish club believe that a deal is virtually inevitable now.

Sources in Spain suggest that there has been interest from Liverpool, too, but that only Spurs have made a formal offer. Valencia have a board meeting on Tuesday, at which they could officially approve the transfer if an agreement is reached.

"There has been contact during which Valencia have communicated that we want the €30m," Salvo said. "Tottenham's mission is to get the player at the best possible price and Valencia's is to get those €30m.

"There's not much margin now. For the deal to be closed, two things have to happen: for the lad to want to go and for the price that Valencia demand to be met. Then the board would study it."

Soldado began his career at Real Madrid and has scored 82 goals in 141 games for Valencia, having hit over 17 league goals a season for each of the last three years. He is a Spain international, with six goals in 11 appearances. But, although he was included in the squad for the Confederations Cup, he is by no means guaranteed a place at next summer's World Cup.

Soldado would become Tottenham's second major summer signing after the Brazil midfielder Paulinho. It would also be significant for them to hold on to Gareth Bale. "The manager has come out and said he's staying and that's great news," the defender Michael Dawson told Sky Sports News. "To do what Gaz did last year was sensational – some of the goals he scored and the points he won for us."

Spurs still haven't met Valencia's valuation

it appears. sigh

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/soccer-napoli-targets-higuain-reina-undergo-medicals-143323625.html

ROME, July 24 (Reuters) - Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain arrived in Italy on Wednesday as Napoli looked to sign the Real Madrid player and Liverpool's Spanish international goalkeeper Pepe Reina.
Serie A runners-up Napoli need a proven marksman to replace last season's Serie A top scorer Edinson Cavani, who was sold to Paris St Germain this month, as they prepare for another assault on the domestic title and a Champions League campaign.
The 25-year-old Higuain, who has also been a target for Premier League Arsenal, was met by dozens of fans at Rome airport after he arrived in Italy, with local media reports saying the forward was on his way to a Napoli medical.
Napoli midfielder Blerim Dzemaili told a news conference: "When players from Real Madrid come to Napoli, it must be a reason for pride for Napoli and the Italian league."
Reina is likely to lose out to Simon Mignolet, signed from Sunderland last month, as the first choice stopper at Anfield next season and the 30-year-old would be reunited with his former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez at Napoli.
Reina was photographed before having a medical in Rome. "He is happy to have rediscovered Benitez, with whom he worked very well," Reina's agent Manuel Garcia Quilon was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport's website. (Reporting by Mark Meadows in London; writing by Robert Woodward; Editing by Ken Ferris)

http://s.psg.fr/psg/image/phototheque/g/178/35576.jpg

i'd rock the shit out of a l/s version. god i need a job.

and 'Fly Emirates' is not the worst sponsor to have on a jersey either

*pondering purchase*

that's awesome

430 is getting bulky and we still have a month to go.

my scrolling finger is getting tendonitis.

I have a strong feeling it will.

http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2212888&mesg_id=2212888&page=
-----------
Y'all stupid...should've tanked for Lebron/Wiggins in 2014 -Rex LongFellow

It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.