Not sure how closely you've been following YAs over the last few seasons, but the odds aren't that high against something like this happening.
You may want to root for BVB, Chelsea or Barca to increase the chances of more Americans playing in the CL Knockout stages.
He sucked in a set up with Messi, but with the team they ran out Tuesday, he could have added a lot of value. Barca (and I'm a fan) played a broken system the last couple years to accommodate one player. It didn't work for Coutinho, nor Griezmann; one is gone, but the other can help, time to find a way to bring him back in. He was good enough to contribute to a UCL win while on loan.
Starts: 🚨 𝙎𝙏𝘼𝙍𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙇𝙄𝙉𝙀𝙐𝙋 !! 🚨#BarçaGranada pic.twitter.com/jW12Y8fhoA— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) September 20, 2021
found it (side note: Those Granada shirts are heartwarmingly plain.) BARCELONA ARE ALREADY LOSING TO GRANADA 😮 pic.twitter.com/iIoYeBrkx2— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 20, 2021
Funny thing, due to injury to their LB, Dest was moved to LB and is doing much better than when he was playing RB.
Sorry, I beg to differ. He probably had the most touches in the final third on his team playing on the right side for 40 minutes. He moved to the left side for the last 5 min of the half. Was praised for his dangerous play as RWB.
He has been very active on the left while I've been watching. Granada is conceding him a lot of space, but still he's done pretty well, making good decisions and putting in dangerous balls. But it's weird to see so much of Barca's offensive game to be crosses pumped in from the left back.
I could see Conti takeover at Barcelona if they are still dragging for the next few months. He's a winner, and the prestige of a club like Barcelona for him might be a big enough lure despite the (hopefully) short-term issues. They have some strong young talent, and once finances could back some, add 1-2 top players and they will be competitive in all competitions again. Might take a couple seasons though.
Very good game from Dest. Faded a bit down the stretch but that isn't all that surprising since he hasn't even see the field lately. I was kind of surprised at how well he crossed from the left side today. He isn't nearly as strong defensively on the left but it gives him a few choices when moving toward touch. Barca should have won that game... how de Jong missed that header is beyond me.
Dest is still getting sh*t from Barca fans. This time, it's his (multiple) crosses are utter sh*t and he still cannot consistently beat anyone one-on-one. Now if someone can mention whois better at this on the Barca team other than perhaps Depay...
Saw Barca had like 50 crosses today and the Tika-Taka crowd's heads are splattered all over the south of Spain.
They're being harsh on him but they have a point about some of his crosses: if you got three Barça guys on the line, two defenders by the posts, and the keeper free in the middle, you don't cross to the middle.
I thought he looked fine not the left but he really wasn't asked to play any defense. That is where I think he may struggle a bit on the left side.
I do not think Conte would go to Barcelona. He wouldn’t go to Tottenham because they weren’t willing to spend the money he thought it took to build the team he wanted, and left he Inter for the same reason. Given the financial mess Barcelona is in, they aren’t going to be in a position to do any of the spending he would demand. Barcelona is definitely a mess right now and I don’t know that they are going to be able to get out from under their financial issues anytime soon.
I look at Dest's 40-50 games/season with Barcelona as a developmental exercise under 'game-like' conditions, though in this case he's playing actual games. I think 90' of Dest trying to break down Granada and working on his crosses - from both the left and the right - is great practice. I hope he, Koeman and Barcelona do well enough to keep giving Dest the practice he needs.
Agreed. It's going to be really challenging to bring a big name in to replace Koeman in the financial straights that Barca have put themselves in currently. What they need is to accept that they are in a mess, play out the string with the big earners and let them sail off into the sunset when their contracts run out and play the young players that appear to have a future with the club. Find a manager from Spain that bleeds Blaugrana and give him 2-3 years to get back to Barca football, regardless of results. It's a mess, but there is still a way to find a path back to the Barca of old, they just have to see a longer term picture in the boardroom. Koeman ain't the way back unfortunately though.
Yup that’s all they can really do. Get the financial house in order, find the next generation from La Masia, and find a coach who can make it work with the team they have. Long term they want Xavi but they need to find the guy whose the bridge to that point as I don’t think Xavi will come until they’ve cleaned up the mess they are in. The main thing is they just need to be able to maintain top 4 status while they work through their issues, which they should have the talent to do easily. Otherwise they could end up in the wilderness a bit like AC Milan.
I wish the club was actually more in tune with its owners (the members). I think the club members understand the problems they face and would appreciate full disclosure and responsibility from those in charge, as well as a long term plan set out by the board to right the ship. Half measures from the board are just not going to work any longer.
The Good: Dest is doing just enough to keep starting for this Barcelona. The Bad: They're looking like a Europa League club right now, with several under-performing players. The Ugly: The natives are restless, and Barça fans are the sort who will block the entrance to the club.