La Liga Megathread

Find it hard to be pleased for Atletico after reading Bertie Auld and co talking about them.

 

http://www.fcbarcelona.es/futbol/pr...fc-barcelona-para-las-proximas-dos-temporadas

 

Official: Barcelona announce the signing of Borussian Monchengladbach goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen (22)

Official: Barcelona players Deulofeu ((20) and Rafinha (21), on loan at Celta and Everton this season, return to the club this summer

Official: The contract of Barcelona goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto (38) won't be renewed, he has been informed this morning.

Barcelona will announce today that Luis Enrique will be the new coach. He will be officially presented on Wednesday.


Messi signing his contract renewal this afternoon, with Barcelona president Bartomeu

 

Loved watching Luis Enrique as a player. Done well with Celta Vigo, will be interesting to see how he gets on.

A few players shown the door allegedly

@GuillemBalague: The list of players not wanted or going: Valdés, Pinto, Puyol, Song, J. Dos Santos, Afellay, Tello, Cuenca, S. Roberto, Oier.

 

Really ? I think that squad of players and Simeone deserve massive credit. I won't let the actions of an Atletico team in the 70's in a tie against Celtic get in the way of giving the current Atletico team the credit they deserve. They won it playing exciting high tempo football.

No point being so bitter.

 

Aye, I watched a few documentaries on it and alot of footage of the game on Youtube and many of the fans have admitted how bad they were. One of them even said 'I apologise, we were dirty *' - in Spanish of course.

 

Atletico today are still * for me. Hope they win in the final though.

 

I think ter Stegen's overrated, glad he's not going to the World Cup. Barca should have gone for someone better with more experience.

 

I'm glad someone different won the league, but I hate atletico... Hope Barca make a come back next year with Bilbao and Valencia stepping up.

 

From what I've read early on, Luis Enrique isn't afraid to come in and shake things up.

 

I think he's exactly what Barcelona need right now. Tata made wrong decisions far too often.

 

I agree with everything there, massive credit and they were fun too watch. Stoll find it hard to pleased for them after reading what our legends say. Don't care if it's better or not, I care about the likes of Bertie Auld and it is hard to feel happy for them.

That doesn't mean I don't give them the credit that they fully deserve, it's an unbelievable achievement.

 

New Barcelona manager Luis Enrique: please don’t compare me with Pep

• New Barcelona manager says he will give youth a chance
• Luis Enrique coy on futures of Cesc Fábregas and Xavi
• ‘Javier Mascherano has all the qualities to be captain’


Barcelona's new coach Luis Enrique smiles during his presentation at Camp Nou. Photograph: Josep Lago/AFP/Getty Images

The new Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has asked not to be compared to Pep Guardiola – at least not until he has won a few trophies – and has pledged to give youngsters a chance.
The former Barça player was introduced to the media on Wednesday after being appointed as Tata Martino’s successor on Monday. “Please don’t compare me with Pep [Guardiola] now,” he said. “I hope it happens in future because that will mean we are winning titles. Am I apprehensive about the Barça task? Not at all, this is one of the happiest days of my life.”
Enrique represented the Catalan club for eight years and won two league titles, two Spanish Cups and one Cup Winners’ Cup. Asked whether he would continue to play 4-3-3 he said Barcelona would deploy “a system which suits the players we have and gets the best out of them”. He also said he would be delighted to promote young players into the first team.
“I love to support young players but I demand that they show hunger and ambition. The door is open to all B players, and all the players in the youth teams.”
The manager, however, was reluctant to talk about individual players’ futures and asked about Cesc Fábregas, who has again been linked with a move to Manchester United, the 44-year-old – who has also managed Barcelona B, Roma and Celta Vigo – said: “We are not getting into all the names now. We do not have to make decisions now, we have time.”
He did say of Xavi Hernández, another possible exit from the Camp Nou this summer: “I know Xavi, he is a friend, ex-teammate. We will sit down and talk, let us wait and see.” Of Javier Mascherano he said: “He has all the qualities to be captain. Good and important players will stay.”
The Barcelona director of football, Andoni Zubizarreta, added of the new manager: “Luis Enrique has the guts to take on tough challenges. And the challenge Barça face next season is a sizeable one, one that we will confront together.”

 

Luis Enrique has told the press how happy he is to be in charge of “the best player in the world.” He was speaking, of course, about Leo Messi. “I am delighted to have him in my squad. It is very motivating. I see that the club thinks the same and Messi is pleased to be here. He has said he wants to stay here until he retires. There is a connection between all three parties.”

The Argentinian signed a new contract this week, and Luis Enrique was asked to comment on his form, saying that “Messi has not been as incredible this season as he was in others, but he’s still the number one. We are used to him scoring 700,000 goals, and if he only gets 100,000 it’s as if something is wrong. He is about much more than goals. He is a vitally necessary part of the group. I hope I can bring out the best in him”.
Messi has not been as incredible this season as he was in others, but he’s still the number one
That doesn’t just mean Messi, but the whole squad, although Luis Enrique was cautious about naming names. “I have just landed” he insisted. “There will be changes in several positions, we need to strengthen the team as much as possible. A year at Barça is not any year. If you aren’t up to the job, it’s time for a change. We’ll make adjustments in every area and the better players we have the better it’ll be for everyone because we’ll have a team that generates expectations”.

Both Luis Enrique and Andoni Zubizarreta mentioned how, from this Wednesday onwards, they’ll be working on a daily basis to put together the best possible squad for the 2014/15 season.

One person the manager was asked about was Xavi. The Asturian answered that “he’s a friend and former team-mate. I can speak wonders of him and other former colleagues, but we all need to sit down and talk things through, and we can’t really do that until the World Cup is over”. His message about Mascherano was similar, though he did mention that “he is an example of a potential captain.” The names of Cesc and Neymar also came up, but it had reached the point that Luis Enrique preferred to put a stop to questions about individuals, as well as possible signings, but did admit that “we’ll have to decide whether we need a centre forward or not’”.
We all need to sit down and talk things through, and we can’t really do that until the World Cup is over
Pressed further to comment on possible future incorporations, Andoni Zubizarreta also made a call for calm, adding that “matters don’t only depend on us but on the world transfer market as a whole. The market closes on August 31. You must be patient. We won’t have decided on the definitive squad in 15 days from here and neither will we have decided which players to sell”.

But Zubizarreta was willing to comment on the three players that have already been confirmed for next season. On Goalkeeper Ter Stegen, he observed that “he’s good one-on-one, he knows how to play with a lot of space in front of him, he can use his feet and has the character to be a Barça keeper. But I could say the same about Jordi Masip”. It was mentioned that there are rumours that Barça have a third goalkeeper in mind for next season, but the Director of Sport preferred to pass on that question.

On Rafinha and Deulofeu he commented that “they are two new additions to the squad that will now have to fight to get into the first eleven, the second eleven, the third ... Nobody is guaranteed a starting place at Barça, you have to earn it”.

 

Good read.

Tata's system alienated Messi at times. I'm confident Luis Enrique will put that right.

 

Barcelona could be totally transformed when you think of it without changing much.

Like Mascherano is a really good defensive midfielder, Messi is a great playmaker, imagine him playing off a striker in the hole with a guy like Lewandowski up front with like Neymar and Sanchez on the wings.

Ter Stegen
Alves Pique Luiz Alba
Mascherano Fabregas
Sanchez Messi Neymar
Aguero

Just everyone been accustomed to them playing 4-3-3 and having Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta in the team. Although that's one of the best midfields of all time, now that they're kinda being found out playing slow paced passing and those 3 are still that great they may have to move them on and go to a more energetic midfield.

Same with Messi up front, he's scored for fun as a striker but you kinda forget he is still the best playmaker in the world, how would he do with a striker ahead of him and wingers beside him, not really worrying about scoring 50/60 a season but letting others score and just chipping in with 20/25 himself.
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Messi would give outstanding service in that position. No doubt he will play that role at some point in his career. I wouldn't think as soon as next season or the following one though.

 

Victor Valdés' successor Marc-André ter Stegen has signed his Barça contract. £9.7m fee paid to Gladbach

 

Aside from an unwavering loyalty to the Monarchy and the general consensus that they are the club of the "Spanish people", opposed to the pesky Catalans and their separatists, left-wing ways?

Yeah, nothing much in common at all really.

 

Racism charges against Real;