El Clasico this weekend

[keniget]

Sheik and themn have owned this thread.

Great win for Barca. Even I expected them to struggle given Real's form and how dodgy they've been away from home this season.

After all the hype it was the same 'ol story from Real - cynical and negative. They had a few chances - they normally do - but for the most part the most expensive team in the world spent 90mins chasing shadows in midfield. They did a better job of it than normal in the first half but whilst the commentators were waxing lyrical about how right their approach was all they'd really succeeded in doing was stopping Barca from playing well (helped in no small part by Valdes) rather than playing well themselves.

 

[The Slugmonster]

[quote author=RedZeppelin link=topic=47845.msg1441571#msg1441571 date=1323585542]
can someone please explain why Barcelona and Valdes refused to kick it long ?
[/quote]

Because their front players are all midgets.......they need someone over 6ft (Andy Carroll for 50 million?? 8)) and carra to show them a good hoofing trick.

*Stops and actually thinks about Andy Carroll up top for Barcelona.
*Rolls on floor laughing.
*Stops laughing and faces the bitter reality that Andy Carroll plays for Liverpool.
*Cries :'(

 

[King Binny]

"Ronaldo rehearsing for the forthcoming Ballon d'Or ceremony"

 

[King Binny]

 

[KopKing]

I fail to understand the Barca-hate. They are a fantastic team and I love watching them play the game. 8 of their starting line up are Club produced players and they have shown a different way to team building than mega spending. We should aspire to being just like that.

 

[themn]

For us humans, could someone explain Binny's crayon diagram please ?

 

[KopKing]

5 players marking Messi, one man marking four other players maybe?

 

[The Slugmonster]

Its to emphasise how many players they have on Messi. Its not from last nights game anyway because Tiago didnt play.

 

[Buddha]

I thought Barca once again proved their awesome pedigree last night. Going a goal down after less than a minute in the Bernabeu against a cynical and physical Real side, yet again they didn't abandon their philosophy such was their faith in their end product.

Brilliant.

And they didn't get much protection (without undue complaint) for some pretty awful challenges either (even if Sanchez did play the cunt all night).

 

[King Binny]

Interesting stat from Sid Lowe's article

Puyol has now gone 44 consecutive games unbeaten – he was absent in each of Barça's past seven defeats – and here was a small glimpse of why. The captain didn't tell Valdés to get rid of it. Nor did he vow not to give the ball to him. The comedy error gave way to a simple message: Carry On, Víctor.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/dec/12/victor-valdes-barcelona-real-madrid

 

[King Binny]

[quote author=The Slugmonster link=topic=47845.msg1441586#msg1441586 date=1323595502]
[quote author=RedZeppelin link=topic=47845.msg1441571#msg1441571 date=1323585542]
can someone please explain why Barcelona and Valdes refused to kick it long ?
[/quote]

Because their front players are all midgets.......they need someone over 6ft (Andy Carroll for 50 million?? 8)) and carra to show them a good hoofing trick.

*Stops and actually thinks about Andy Carroll up top for Barcelona.
*Rolls on floor laughing.
*Stops laughing and faces the bitter reality that Andy Carroll plays for Liverpool.
*Cries :'(
[/quote]

Lol.

Something on Valdes

Few teams' convictions are as strong as this team's. Barcelona did what Barcelona do, and that includes Valdés. According to the statistical geniuses at Opta Spain, this season only two teams have passed the ball back to the goalkeeper more and Valdés has been given the ball almost 50 times more than Iker Casillas. For most teams, a back pass is a last resort, a release – a panicked prelude to a punt. For Barcelona it is different. Valdés is a player, let him play. His passing accuracy, at 85%, is easily the best in the league – not least because he actually passes it. He attempts fewer long 'passes' (over 35 yards) than anyone, at only 29%. Casillas is the nearest at 43.3% and only three goalkeepers are even under 50%.

So Valdés passed the ball. And so did Barcelona. Even as Madrid pressured high, Barcelona continued to take risks – not taking them is riskier yet; for Barça, a big hoof just means the ball comes back again, at the opposition's feet – and bit by bit they got into the game.

 

[the count]

Apparently Guardiola has said that if anyone wants to learn how to play like Barcelona they need to study the Liverpool team of the eighties.
Anyone else hear this?
Respect if he did say it.

 

[King Binny]

 

[Athens]

The spanish police really need to do something about this sniper that keeps on taking shots at the Barcelona players.