Exactly. Ridiculous money paid by Citeh.

You hope, so that your lot aren't alone in making a right royal f**k up of it all any more. And I don't really see how else they should approach it TBH. A mantra of 'we're doomed, it's all over' won't be particularly beneficial to them.

Have a little think about it

I think Barcelona's claim to be "more than a club" has sod all to do with crowds and all to do with how it is owned.

Always makes me laugh the Barca love-in, it's funny how people who claim to admire their "regionalism" and ethics so much don't profess to be Athletic Bilbao fans, then again Athletic don't win much do they?

Don't kid yourselves about the shirt sponsorship situation either, if it wasn't for the way TV rights are sold in Spain (individual clubs rather than a joint deal) they wouldn't have such a financial advantage over everyone except Real Madrid and it would soon change, having Unicef is just a way of preparing their fans for sponsors logos on the shirts full-time anyway. Of course they are quick to close ranks with their hated rivals whenever changes are suggested, and threaten a breakaway European league if the duopoly is threatened.

Anyway I'm sure the powers that be are delighted to be selling shirts to proud Catalans supporting their club in China, Australia and JJB's all over the UK while watching brave Catalan warriors like Alves, Eto, Henry and Messi doing their stuff on the pitch.

The more than a club thing is just another marketing gimmick for the suckers to swallow, it's almost as cringeworthy as Bradford Bulls "the peoples team" offering.

worst post of the year

To do with almost everything EXCEPT football. Try doing a bit of research before you pour out that gash.

I take it you've got some sort of chip on your shoulder regarding Barcelona then, I think I remember you saying something about this on the La Liga thread.

First of all I'm a big admirer of the continuing philosophy of Athletic Bilbao to select only Basque born players, even when it basically precludes them from winning major titles in modern day football.

OK, but Barca have still never had a shirt sponsor until now, and its better for them to pay UNICEF than say Manchester United with AIG, which has become a by-word for capitalist greed.

The heart of the club is Catalan with Valdes, Pique, Puyol, Busquets and Xavi. Yes thats five Catalans expected to be in the starting XI for tomorrow's Champions League final. I'm sure Laporta and the board are delighted at the clubs commercial success, why should the club not want to make money in this day and age, especially when saddled with the debts of the previous regime.

Mes Que un Club sums Barca up for me. They were always a beacon of hope for the Catalan people during the oppressive years of the Franco regime. The Nou Camp for example was pretty much the only place where Catalan could be spoken without reprisals, and each victory over Franco FC (Real Madrid) made their plight a little more sufferable. Nowadays, while the country may be fully democratic, Barca remain a symbol of Catalan nationalism.

When the Glazers were taking over Man United their fans had all the Not for $ale banners etc. Thats what Barca are, a club in essence owned and run by its members.

I don't really see what's not to like about them TBH.

Bojan on bench and don't forget the manager and assistant.


one of the best posts of the year on this thread

Owen Coyle for the Celtic job? Something not right about a Catholic club trying to install a Coyle.

[url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/8069299.stmSunderland 'want Bruce as boss'[/url

Thanks for the history lesson, there's no doubt Barcelona have some very good players, a brilliant style of football and are a successful global brand, trading largely off the back that is seen as trendy to follow them.

Go to Barcelona and Catalonia, and Bilbao and the Basque Country wander round and go watch some football there, then tell me who really represents their region, and people who suffered through the civil war and dictatorship, as a football club. Barcelona doesn't even come close to Bilbao in that respect, but they don't win much nowadays so they are not quite as trendy to follow.

As someone who lives in Catalonia and has been to Bilbao I can soundly say you're miles off.
That bad experience in Catalonia must have really affected you. Looks like it goes deep

Mike Ashley has issued a statement apologising for all his mistakes that he has made.

Good for him to apologise, but a bit too late.

I've spent plenty of time in both.

I've never seen a city where the streets are dead because their team is playing like Bilbao, I've never been in a city where just about every shop, bar and household has some sort of flag, pennant etc regarding their team on display.

You can't whore yourself around the world then claim some great regional ethos, not without being hypocritical, but thats the people of Barcelona all over, they're not Spanish - until Spain win the Euros, then they're out on the streets.

Barcelona sympathisers like to play the victim and underdog, but it is they (along with Real) who are largely responsible for preventing a more even playing field in Spanish Football

They are the Scousers of Spain with their self-pitying, hypocritical attitudes.

A very large proportion of Barcelona city residents aren't Catalan at all. Catalan is one of the languages you'tre least likely to hear in the city centre. English and Spanish are far more commonplace.

Try looking outside of Barcelona at the region that the club represents.
When Barça beat Arsenal in 2006 I was in a small town in Lleida and as I rushed home to watch the game there wasn't a single person in the street.
When they won there must have been at least 5,000 people blocking the main road celebrating.
Now I live on the Girona coast and when Iniesta scored the winner versus Chelsea you could hear the screams ringing out from the bars. Within minutes cars and motorbikes were going throught the town sounding their horns, people running around waving Barça flags.
The town is covered in Barça colours and good luck messages. The local sports centre is anticipating around 2,000 people to watch there game there tomorrow evening.


Again, if you're looking for Catalanism then Barcelona isn't the best place. I was in Murcia when they beat the Germans and it was mayhem down there. When I rang my girlfriend in Catalonia she didn't even know the result. the only person in her house who'd watched the final was her dad and he'd missed the last 20 minutes. I was in a bar when France knocked Spain out of the world cup and towards the end every French touch was greeted with cheers.

Barça, Catalans, Scousers... anyone else you want to have a go out?

I am sure the geordie masses will all huddle together and give him a big hug. Although they have to shoulder some of the blame too.

Can you tell me how this is any different to any town or city ahead of a major game? Anyway, it is a shame the people of Lleida won't follow their local team.


From my experience of watching Spain in Catalonia, they'd have soon changed their tune if Spain were winning, a hell of a lot of people there like to be Spanish when it suits them.


Good argument, seriously the day I talk to a Barcelona fan about football and they talk more about their own team rather than witter on about Real Madrid I'll probably die of shock.

During the Franco years it was one of the few places where it was possible to hold public debates and was often the scene of many arguments among culés.
It is now where fans head to celebrate their team's triumphs and there were great scenes here when Barça won the European Cup in 2006, as the culés sang through the night about their club and the Catalan anthem ‘Els Segadores’.
Més que un club, is certainly a motto that rings true. For more than one hundred years FC Barcelona has been a symbol and expression of Catalonia, providing a means of integration for immigrants and standing firm as Franco tried to destroy the region’s identity.
When Franco’s coup seized power of Spain, he set about trying to destroy the peninsula’s regional identities. It was during this time that FC Barcelona became a symbol of expression for the Catalan people.
Franco banned the Catalan language and the stadium became one of the few refuges where it could be spoken.

[iNow Barça is a team playing with real verve and confidence. In much the same way that the city is now free from repression, so too the football club seems unshackled. It is this symbiosis, between the team and the city, which makes FC Barcelona more than a club.[/i - El Punt

1.albert fish
2. peter kuerten
3. jeffrey dahmer
4. pedro lopez
5. peter sutcliffe
6. david berkowitz
7. ted bundy
8. john wayne gacy
9. ed gein
10. dennis nilsen
11. andrei chikatilo

carlsberg dont do serial killer xi's but if they did...

no harold shipman?

Not unless they were playing the Chelsea Pensioners XI. El Hadji Diouf is unlucky not to make that side, I remember he arrived at Liverpool with 'the Serial Killer' nickname, apparently because of his killer instinct in front of goal

he was invited to attend an interview which he did but refused to answer any questions and just turned his back on them

but he was soon found out...

People with blinkers on, and no knowledge of social history like Asim and LG Jose Mourinho cannot understand why Barca is [imes que un club[/i I don't think its even worth trying to explain it to them.

And Asim why do you always have to bring Scousers into it? You continually show disdain towards Liverpool FC, allied to your dislike of all things Catalan. What happened, did Albert Riera sleep with your girlfriend or something?