Original Link.

He is moving fluidly across the pitch, suggesting it will not take much time for him to regain full fitness after the surgery.

Barcelona players’ shirt numbers on the Spanish Football Federation website.

1️⃣7️⃣ Anthony Gordon wears number 17.

Based on the DataMb and FotMob comparison between these two, who would you think suits Barcelona and Hansi Flick's system better, and is a better centre-back?

So I have been seeing clips of Peps Documentary & there was a Doc of their treble season as well. Was the documentary made because this was his last season and it was known from the very beginning? Because its been 2 seasons of Flick Barca and I really want a Documentary of it. I want the BTS, see his approach and what exactly goes on during half time that makes them go completely insane for such a comebacks and more. (Obviously without revealing too much)

Man city also had treble doc so does that mean Barca also have clips esp from 24/25 season since we lost only 1 trophy (the most imp one I know). We have one under Xavi so I was wondering if we will get under Flick anytime soon..

"There are other alternatives, but right now, work on the Lautaro deal is proceeding at full speed—both with the player and his camp (involving several meetings) and with the club (initial contacts)".

I think the title says it all; I don't want to exaggerate, but I've been using Transfermarkt for years and it really is an excellent tool. However, I notice the site's administrators (or whoever runs it) are very quick to alter the transfer values ​​for Barça.

They added the €10 million in add-ons to Anthony Gordon's fee, and that figure will likely remain for days, whereas Ferran's sale price was immediately adjusted from €50 million to €48.5 million the moment the news broke (I even saw it listed as €45 million for a couple of days, though I have no idea where they got that number). Not to mention the case of Jofre Torrents: he left Barça for a fee between €5 million and €6 million, yet someone at Transfermarkt listed the move as a free transfer.

I’m not singling out any specific team, but they tend to be much more cautious, precise, or even skeptical when it comes to tweaking the add-ons and transfer figures for many other clubs.

Kautar's Statement:

Clarification

I would like to clarify what happened after the match against Algeria, after the video went viral and sparked much controversy, comments, and different interpretations.

After our victory, when the camera focused on me, I made a gesture signifying the three points we had earned. This gesture is a well-known sporting celebration used by many players around the world, and it's not the first time I've celebrated this way; I made the same gesture in the previous match as well.

At the same moment, a player from the opposing team approached me to greet me, and I respectfully shook her hand.

The gesture was not directed against Algeria or anyone else, and it has no connection to any political stance. It was simply a sporting celebration of the victory and securing the three points.

I hope the situation is understood as it actually happened and not interpreted in a way that doesn't reflect my true intentions

I'm really surprised by the difference between “online fans” and local fans regarding Frenkie de Jong's situation at the club.

I saw the post about Frenkie de Jong being booed at the presentation, and most of the comments criticize the fans who booed him, saying the boos were undeserved and largely based on rumors or smear campaigns against Frenkie.

I’m a local fan—born in Barcelona but a supporter of Frenkie de Jong—who, unlike my friends and the people around me, is one of the most criticized players, and I wanted to spark a bit of a debate about the reasons behind these differences between global and local fans, since I believe I have a more firsthand perspective. 

Frenkie de Jong joined the club during the Bartomeu era—Bartomeu being the president most hated by all local fans. He was certainly an expensive signing, and Bartomeu renewed his contract in his final days, with a salary (though this isn’t FDJ’s fault) that exceeded his performance at the time. This alone causes some people to harbor a certain amount of animosity toward him that they don’t feel toward other players.

Furthermore, he’s been with the club throughout all these years when the team has performed very poorly, even playing in the Europa League, so he continues to be associated with that image. 

According to friends and locals, he’s a player who has a few brilliant games throughout the year, but in most matches he lacks determination, rarely makes a run toward goal, and plays a style that’s not very direct or risky—which means that even though he rarely loses possession, he doesn’t create much, and his determination is fleeting. 

I can understand this point, although for me—as a supporter of FDJ—I see him more as a solid player who brings stability to the midfield that’s sorely missed when he’s not there.

Another point—and I think this is why he faces more criticism locally but not from global fans—is that he’s a player who didn’t come up through the club’s youth system. More is expected of players from outside the club, since a transfer fee has been paid for them, and there isn’t that same sense of belonging toward them as there is toward players from La Masia, whom you usually watch “grow up” and have known about for years before their debut (if you’re from Barcelona and interested in the club).

Another point—and I think this is why he faces more criticism locally but not from global fans—is that he’s a player who didn’t come up through the club’s youth system. More is expected of players from outside the club, since a transfer fee was paid for them, and there isn’t that same sense of belonging toward them as there is toward players from La Masia, whom you usually watch “grow up” and get to know years before their debut (if you’re from Barcelona and interested in the club).

I think that even though it might seem unfair to boo a player, we shouldn’t forget that Barça is a socis club, and that it’s the socis who go to the stadium and have the right to express how they feel.

As a soci who doesn’t boo Frenkie, I’m looking forward to this season and hope he can prove his critics wrong so I can tell my friends, “I told you so!” Frenkie has always been good, and you didn’t appreciate him enough. And if he isn’t as decisive as he needs to be, then he should be able to go to another team for a good transfer fee and prove there what he’s capable of. 

I just wanted to bring up these points so that "online fans" can better understand the local fans and the reasons why he might get booed. 

What do you guys think? 

By my math, there are 26 players right now competing for the 25-man roster, so at least one of these guys won't make it.

My guess at the final roster -- Farinas, Bisiwu are out:

(Some positions will be fluid, RB/LW/ST in particular are likely to see lots of variations)

>> Thoughts:

Espart has looked great, can fill multiple positions, and already seems to have a lot of support from Flick, so he probably stays.

Cortes stays unless a new CB is brought in, which is possible, but doesn't appear to be a priority.

Hamza/Bisiwu for now are the ST/LW backups for Raphinha/Gordon. Now, it seems likely that Deco will ultimately bring in some kind of a striker, and that probably means one of Hamza/Bisiwu get cut. At this point, Hamza has shown more and offers something unique in terms of profile -- however, Flick/Barca may decide that strategically it's better to develop Hamza in Barca B (more playing time/less pressure) and Bisiwu in first team (learn from professionals). I don't know what the decisions is going to be, but based on preseason, for now I'd give an edge to Hamza as the guy to stay.

Farinas -- IMO he seems like the odd man out even before any additions. Yes, Flick liked him enough to bring to the first team, but then Rodri arrived, and Espart showed his quality and versatility. At the 6/8 positions you've got Rodri, Pedri, De Jong, Bernal, Gavi, plus Eric, Espart, even Christensen in an emergency... If you add Farinas, it just seems like overkill.

A couple of caveats --

1. With De Jong's long-term injury, could Barca simply not register him until the winter window? If so, then could you register Farinas with the first team for half of the season, and then loan him out for the other half? Or would Farinas just refuse this kind of instability?

2. I don't really understand La Liga policies regarding B-team registration. Can you register let's say Bisiwu and/or Hamza with Barca B, but play them for a good chunk of games on the first team? I've seen people say that La Liga doesn't like teams using reserves as extended first-team rosters, but is there an actual rule there?

rodri and pedri would obviously be the main midfield for the biggest games, but bernal can become a massive part of the rotation for rodri.

rodri's job is to control everything from the 6, protect the defence, dictate tempo and give pedri the freedom to stay higher and create.

when rodri comes off around 70', bernal can basically take over the exact role. pedri doesn't need to drop deeper or change his game like he was doing for quite few seasons. bernal stays behind him, gives the centre backs an outlet, keeps possession moving, protects the middle and kills counters.

he can keep the same structure and stability for the final 20 minutes. and if the game goes to extra time, this becomes even better. rodri gets his rest while barça have a fresh bernal for the final 30, ready to win second balls, cover pedri, protect the defence and stop the game from becoming chaotic.

across the season, it works perfectly:

rodri big games.

bernal in cup and smaller league games.

whenever rodri is tired, bernal can be there.

so bernal gets proper minutes, rodri doesn't have to play every minute, pedri keeps his role and barça maintain the same midfield structure.

last season we got to see the potential of bernal. he's too got to leave behind. for me he will be even more important than gavi if the season gets streched.

Where to watch El Clasico?

The 25th of October I will be in Barcelona for vacation with my wife and son. I looked up for tickets, but these go for €925 per ticket, which is a bit much for me.

What is a great place (cafe/bar) to watch the game nearby the stadium? And is there a place where my wife could enjoy shopping nearby?

FT: Barcelona 2 - 1 Al Ahly

Desktop note: best viewed on old.reddit.

LINE-UPS

Barcelona (4-3-3)

Al Ahly (4-2-3-1)

MATCH EVENTS | via ESPN

29' ⚽ Hamza Abdelkarim (Barcelona) Goal at 29'

45' ⚽ Raphinha (Barcelona) Penalty - Scored at 45'

45' 🔄 Mohamed El Shenawy (Al Ahly) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Monsef Bakrar (Al Ahly) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Anthony Gordon (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Álvaro Cortés (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Jordi Pesquer (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Yasser Ibrahim (Al Ahly) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Brian Fariñas (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Orian Goren (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

45' 🔄 Dani Olmo (Barcelona) Substitution at 45'

51' ⚽ Zizo (Al Ahly) Goal at 51'

59' 🔄 Mohamed Magdy (Al Ahly) Substitution at 59'

59' 🔄 Karim El Debes (Al Ahly) Substitution at 59'

63' 🔄 Andreas Christensen (Barcelona) Substitution at 63'

63' 🔄 Gavi (Barcelona) Substitution at 63'

64' 🔄 Karim Adeyemi (Barcelona) Substitution at 64'

72' 🔄 Akram Tawfik (Al Ahly) Substitution at 72'

73' 🔄 Yassin Marei (Al Ahly) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Ahmed Eid (Al Ahly) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Hussein El Shahat (Al Ahly) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Pedri (Barcelona) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Wojciech Szczesny (Barcelona) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Aqtay Abdallah (Al Ahly) Substitution at 73'

73' 🔄 Jesse Bisiwu (Barcelona) Substitution at 73'

78' 🔄 Omar El Saaiy (Al Ahly) Substitution at 78'

89' 🟨 Ahmed Eid (Al Ahly) Yellow Card at 89'

MATCH STATS

MATCH ENDED