All About FC Barcelona

Champions League Draw Tonight

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 06:27:00 +0000

FC Barcelona will come to know about their opponent in knock-out stage of Champions league tonight. The draw will take place at UEFA Headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. Barca's potential opponents are Bayern Munchen, AC Milan, CSKA Moskva, Porto, Lyon, Stuttgart and Olympiacos. AC Milan with ex-Barca star Ronaldinho. Bayern, Lyon, CSKA and ex-Barca star Hleb featuring Stuttgart all are tough opponents in that group. Even though AC Milan is a pale shadow of their illustrous past, they feature in my list of "should avoid" teams. But a greater look at the other opponents also point to us a fact that this year there may not be any easy fixtures. Barca will be playing the second leg at home, courtesy of emerging as group winners. Bayern Munchen destroyed Juventus away on their way to the knock-out stage, meanwhile Lyon made it through a tough group featuring Fiorentina, Liverpool and themselves. So they all have form in their favour but historically we have done well against these teams.

CSKA will be a tough opponent as they will play more of a physical style and will very tough opponent at home. I would prefer Olympiacos or Porto as opponent. Which is your preferred opponent?

FC Barcelona vs Atlante pics

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:06:00 +0000

Atlante vs Barca Highlights

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 06:53:00 +0000

FC Barcelona -3, Atlante -1

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 06:45:00 +0000

FC Barcelona booked their place in the finals of 2009 World Club Cup by beating CONCAAF Champions Atlante 3-1. Barca went down a goal down as early in the fifth minute but strikes from busquest, Messi and Pedro helped Barca to a more than comfortable win. We will now meet South American Champions Estudiantes in the final. The early goal came from a mistake from our defense otherwise we had near perfect control of the game. Pedro while helping Barca win the game recorded history by becoming the first man to score in six different competition in a year. Messi was declared fit prior to the match and he was called upon to win the match for Barca. Guardiola went for a rather defensive midfield in the shape of Toure, Busquets and Xavi. Toure was playing in the role of a attacking midfielder while his usual role of defensive midfielder was done by Busquets. I never understood the logic behind that decision. Toure is a more solid player in defensive midfielder role than Busquets , why you want to take him from his best position. The attacking trio was made up of Ibra, Iniesta and Pedro. The defense had Marquez, Puyol, Alves and Abidal infront of Valdes.

The match started the wrong way for Barca. In the fifth minute we went behind by a goal from Rojas. Marquez failed to deal with a long ball through the middle and Rojas used his pace to get away from the defense and knock it past Valdes. Marquez should have cleared it in the first place. We are making a habit of conceding goals this way. Barca immediately responded with a Busquest header being saved from A Xavi corner. Then we saw a period of game where all the possession was with barca but we lacked pace in our moves and could not create any meaningful threat. The fact that we had two defensive minded players in midfield wasn't helping. Then in the 35th minute Barca broke on the counter and was able to win a corner. Toure did well to rise above the defense to flick Xavi's corner and the ball fell to Busquets who did well with the finish. With scoreline being tied Barca looked more and more calm with their game. In the injury time of the first hald Alves had a great chance to put Barca ahead. From a one-on-one situation he could only hit the side netteing.

Barca looked more determined in the second half. In the 54th minute Guardiola took off Marquez and Toure and brought in Messi and Pique. With that substituition Iniesta moved back to midfield and that started to have an impact on the game. Messi put barca haead in the next minute when he accepted a great ball from Ibrahmovic easily round off the goal keeper. Atlante had a chance to equalise at the other end when Rojas got past Pique but he recovered well to get a block on Rojas shot which was easily held by Valdes. Then in the 67th minute Iniesta dribbled down the left into the box and send in a magical pass to Pedro who did well with his finish. Iniesta's genius was in full display in that move but the problem this season is that he is not showing these form consistently. In the 75th minute Atlante's Marquez got away from Abidal but his shot was saved by Valdes. In the 78th minute who came in for Iniesta had a great chance to get into the scoresheet but he failed to get on the end of Alves cross. In the 88th minute Ibra collected a poor kick from goal keeper and curled the ball but the Mexican recovered to make a spectacular save. The goal keeper denied Messi in the 91st minute with a dive at Mesi's feet.

FC Barcelona vs Atlante Preview

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:57:00 +0000

FC Barcelona would eying to capture their sixth trophy in a near perfect season. This is one Championship which Barca hasn't won in its history. On the previous occassion we have lost in the final - In 1992 when the cup was called Intercontinental Cup, Sao Paulo beat us 2-1 and in 2006 we were done in by another Brazilian club, Internacional. Apart from that there are some other record to be made in this match. Pedro, the young Barca player will be hoping to make history by being the first player to score in all competition. He has already scored in Liga, Champions League, Copa del Rey, Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup and will definitely like to add World Club Championship to that list. Xavi Hernanadez will be playing his 500th official match for Barca, if he gets a chance. With Lionel Messi absent he will definitely be playing.

Meanwhile Lionel Messi has begun training on the sand of Abu Dhabi's beaches in an effort to aid his ailing ankle's recovery. He will be hoping to feature in the final, if his team make it. Guardiola may opt for a team which may feature a bit of youth in tonight's semi-final. Messi's absence means Pedro will definitely playing upfront, but it is not clear whether Bojan will feature in the starting eleven. I expect Guardiola to feature a attcking trio of Pedro, Bojan and Henry with Ibra starting from the bench. Iniesta and Xavi is a must in the midfield and should partner Toure in the middle. The defense also is likely to be shuffled, especially in central defense. We may see Chygrynskiy pairing Pique in the midfield with Abidal and Alves as full backs. It may be a nice time for Valdes to get some rest and leave the goal keeping job to Pinto. Not much is known about Altante, they have a player named Rafael marquez in forward, it would be quite funny for commentators if both Marquez come face to face in some situation. Another important player for Atlante is Santiago Solari, an ex-Real madrid player.

Atlante's form in 2009 is really encouraging for Barca. They have finished ninth in their league. But to their advantage they have got a chance to adapt to conditions more than Barca. For Barca players the temperature at Abu Dhabi would be a contrast to what they have experienced in Europe, especially opposite to Kiev's one. But still we expect this Barca side to roll over the Atlante side. I predict a 4-0 victory for Barca.

Pictures of Fc Barcelona Training in Abu Dhabi

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:20:00 +0000

World Club Championship Preview

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:02:00 +0000

FC Barcelona would be looking to win a trophy which has eluded them two tinmes in the past in the World Club Championship in Abu Dhabi. If they manage to do the same then it will be their sixth trophy in a fantastic year. Guardiiola has already highlighted the capturing of this eluding Championship as a priority for Barca. The team has already left for Abu Dhabi and will have their first training session on monday. By courtsey of being the Champions of Europe Barca will have to start their campaign from the semi-final stage. The South American champions also are given the same advantage in the Championship. Most of the time the final comes down to a clash between the best of Europe and South America. Europe with their enormous talent on display is expected to win each of these, but surprisingly the South Americans always had the upper hand.

The FIFA Club World Cup, formerly known as the FIFA Club World Championship, is a football competition contested between the champion clubs from all six continental confederations. The champions of Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Oceania and Africa lock horns for this prestigous trophy along with the host representive. FC Barcelona's opponent in the semi-final will be Atlante football club from Mexico. They have beaten the Auckland City FC to earn a place in the semi-final. In the other semi-finals we hyave the South American champions Estudiantes de La Plata from Argentina facing the Asian Champions Pohang Steelers from Korea.

FC Barcelona eleven is expected to feature some of the youngsters. For the likes of Bojan this could be his last chance to impress a coach who don't think high about him. Milito is another player who may get some playing time after his long lay-off from the game. Guardiola also could pick Pinto ahead of Valdes as the Goal Keeper in the Champioship.

Messi Presents Balon d'Or to Camp Nou

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:29:00 +0000

FC Barcelona vs Espanyol Pics on 12/12/09

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:20:00 +0000

FC Barcelona vs Espanyol Highlights on 12/12/09

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:09:00 +0000

FC Barcelona - 1, Espnayol - 0

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:05:00 +0000

FC Barcelona have made sure that they will end this year as winter champions with a 1-0 victory over Espanyol in the first edition of local derby. Real Madrid meanwhile have won at Valencia reducing the lead to five points, they will have a chance to further reduce the lead to two points while we are away in UAE for FIFA Club World Championship. The victory may not have been a convincing one and courtesy of a highly controversial Ibrahmovic penalty but Barca really deserved it on back of their highly dominating first half performance. Messi who missed the clash presented his Balon d'Or title to the Camp Nou faithfuls before the match. Lionel Messi's absence saw Pedro getting a starting line-up place along with Henry and Ibrahmovic. Iniesta, Toure and Xavi formed the midfield. The defense had Alves, Pique, Puyol and Maxwell in front of Valdes.

The first chance of the match fell to Espanyol when Barca failed to clear a long ball in the first minute, luckily Coro's effort was high. After that it was more of a one way traffic with out midfield taking full control. Barca responded immediately by winning a corner but Pique's header from Xavi's corner was straight at Kameni. Then in the 14th minute Pedro had the perfect opportunity to put Barca ahead. Toure's ball into the box was a harmless one, but Pedro did well to block the clearance and the ball rebounded and fell for Pedro who only had to beat Kameni but shot well wide of the post. From a very promising position that was a pathetic effort. In the 15th minute Verdu had a shot from outside the box tipped over by Valdes. In the 17th minute Ibrahmovic fed Henry with a delightful ball whose shot was parried away by Kameni. In the 36th minute Maxwell blasted high from a veryu good position in a move which he only started. Maxwell gave the ball to Ibra in the box and continued his run, Ibra fed the ball in Maxwell's path but his finishing was not up to the mark. In the 38th minute Ibrahmovic crossed from the left, trying to find Xavi; the ball was well over him but he went down by a simple brush by Baena and the referee pointed to the spot. It was really a very generous decision which Ibra duly converted in Messi's absence.

The second half saw Espanyol coming out and attacking Barca much more. In the 50th minute Valdes did well to hold onto Alonso header. In the 54th minute Alves sent in a great cross across the goal mouth after a neat one-two with Pedro, but unluckily it was behind every Barca player. In the 60the minute Guardiola brought in Keita for Pedro to counter the Espanyol attacking threat. In the 62nd minute Marquez had a long range shot after Alves have given the ball away from a throw in. The next minute saw a series of attack from Espanyol; first Maxwell did well to clear a dangerous cross from left then from the resulting play off the rebound, Valdes was called upon to catch a weak shot. In the 72nd minute Iniesta played the ball to Keita wide on the left, Keita's cross was met with a weak header by Ruiz, the ball fell to Ibra on right but he volleyed high over the bar. There wasn't much chances in the rest of the half.

FC Barcelona would be happy to see the back of a very tough opponent. It wasn't a convincing victory but it did maintain our lead on top. I am worried with the lack of chances being created lately. Ibrahmovic has been linking well with his team mates, but it is no doubt that he is lacking a bit of pace which could have made Barca extremely dangerous in the counter attacks. Iniesta did look good at times in this match. Toure was solid throughout the match. Bojan did get some time but it was again too little for a player of his caliber. He may expect to get some more time in the FIFA World Club Championship.

Fc Barcelona vs Espanyol Preview

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:54:00 +0000

Barcelona derby tonight will be FC Barcelona's last La Liga match of this year. The team will be off to UAE to take part in FIFA World Club Championship. FC Barcelona currently have a five point lead over Real Madrid who has played a game less. This is the best oppurtunity to increase or maintain the lead. Barca meanwhile will be without the service of Lionel Messi, who has been injured in Kiev. Espanyol always is a very tough team for Barca to beat. Thei last visit to Camp NOu ended in a 2-1 victory for them. That match saw a howler from Valdes. Valdes has been repeating the same in the last two matches, but will do good if curb hgi tendencies tonight. The good news for Barca is De la Peña and Tamudo may not feature in tonight's encounter. These two players always use to trouble our side. Toure Yaya may finally get a starting call, but even if that happen he may ot feature in next season's Barca team. Meanwhile Guardiola would be tempted to rest some players so that they could feature in the world championships. But then local derby is not a match where you want to send a weakned side.
Valdes as usual will guard the goal. Let's hope he don't do anything silly in this match. The defense most probabaly will have Alves, Chygrynskiy, Marquez and Maxwell. Iniesta, Toure and Xavi may feature in the midfield. The attacking line mostly probably will have Pedro, Ibra and Henry. This encounter has never been a push-over as far as Barca is concerned. But the absence of Tamudo and Pena might already have swung the encounter in our favour. I expect Barca to notch up a comfortable victory by a scorline of 3-0.

Barca Tops The Group; Dynamo Kiev - 1, Barca -2

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 07:25:00 +0000

FC Barcelona topped Group F after a 2-1 comeback victory against Dynamo Kiev. Barca went down a goal down in the 2nd minute of play but goals from Xavi and Messi saw Barca registering a well deserved victory at Kiev. Inter meanwhile beat Rubin Kazan 2-0 at San Siro and qualified along with Barca for the knowckout stage. Barca and Inter were everyones favourite to go through this group but nobody expected it will this much dramatic. Courtesy of being the winner of the group, Barca will now play the return leg of the knockout stage at home. Barca's likely opponents are Olympique Lyon, Bayern Munich, AC Milan, Olympiakos, CSKA Moscow, Porto or Stuttgart. Barca would feel relived to have avoided the chance of pairing with English teams this early in the competition. Guardiola once agained dropped Toure in favour of Busquets. Nown it looks more than certain that wee would see Toure moving out may be in January, if not definitely in the summer. Valdes kept the goal ahead of a defensive line of Alves, Pique, Puyol and Abidal. Xavi, Busquest and Keita formed the midfield. Messi, Ibra and Iniesta formed the attacking trio.

The match started in a complete wrong note for Barca. Kiev went ahead in the 2nd minute from a Milevskiy header. Shevchenko sent in a great free kick from the right side and it got the slightest of touch from Milevskiy, but Valdes made a meal of that and guided the ball through his hands into the goal. That goal looked to have rattled Barca, especially Iniesta who gave away cheap ball in more than one occasion. In the 13th minute Barac had their first shot on target from a mistake from Dynamo Kiev goal keeper Shovkovskyy. He kicked the ball staright to Messi but did well to deny Messi by pulling out a great save. In 23rd minute Shovkovskyy once again did well to parry away a Dani Alves effort. By then it was clear that Barca has settled down and was taking control of the game. In the 33rd minute we were rewarded with a Xavi goal. That made sure that Barca will qualify from the group and it alteast settled my nerves. Messi played the ball to Abidal wide on the left, Abidal sent in a great low cross into the box which was met by xavi, who was playing his 100th Champions league match. The rest of the half went without much fanfare.

In the second half we were taking complete control of the game. But it was Kiev who had the first real chance of the half. Leandro headed wide from a great Schevchenko cross. Messi was exquisite throughout the second half. In the 70th minute Magrao had to pull out a great challenge to stop a dangerous Messi run. In the 72nd minute Iniesta plays a great ball to Messi but his shot was blocked by Betao. In the 80th minute Pedrio rpelaced Iniesta. In the 86th minute Barac went 2-1 ahead from a free kick which he only won in the first place. Messi then was injured by a clumsy tackle and now looks like will miss the derby against Espanyol. In the first minute of injury time Ibrahmovic terrific strike was somehow saved by Shovkovskyy. It was quite funny, Ibra's free kick was very powerful that Shovkovskyy didn't saw it but his struck his face.

This one victory may not have been a very beautiful one, but when we consider the situations and scenarios associated with it, was a very efficient one. The "Toure Saga" looks to have come to an end with this match and I would be surprised to see him playing here next season. Busquets meanwhile is doing good with his chances and has to be appreciated. Iniesta was kind of off-colour last night. he is getting involved in teh match but is not influencing the match like he has done last season. Messi after winning Balon d'Or has gone wild. He is causing terror at heart of defense and was sensational last night. Valdes is back to his best;-).

Dynamo Kiev vs Barca Preview

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 07:02:00 +0000

If FC Barcelona manage tp avoid a defeat by two goals or more against Dynamo Kiev, they will qualify for the knockout stage of this year's Champions league. With the victory against Inter, Barca leads the group by two points. But that will count for nothing if they lose at Kiev by two goals or more. It is a strange situation in Group F, where all the four team still have realistic hope of qualifying. If Inter vs Rubin match at Milan ends in a draw Barca will qualify regardless of what the result in our match. But with all at stake, we have to assume that there could be a winner in Milan. A victory will take to the knowckout stage as the winner of the Group F. A draw will definitely help us qualify, but if Rubin wins at Milan then will will be be second in the group. That means we have to play the second leg away from home. In normal circumstances it is against logic to think that Barca will go down by two goals or more. But this is no normal match. The temperature when the match starts at Kiev would be below zero degree and that will definitely work against us. Earlier matches at Kiev and Russia started earlier but this will not as everyone has stake in all these matches. So it is not going to a cake-walk in any sense.

Barca may need a draw to qualify for the knockout stage, but if we proceed with that in mind we might see ourselves being dumped out of Champions League. The key is to go for victory in these kind of matches. Guardiola has taken 20 players to Kiev for this match - Valdés, Pinto, Alves, Puyol, Márquez, Piqué, Milito, Abidal, Maxwell, Touré, Busquets, Keita, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro, Bojan, Ibrahimovic, Henry and Messi. . After a long absence we have Milito back in the squad. He may not get any playing time but it is good to see him back in the squad. Valdes as usual will be incharge of the goal and has to be extra cautious for not giving any cheap balls away. Alves, Puyol, Pique and Abidal will form the defense. The midfield most probably will have Xavi, Iniesta nd Toure. If Toure is ommitted the transfer rumours are going to strengthen again. The atatcking trio will most probably will be Messi, Ibrahmovic and Henry. Henry was really poor in recent match, but we have to count on his experience to see us through in these tough conditions. The match will be decided in the midfield. If Iniesta and Xavi is able to control the midfield, Barca will get through this match with ease.

When this group was announced, we expected Rubin to be the weakest opponent, but now they have proved to be the most strongest in the group. Kiev may have struggled away from home, but they have an impeccable home record. Their star striker Schevchenko always cherish the clashes with Barca. He may have lost a bit of pace but still is very dangerous considering his experience. Xavi Henrnandez would be making his 100th Champions League appearance tonight at Kiev and would be looking to make it a very special one. Somehow I have got my last two Champions League prediction spot on. I hope I get this one also right. I predict a 0 -2 victory for Barca.

Bojan Off To Arsenal?

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 06:54:00 +0000

Ok, the latest rumours that is doing the rounds in Barca circles are the possible move of Bojan to Arsenal in the January window. Arsenal has been plagued by injury problems for their attacking line-up and Wenger is rumoured to be looking to add Bojan to his squad as a soultion. Bojan has been having a tough time finding playing time under Guardiola as Pedro is the coach's favourite. He was considered the next big thing after Messi to come out of La Masia but his career has taken a downward spiral after that. It is very clear that he will make his move out of Barcelona by next summer. There was a report which suggested that he is not at all interested in a loan move. Now that comes as a testimony of how Guardiola treats players who was picked by some other managers. Bojan was interested in a loan move for this season, but looked to have talked out of it by Gaurdiola. But the manager does not clearly think high of him and looks like has only talked him out of a loan move as a precaution in the squad. The last time a young player who siad that he will not prefer a loan move was Giovani Dos Santos and it was a result of the way Guardiola treated him. But Giovani's career has taken a further downward spiral as he chose a wrong team to make his switch. English teams apart from Arsenal is not known to favour youngstars and it should be a lesson for Bojan before he makes the switch.

Another problem that is hurting Giovanni's transfer out of Totenham is the contract they made with Barca when buying him. The contract had a clause which is restricting Giovanni's sale. If he is sold in the first 2 years , Barca gets 20% of it and after that 10%, I believe that could be another reason that's hampering his transfer. Bojan has to be careful with these in the future. Arsenal at present might need Bojan but he has to look into the long term. Once the stars who are injured return back, he may find it difficult to find playing time there also. So a loan move to Arsenal till the end of the season may be good but a permanent move may not be that interesting for Bojan. Meanwhile Barca has clarified that they have not received any interest from Arsenal for Bojan. Let's wait and see how this story shapes. Meanwhile Txiki Begiristain has said that he has spoken to Yaya Toure's agent about his future. Nothing is clear apart from that the coach will call the shot.

FIFA World Player Of The Year Final Nominees

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 06:29:00 +0000

FIFA has announced the final five nominees for FIFA World Player of the Year. It's a match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. FC Barcelona has three players nominated for the prestigous award. Balon d'Or winner Lionel Messi is nominated along with his team mates Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta. The other nominees are Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka of Real Madrid, bith of them rewarded for their performance with other clubs. Its very surprising to see Kaka's name in the list as he hasn't done anything spectacular in last season. FIFA has earlier announced a list of 23 men from which these five has been shortlisted. The list had Michael Ballack (Germany), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Iker Casillas (Spain), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Diego (Brazil), Didier Drogba (Côte d'Ivoire), Michael Essien (Ghana), Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon), Steven Gerrard (England), Thierry Henry (France), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden), Andrés Iniesta (Spain), Kaká (Brazil), Frank Lampard (England), Luis Fabiano (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Carles Puyol (Spain), Franck Ribéry (France), Wayne Rooney (England), John Terry (England), Fernando Torres (Spain), David Villa (Spain) and Xavi (Spain). Why the likes of Puyol, Terry, Rooney, Eto'o was overlooked in favour of Kaka is a mystery. They all had better season and performances than the Brazilian wizard is a fact that can be clearly seen.

Along with FIFA World Player of the award nominees, FIFA has also announced the final five ladies who will be contesting to win the prestigous FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year award. The nominees are - Cristiane (Brazil), Inka Grings (Germany), Marta (Brazil), Birgit Prinz (Germany) and Kelly Smith (England). It is surprising to see that no US women made the list as that is one of the top team in the world. The awards will be announced on 21st December in Zurich. Along with these two awards FIFA will announce the The FIFA/FIFPro World XI and the The FIFA Puskás Award, presented for the most beautiful goal of last season. The Puskas award is one in which the common public gets a voting right. Iniesta's goal against Chelsea is the only Barca goal which has been listed in the top ten. So get down and vote for Iniesta - Vote for Iniesta's Goal

Messi Receives Golden Ball Of The Year

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:22:00 +0000

Deportivo vs Barca Match Pictures

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 06:17:00 +0000

Deportivo vs Barca Highlights on 05/12/09

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 06:04:00 +0000

Deportivo -1, Barca - 3

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 06:00:00 +0000

FC Barcelona retained their lead at top of five points with a 3-1 comfortable victory against Deportivo at the Riazor. Messi gave Barca a deserving lead in the 27th minute but Deportivo equalised in the 39th minute. Secons half goals from Messi and Ibrahmovic then gave Barca a truly deserving victory. This was Messi's first match after winning the Balon d'Or and he gave a performance intune with the award. He easily could have got a hat-trick last night but was let down by his own finishing. Guardiola's choice of defensive midfielder might have sent enough message for Yaya Toure about his future. Busquets was preferred in place of Toure and he played his part well in Deportivo goal. Meanwhile Barca had their strongest possible line-up except for Toure. Alves, Pique, Puyol and Abidal lined up in defense infront of Valdes. Iniesta and Xavi formed the midfield along with Busquets. Henry, Ibrahmovic and Messi formed the attacking trio.

The midfield of Iniesta and Xavi made sure that Barca took control of the game from the begining. Messi had a shot blocked by defender withing the first minute of play. In the 20th minute Messi started to cast his magic. Messi dribbled through four defenders but his low shot was parried away by goal keeper Aranzubia. Then in the 27th minute Barca went ahead with an excellent finish by Messi. Iniesta stole the ball from Manuel Pablo at the left edge of box and played a deligtful backheel to Xavi at the centre edge of box; Xavi's shot was blocked but the rebound was picked by Alves in the middle, he continued his run and passed the ball to Messi at the edge of box. Messi turned away from his marker and sent in a great shot low into the bottom right corner. In the 35th minute Xavi send in a great through ball to Ibra but Aranzubia came off his line to block the chance. Then in the 39th minute against the run of play Deportivo equalised after a series of errors from Barca players. A long ball from Aranzubia was headed towards his own goal by Busquets, it fells for Adrian whose header was so weak that it required the subsequent horribel mistake from Valdes to send it to the goal. In the 44th minute Barca had a great chance to regain the lead. Ibrahmovic with a great back heel fed Messi on the way of goal but Aranzubia flies out to make the block conceding a corner.

Barca lacked the intensity in the second half compared to first half. Henry was off colour in the second half. In the 54th minute Deportivo had a great chance to go ahead but Adrian could only head wide from a Rodriguez cross. In the 70th minute Guardiola replaced Henry with Pedro and that surely started to change the tempo of the match. In the 80th minute Barca regained the lead with a play which saw a series of pass being stiched tyogether. In the end Alves played the ball to Pedro on the right inside the box, Pedro turnd and send in a great ball to Messi who made no mistake with his header. In the 88th minute Ibrahmovic completed the tally with a great finish. Iniesta played a diagonal through ball to bidal on left, who sent in a great low cross to Ibra in the box.

This has to be a very important victory considering that we always struggle to win at Deportivo. What this victory does is it keeps the pressure firmly back on Real Madrid. real meanwhile won 4-2 against Almeria at home. Messi definitely was the best player on pitch for Barca last night. Iniesta looked good in the middle but is no where near his usual form. Busquets lookd ok, throughout the match apart from some silly mistakes. His selection is a clear message to Toure to find another club either in January or next summer. That will be a disaster for Barca. Henry's performance in second half may prompt Guardiola to use Pedro in his place regularly. Ibrahmovic was linking well with Messi and did look very good with his finishing. And as far as Valdes is concerned, that was a trademark mistake by Valdes; but he surprises everyone producing stunning saves in very important matches.

Vote For UEFA Team Of The Year

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 06:54:00 +0000

UEFA has started the process of selecting UEFA Team of the Year on their website. You can pick your best Eleven ast UEFA Team of the Year. Eleven Barca players have been nominated for this year's award. Manchester United has six players in the list. The Barca players on the list are Valdés, Alves, Puyol, Piqué, Txigrinski, Abidal, Touré, Xavi, Iniesta, Messi and Ibrahimovic. Meanwhile ex-barca player Samuel Eto'o has also made into nomination list. I am not so happy with the way the formation has been selected. UEFA has gone for a traditional 4-4-2 formation while selecting the eleven. But what makes me angry is that there is no defensive midfielder position, a role which has become the most important one in modern day football. They have the central midfield, attacking midfield, right midfield and the left midfield position. The central midfield role should have been the defensive midfielder. Right now we have Xavi and Yaya Toure together in the central midfield role; it is clear that Yaya after having a great lst season, will not get any vote because he is paired with Xavi. Chelsea's Michael Essien mysteriously finds no place in the nomination list. My selection is on the picture have a look.

FIFA World Cup 2010 Groups are out

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 06:27:00 +0000

Last night the drawing of groups for FIFA World Cup 2010 was completed in Cape Town. Next year's World cup will feature two group of deaths - Group D and Group G. Out of both Group G looks terrible with Brazil, Ivory Coast, Portugal and North Korea. Argentina and Spain looks to have drawn into very easy group, but Spain has trouble in their hands with a possible meeting with either Ivory Coast or Portugal in the knockout stage, maybe even Brazil. Ivory Costa feature in the group of death in the 2006 edition and will consider themselves extremely unlucky featuring once again in the Death Group. France which was featured in pot 4 got into a very goood group. The Groups are

Group A
South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France

Group B
Argentina
Nigeria
South Korea
Greece

Group C
England
USA
Algeria
Slovenia

Group D
Germany
Australia
Serbia
Ghana

Group E
Netherland
Denmark
Japan
Cameroon

Group F
Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia

Group G

Brazil
South Korea
Ivory Coast
Portugal

Group H
Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile

I am just going through each group and the possible qualifier. Group A most probably will see France and Mexico qualifying. After being in pot 4, it is like a lottery for France to feature in such a weak group. Argentina is expected to top group B but I am not yet clear whom among the other three will make cut. I believe Nigeria owing to the support has abetter chance to perform than others. This makes it important for France to top their group as they could face Argentina if they don't. In Group C I can see two clear qualifier - England and USA. But group D is tough - Germany looks like may top the group but Serbia and Ghan are very well organised sides. My pics will be Ghana and Germany. Yes I expect Ghana to top the group. Netherlands has a very easy group and is expected to top the group. Denmark and Japan may be good teams but I expect the crowd support to see Cameroon through. Meanwhile Italy and Paraguay looks like the possible qualifiers from Group F. Now comes Group G. Everybody expects Brazil and Portugal to make the cut. But I don't think so. I expect Brazil and Ivory Coast to qualify from this team. The Elephants are in great form and they have a team with enough experience with the likes of Toure brothers, Kalou, Drogba, Eboue, Emmanuel Koné, Arouna Koné etc. Their form in the qualification campaign has been excellent whereas Portugal were far from perfect in their campaign. Portugal always struggle in World Cups and will definitely struggle against a very physical Ivory Coast. And most importantly being an African team the crowd can be expected to be behind Ivory Coast. The most important match of this group will be the opening match between Ivory Coast and Portuga. Portugal has to win this to proceed to the next stage. Meanwhile Ivory Coast can try to draw their first two matches and still qualify well with a good win against North Korea. But everyone in this group will be hoping to top the group as nobody would like to face Spain in the next round. Group G will have Spain and Chile as qualifier.

Deportivo vs Barca Preview

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 05:47:00 +0000

FC Barcelona will be looking to preserve their five point advantage against Real Madrid by the end of this week. Even though Real has a match on hand the five point lead could assert enormous pressure on them. Gerrard Pique and Busquets has been included in the squad after their last match absence. Guardiola has selected a 18 men squad for the trip to Deportivo - Valdés, Pinto, Henry, Xavi, Piqué, Iniesta, Sergio Busquets, Puyol, Pedro, Ibrahimovic, Bojan, Maxwell, Messi, Chygryskiy Alves, Abidal, Keita, Touré. Deportivo is lying in fifth place in the league table. they have the same point as fouth placed Valencia. Deportivo always have been a tough ground for us to travel. Eventhough this Deportivo side may not be dangerous as the likes which terrorised side in late nineties. But our away form has been far from perfect. Actually we have struggle in almost every one of our away match so far this season. This combined with the fact that our traditional record against Deportivo is not that great, makes this tie a very interesting one.

FC Barcelona players will be keen to improve the dissappointing show which was put against Xerex. A repeat of the same will see Madrid closing the gap on us. You can't play badly at Riazor and escape. It is also have to be seen who Guardiola uses as defensive midfielder. Toure is the best we got but there is something which is going between Toure and Guardiola. But I expect Guardiola to put his differences behind and field Toure at Deportivo. Valdes will be as usual keeping the goal. Pique and Puyol are expected to form the centre of defense. Alves and Abidal most probably form the full backs. I expect Guardiola to field both Iniesta and Xavi in the middle. Toure should be picked as the defensive midfielder. The combination of xavi and Iniesta in the middle could be necessary to grab the game from Deportivo. Ibrahmovic and Messi should be expected to return into the startingt line-up and will be forming the offensive line with either Pedro/Henry. I expect Henry to play this game on the left side. This will be one hell of a match but I expect barca to scrap through. My prediction is a Barca win with 1-2.

Will Bojan and Toure Move out of Barca?

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 14:02:00 +0000

Bojan and Toure are two contarsting case. One is eager to prove his talent but has no oppurtunity and the other one has showed the world his worth but still won't get a decent playing time. It wasn't a secret that Guardiola never preferred Yaya Toure as the defensive midielder in his setup. The initial comments from Guardiola gave the impression that he was too happy to see the back of the most consistent player for Barca in those two pathetic years. The initial treatment also pointed a same approach but Yaya fought back into the team and was one of the major reason we had a great last season. During the summer there were all kind of rumours that Mascherano would be preffered to Toure but somehow in the end we managed to give him a proper contract. But now it looks like the presenting of contract was to ensure that the player don't leave cheap rather to ensure the player remain in the team. He is not getting any quality playing time and performnace against Xerex has been pointed out by some as a reason he should not. As far as I am concerned he along with Essien are the best defensive midfielders in the world. And not giving one of the best enough playing time is a crime. Some of Barca fans points out the fact that he will be out for one month during African Nations cup as a reason Busquets is preffered to him. That's quite strange - if there was a Copa America going on, would you have preffered somebody else to Messi and Alves?

Will Bojan and Toure Stay at Barca Next Season?

Bojan's situation is rather grim. Everyone expected him to go on loan in the summer, but he didn't and he is definitely regretting it. Bojan had one of the most successful debut for Barca youngster. But still last season he played below par. To add to his misery, whenever he gets a chance the whole team changes. He hasn't got enough chance to play along with Messi, Iniesta, Xavi etc. In that sense Pedro is more lucky because he mostly walks into the usual eleven. Pedro is a player who was brought into the first eleven by Guardiola. So he gets most of the oppurtunity and to his credit he made most from those. Bojan meanwhile looked very good in the begining of the season, but with the lack of oppurtunity; he is struggling. It won't be a surprise that if we see these two players playing in different teams next season. Toure is keenly followed by both Arsenal and Manchester City and both teams may need a quality defensive midfielder to bolster their ranks. It is not yet clear what are the options available for Bojan, but he will doa world of good for him chosing a small team over the bigger ones. Giovanni destroyed his career going to Totenham. He is not seeing any playing time. His form for the national side has been really good but still not get noticed by Harry Redknapp. Anyway I am running a poll to see what the fans of Barca thing will happen to these two.

Lionel Messi Wins Balon d'Or

vkr.bibin@gmail.com (Bibin) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 05:03:00 +0000

As expected Lionel Messi won this year's Ballon d'Or to be crowned as the best player in Europe. It was an expected result with a record margin of victory. Cristiano Ronaldo finished second with 233 points while Lionel messi amased a record 473 points. Xavi received 170 points finishing third while Iniesta received 149 points finishing fourth. Samuel Eto'o finished fifth while new Barca recruit Ibrahmovic finished seventh. It was quite surprising to see Ronaldo finish second. He had a good season last year, but not an exceptional. For me last year Rooney was Manchester United's best player. And it is surprising to see the football's greates pundits in Europe failing to recognise the contribution of midfielders or defenders. Puyol never made it to the top thrity list whereas Toure finished 28th with 1 point. But for me the biggest dissappointment was not seeing Xavi finish second. He along with Iniesta was the creative organiser in the Barcelona side. His national team form was exceptional unlike Ronaldo or Messi. But then it is not a surprise as the Europe's soccer pundits proved their bias by not including Iniesta in the nominees last season.

The enitire list is give below :
1 Lionel Messi (Argentina, Barcelona), 473 points

2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal, Real Madrid), 233

3 Xavi (Spain, Barcelona), 170

4 Andres Iniesta (Spain, Barcelona), 149

5 Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon, Internazionale), 75

6 Kaká (Brazil, Real Madrid), 58

7 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden, Barcelona), 50

8 Wayne Rooney (England, Manchester United), 35

9 Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast, Chelsea), 33

10 Steven Gerrard (England, Liverpool), 32

11 Fernando Torres (Spain, Liverpool), 22

12 Cesc Fábregas (Spain, Arsenal), 13

13 Edin Dzeko (Bosnia, Wolfsburg), 12

14 Ryan Giggs (Wales, Manchester United), 11

15 Thierry Henry (France, Barcelona), 9

16= Luis Fabiano (Brazil, Sevilla) 8

16= Nemanja Vidic (Serbia, Manchester United), 8

16= Iker Casillas (Spain, Real Madrid), 8

19 Diego Forlan (Uruguay, Atlético Madrid), 7

20 Yoann Gourcuff (France, Bordeaux), 6

21= Andrey Arshavin (Russia, Arsenal), 5

21= Júlio César (Brazil, Inter), 5

21= Frank Lampard (England, Chelsea), 5

24 Maicon (Brazil, Inter), 4

25 Diego (Brazil, Juventus), 3

26= David Villa (Spain, Valencia), 2

26= John Terry (England, Chelsea), 2

28 Franck Ribéry (France, Bayern Munich), 1

28= Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast, Barcelona), 1

30 Karim Benzema (France, Real Madrid), 0