Pique: "Messi is more decisive than Ronaldo"

Barcelona player Gerard Piqué gave an interview to Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo.





Let's talk about Messi. Have you ever seen something similar to what Leo is doing?
I already saw something like that when I was 13 years old. When I was playing with Leo at the youth teams...

You have played with Cristiano Ronaldo and with Messi. Who's the best?
They're completely different. Cristiano uses a lot of step-overs and tricks to dribble a player while Messi gets passed three opponents with three touches. Leo is a lot more decisive and when he doesn't give that much show as Cristiano, that's just because he doesn't need it.

You think there's a chance that he could leave Barcelona?
We hope not. I think he's feeling very good here and in the end a player always want to be at a club where he can win trophies and Barça is the ideal place to do that.

You're afraid that he'll get injured?
You never think about that. When they kick him and he falls to the ground, you want to know if he's injured or not, but when you're playing, you're not thinking about him possibly getting injured. I understand they pull his shirt if he passes them - I also do that sometimes - but I don't understand some bad faults, tackles from behind... You can stop the play by a fault but you shouldn't hurt another player.

And that wasn't what Madrid did?
I already forgot about that game (laughs).


This was the second part of this interview. You can read the first part here:
Pique: "A derby is always something special"

Match Preview: Santander-Barcelona

Racing Santander-FC Barcelona
Venue: El Sardinero



After a tough January, Pep’s boys face up to a busy February. Guardiola’s comments in the build up to the match seem intended to motivate the lads for another physically taxing encounter in El Sardinero in Santander. With a nine-point lead going into the game Barca can afford to lose points and come away with a draw in Santander but a win will further boost the confidence of the team and prove that they have the character and mettle to fight it out.

Racing haven’t lost in their last five league encounters. Their three wins and two draws may not match up to Barca’s five wins but is indicative of their current run of good form. There is a nice symmetricity about Racing’s win loss record in that they have 7 wins, 7 draws and 6 losses so a loss to Barca will make the stats look more even for a team positioned exactly at the halfway point in the table (maybe that will convince them!). A loss will not see them drop ranking in the table as they are 4 points ahead of Getafe, Valladolid and Almeria. Racing have had better luck away than at home but although their last win at home was back in November their last loss at home dates even further back to September.

An uncomplicated team, Racing are very direct in their attacks and even more so in defense. Juan Muniz’s 4-4-2 formation fashioned to play the counter hasn’t changed much over the season. Hitmen Colsa and Lacen look to break down play in the midfield and contribute little to building attacks. Serrano and Moral play on the flanks but also do a lot of tracking back. The offensive strategy composes mostly of kicking the ball up the field to Zigic (2.02m) and allowing Munitis to play off him.

As if one sky-scraper in the team is not enough Racing have another in the 1.96m Cesar Navas. Oriol or Garay will partner him although Garay’s utility during set-pieces as Barca will recall from the first leg of this encounter will mean that he is likely to be favored. Marcano and Valera occupy the full-back positions to complete the line-up.

Guardiola has rarely protected Messi and Xavi by substituting to save them from hard tackles during games but given the tight schedule ahead and the fact that this will be third game in 8 days for the pair, starting them would be imprudent. With Victor Sanchez absent there is no similar cover for Alves. Also Keita’s absence means Busquets will hopefully be preferred to Gudjohnsen to start alongside Yaya Toure in midfield. Busquets ability to draw fouls can put the Racing midfield in card trouble and serve to tone down their challenges although Racing will be hard to break down even with 10 men. His recent form and the opportunity to play a freer role as the third midfielder makes him the player to look out for in this game.

Guardiola’s decision on what will be the best way to deal with Hleb’s poor performances; whether to give him more playing time or a break will determine the composition of the front three. I personally am looking forward to seeing Bojan start alongside Eto’o and Henry.

A noticeable blind spot seems to have emerged with lack of midfield cover on the right side of defense when the opposing team left winger cuts in to either cross or take a shot with both the Espanyol goals coming in this manner and also a few others earlier in the season. Perhaps a fresher Iniesta rather than a tired Xavi will take care of this along with the Beast Toure.

The Marquez-Pique pairing in the center last played together against Sevilla and seemed a little confused about where to position the defensive line when the same problem occurs i.e the left winger cuts inside to cross. The two also have a tendency to push up the flanks to help keep possession and a still ‘recovering from injury’ Marquez might be a little slow to compress the space back again. It might be a good opportunity to field Caceres in a man-marking role on Zigic. Abidal should return to take over at left-back and it will be interesting to see if he continues from where he left off in the previous game pushing up the left flank or relapses into his more sedate task of concentrating on the defense.

Pep has his task cut out for him with more limited choices but still a lot of decisions to make. His appeal for another committed performance looking to a win should spur the team on to show their mettle and set in stone the resilience they have displayed so far in what is likely to be a bruising encounter.

Prediction: Racing 1- 2 Barcelona


kamikaze kontiki

Puyol wants to cut recovery time in half

Puyol:
Out for ten days?
I think I heard that wrong...

If I'm not hitting that ball in five days,
the doctors will have to deal with me!

(click the cartoon to enlarge)

see more cartoons here

cayecaturas.com
sport.es

Live Match Chat: Racing Santander - FC Barcelona

(original post by OmarX)

FC Barcelona - Real Racing Club de Santander
(Sunday 1 February 2009 @ 17:00 barcelona time)

Chat Link:
http://fcbarcelona.hopto.org/

Chat starts around 15:00 - 3:00 pm


Have you ever sat infront of your TV or computer while you were watching a FC Barcelona game and hoped you could share your excitement, feelings, and opinions with other fans LIVE as it happens?

We are proud to present you the new FC Barcelona Match Chat. Now you will be able to communicate before, during and after the match. The chat will be available from two hours before until two hours after the match. In the future this could turn into a 24/7 chat.

The chat is designed to be very user friendly and just requires you to enter your desired nickname and join (no registration required!). It is open to everyone, therefore make sure to invite your friends and spread the message. If you encounter any troubles or difficulties please put them here in the comments section or contact omarx in the chatroom.


To make all this work, we're setting up a moderator's system. Until that's in place, please keep in mind the following basic rules:

- on the public chat the main language is English

- you can hold private conversations by using the appropriate button you find below at the right of your screen
(mark the person you want to have a private talk with and click the button)

See you there!

[Valiente] Sevilla B-Albacete

Spanish second division team Sevilla Atlético, the second team of first division club Sevilla, played this weekend their 21st league game of the season, drawing 1-1 with Albacete.

Former Barcelona Atlètic player Marc Valiente (21) started the game as defensive midfielder and played the whole match.


Because Barcelona has the right to buy Valiente back at the end of this season (read more here), this blog will follow the performances of the central defender during the season.





Sunday 31 August - League game 1: Albacete-Sevilla Atlético 2-1
Injured. Valiente has pubis problems.

Sunday 7 September - League game 2: Sevilla Atlético-Salamanca 1-1
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Central defender.

Sunday 14 September - League game 3: Córdoba-Sevilla Atlético 1-1
Injured. Valiente has an ankle injury.

Sunday 21 September - League game 4: Sevilla Atlético-Rayo Vallecano 0-0
Substitute. Valiente plays the second half. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 28 September - League game 5: Levante-Sevilla Atlético 2-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 5 October - League game 6: Sevilla Atlético-Real Sociedad 1-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Central defender.

Saturday 11 October - League game 7: Las Palmas-Sevilla Atlético 2-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Saturday 18 October - League game 8: Sevilla Atlético-Zaragoza 0-4
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Central defender.

Sunday 26 October - League game 9: Las Palmas-Sevilla Atlético 2-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 2 November - League game 10: Sevilla Atlético-Hércules 1-2
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Central defender.

Sunday 9 November - League game 11: Alavés-Sevilla Atlético 2-2
Starter. Valiente starts the game and is excluded in the 87th minute (2-2). Central defender. Red card.

Sunday 2 November - League game 12: Sevilla Atlético-Elche 0-2
Suspended. Due to red card.

Saturday 22 November - League game 13: Sevilla Atlético-Xerez 1-2
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Central defender. Yellow card.

Saturday 29 November - League game 14: Girona-Sevilla Atlético 1-0
Injured. Valiente has an injury.

Sunday 7 December - League game 15: Sevilla Atlético-Castellón 1-0
Injured. Valiente has an injury.

Sunday 14 December - League game 16: Gimnástic-Sevilla Atlético 3-1
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 21 December - League game 17: Sevilla Atlético-Eibar 0-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 4 January - League game 18: Tenerife-Sevilla Atlético 2-1
Starter. Valiente starts the game and is replaced in the 65th minute. Defensive midfielder.

Saturday 10 January - League game 19: Sevilla Atlético-Huesca 1-1
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Saturday 17 January - League game 20: Celta Vigo-Sevilla Atlético 2-0
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.

Sunday 25 January - League game 21: Sevilla Atlético-Alicante 2-3
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder. Yellow card.

Saturday 31 January - League game 2: Sevilla Atlético-Albacete 1-1
Starter. Valiente starts the game and plays for 90 minutes. Defensive midfielder.



Table
1. Xerez (21) 37
2. Hércules 36
3. R.Sociedad 35
4. Castellón 34
5. Tenerife (21) 34
6. Rayo 34
7. Zaragoza (21) 33
8. Salamanca (21) 33
9. Celta 32
10. Levante (21) 32
11. Girona 32
12. Huesca 30
13. Albacete 28
14. Murcia 28
15. Gimnástic (20) 27
16. Las Palmas 27
17. Elche (21) 26
18. Alavés (21) 23
19. Córdoba 21
20. Eibar (20) 21
21. Alicante (21) 15
22. Sevilla Atlético 10

The top three are promoted to the Primera División. The bottom four are relegated to the Spanish third division.