The Return to the Camp Nou - The 2025-26 Season Thread

Ok, but I guess my question is, why do you get to exclude the Messi case? Doesn't that mean that it can work?

Everything is unprecedented if you exclude the cases where its happened before.

 

Because:

1. If you want to include Messi as a comparison, then you are making the moronic statement that Alvarez = The GOAT.

2. If you want to jump into Doc Brown's DeLorean, and travel back in time a decade or so, when shorter solo #9s were more common than they are today, then you are also making the assumption that the game NOW = the game THEN.


But, for as much of a fan of Argentinian footballers as you are, I know you're too intelligent to make either one of those assumptions.


Other Argentinian fanboys, who cannot "Lea ingĺés," well, they must be just that moronic to make those assumptions.


And at all of that, I've invited others to come up with a sole midget #9 in recent seasons that was successfully used for a top team (read: UCL contendier). So far?

We've gotten exactly ZERO examples. Well, I should say, they've named the partnership of "Jack" and "Shyte" to further their arguments.

 

One doesn't have to make those 2 assumptions to argue that a hard-working, talented, versatile player would succeed up front at Barca. There aren't many examples elsewhere of someone so short being a successful striker for the simple reason that its quite unusual for a striker to be so short.

Putting the money issue aside for a moment, would you feel comfortable if Alvarez was 5'10" (i.e. somewhat short, but more typical)? Presumably your answer is yes, but I don't see a big difference. Anything below 6' would limit a player's ability to be a force in the air, but there are other attributes that can make up for that. Fortunately, Alvarez possesses many of them.

 

Without impugning you in any way, the whole, "this guy is versatile" song-and-dance just means that someone, somewhere is trying to square peg a guy into a roster.

A year ago, we were all promised, "Dani Olmo is so versatile," and now he's riding pine whenever Fermin is available. The whole "this guy is versatile" is overrated, when considering a purchase, IMO.

In TODAY'S game, sure. There aren't many short #9s today, because so few top teams play a 2 forward system any more.

However, Alvarez is a shorty #9, so too was Rooney and Messi, and Michael Owen.

But its the sea-change in systems to 3 forward systems that has mostly ruled out smurfs from the #9 role. Its an unfortunate fact of life and of today's times.

To your question, only if that hypothetical player also came with the full breadth of skills necessary for the role.

But as you mentioned, lacking the aerial skill in a sole #9 is extremely limiting to the entire team, whether we like it or not. Enemy teams could then alter the way they play, and the players they use, specifically to target a glaring weakness in an opponent with a smurf #9. It would make any team incredibly predictable to defend.



As an aside, it seems as though you (and the illiterate Argentinian fanboy who pokes his head in here) are taking this reality as a personal affront to Argentinians everywhere.

Its not. Its only acknowledging the reality of today's game, this club's preferred system, and that player's limitations. Unfortunately, not all great players are great fits for a club.

 

As predicted, Olmo is out for a month with a dislocated shoulder.

And this is the latest cautionary tale as to why not every good player is a good transfer.


Speaking of bad transfers, I noticed that Chapo Alvarez (snicker) got pocketed by Kounde and Balde. The supposed "perfect striker" had as many goals and assists at SCN as you and I did from your couch or office desk.

 

And we all knew before Laporta bought a China doll for non-sporting reasons that Olmo is a China doll. And this is why I had zero interest in his signing.

At the same time, he's been a good player and a loyal soldier to the club. I do feel bad that his body betrays him over and over and over and over. But a players 1st ability is AVAILability.

I was told that he's a golden god, and that he's the best striker on the planet. I was also told that Barça should go out and buy two fullbacks as well. Ya know, those bums who POCKETED Alvarez yesterday?

I'm, like, SHOCKED that you and I equalled his shots on goal totals from the comfort of our couches or offices yesterday.


(Seriously, if Haaland played yesterday for Atleti, he'd probably have had a hattie on the trot, so I'm not hearing any more of this "Alvarez is the best striker" bullshyte.)

 

I get your view that this latest injury is unrelated, but a joint dislocation is in fact a failure of the connective tissues to keep a joint in place and together.

But the overarching reason behind not wanting to sign an injury prone player is that the biggest predictor of future injury is a history of previous injury.

The illiterate Argentinian fan Leon tried to tie Alvarez to Messi. And to be clear, Simeone does sit in deep at times, but he also pressed Barca early, and also likes to hit back on the counter. Both of these are cogent strategies to counter Flick's system. One would think that if Alvarez is as good as claimed, he would have cooked a teenaged CB, a slowish converted LB as CB, a LB who defends like he's a LW, and a converted CB at RB, who we're all supposed to hate for some reason.

But, he produced as much as you and I did yesterday.

The other thing (as you'd brought up Alvarez v LPB), is that Chapo has one product in his portfolio that no one at Barça has right now:

His ability to sweetly strike a free kick. Despite that, I don't recall him troubling Joan in any way. All told, I'm still not hearing any more bullshyte about Alvarez being a top #9.

He just isn't, and it isn't an insult to him, nor to our Argentinian brothers and sisters around here.

I've seen Culers opine that Barca should go squander €30MM on a 30 year old Grimaldo, for depth.

And even though Balde defends like he thinks he's still a LW, and Kounde's form is down this season, I'm not seeing the need to waste finite resources in this area. It would be better for Barça to save the cash for the next Haaland, instead of squandering cash on a LB, leading to Barça having to sign the next Braithwaite.

 

I hope this isn't true, but Sport is suggesting that Olmo may be out for 4 months. Supposedly, Olmo has had an injury on the same shoulder some time ago.

https://www.football-espana.net/2025/12/07/barcelona-star-risk-four-months-injury

 

Well, he has been a disappointment since the drama of last December & his registration challenges with La Liga. Super inconsistent on top of habitually injured

Shame really because he is a great SS when fit