The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Barcelona

  • Too High for Comfort! Barcelona dumps Neymar pursuit

     

    Spanish La liga giants Barcelona have reportedly dropped their pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain attacker Neymar.

    The Brazil international has been strongly linked with a return to Camp Nou during this summer’s transfer window, while Real Madrid have also been credited with an interest.

    On Thursday, reports in Italy had claimed that Barca and PSG had come to an agreement over a deal for the South American, although the Catalan giants allegedly insisted that was not the case.

    According to Mundo Deportivo, PSG wanted Ousmane Dembele, Ivan Rakitic and Jean-Clair Todibo plus a “significant” cash sum in exchange for Neymar ahead of Monday’s European transfer deadline.

    Is it a closed case for Nou camp return?

    The report claims that Barca came back with a counter offer which was ultimately rejected, meaning that Ernesto Valverde’s  side have now pulled out of the hunt to bring the 27-year-old back to Spain this summer.

    The former Santos youngster has scored 51 times in 58 appearances for Thomas Tuchel’s side but is yet to feature in the early stages of this season amid the speculation surrounding his future.

    Both Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu and PSG counterpart Nasser Al-Khelaifi were in Monaco on Thursday night for the Champions League group-stage draw.

  • Barca beat top-4 hopefuls Getafe but booed for European title failure

    Spanish champions FC Barcelona beat top-four chasing Getafe 2-0 in front of a subdued and near half-empty Nou Camp on Sunday.

    It was their first La Liga game since a humbling defeat by Liverpool sent them crashing out of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.

    Sunday’s result meant little to Barca, who clinched an eighth Liga title in 11 seasons two weeks ago.

    Read also: Blame Barcelona transfer policy, not Messi for Champions League failure – Alves

    But it could prove fatal to Getafe’s hopes of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time as they dropped one place to fifth.

    Valencia leapfrogged Getafe into fourth due to their superior head-to-head record after beating Alaves 3-1.

    They will snatch the final UEFA Champions League spot if they win at Real Valladolid in their final game of the season next week.

    FC Barcelona’s Arturo Vidal opened the scoring near the end of the first half, poking a loose ball home after Gerard Pique’s flicked header was parried by Getafe goalkeeper David Soria.

    Barca’s second came in the 90th minute, thanks to an own goal.

    This was after team captain Lionel Messi combined with Sergi Roberto and beat two players before his shot got a final touch off Djene Dakonam.

    Only 57,000 people turned up at the 99,000-capacity ground for the game, which turned into a forum for fans to vent their frustrations at Barca’s 4-0 surrender at Anfield on Tuesday.

    Forward Philippe Coutinho suffered the bulk of the whistles and boos after his poor display against his old club Liverpool.

    Veteran midfielder Sergio Busquets was also subjected to boos when he misplaced several passes in the first half.(Reuters/NAN)

  • Breaking: Liverpool vs Barcelona X1

    Liverpool and Barcelona have announced their first elevens for the crucial second leg Champion League semi-finals tonight.

    Liverpool:

    ·       Alisson

    ·       Alexander-Arnold

    ·       Matip

    ·       Van Dijk

    ·       Robertson

    ·       Fabinho

    ·       Milner

    ·       Henderson

    ·       Mane

    ·       Origi

    ·       Shaqiri

    Read Also: Barcelona announce squad to face Liverpool

    Barcelona:

    ·       Ter Segen

    ·       Sergio Roberto

    ·       Jordi Alba

    ·       Pique

    ·       Lenglet

    ·       Sergio

    ·       Rakitic

    ·       Vidal

    ·       Coutinho

    ·       Suraez

    ·       Messi

    The match starts by 8pm at Anfield in the United Kingdom with the Spanish giants holding a 3-0 advantage from the first leg.

     

  • Liverpool prepared me for elite level, says Barcelona’s Suarez

    Barcelona striker Luis Suarez thanked former club Liverpool for raising the standard of his game during a three-and-a-half-year spell at Merseyside, but the Uruguayan is focused on knocking them out of the Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday.

    Suarez was crowned PFA player of the year in the 2013/14 campaign for leading Liverpool’s Premier League title challenge, before they were edged out by Manchester City.

    The 32-year-old, who joined Barcelona in 2014, said before the second leg at Anfield that he only had fond memories of his time in England.

    “The reason I’m playing at Barcelona, at the elite level, is because of Liverpool,” Suarez, who scored in Barcelona’s 3-0 first leg victory last week, told reporters on Monday.

    “Being at Liverpool helped me in so many ways, it made me more professional, it helped me mature. Having players here with great experience allowed me to be even better.

    Read Also: Suarez seals Arsenal loan switch

    “Being captain of Liverpool was one of the proudest moments of my career… its special having enjoyed a number of good years here. I’ll always be thankful to Liverpool because of the heritage they have. I have lovely memories of my time here.”

    Suarez said that he had no intention of celebrating if he scored at Anfield.

    “Celebrating the goal last week, people know the importance of scoring in a Champions League semi-final,” Suarez added. “I have all the respect for Liverpool fans, I’m thankful to them and if I score, I won’t celebrate it in the same way.

    “If I score tomorrow it will mean I can feel relaxed and Liverpool have to score more to qualify.”

    Suarez is well aware of the atmosphere at Anfield and warned his team mates not to step off the gas against Juergen Klopp’s side, who were runners-up last season.

    “We don’t have to be complacent entering into this tie. The result doesn’t tell the story; they created a lot of chances. It could have been 4-1 or 3-1,” Suarez said.

    “We played one of our best games of the season last week even though they had opportunities. Now we have to play better as we’ll face a really difficult atmosphere.

    “They have an added extra here — the fans, the 12th man. It’s like an extra player.”

    NAN

     

  • Barcelona announce squad to face Liverpool

    Barcelona publish the list of players who will travel to Liverpool on Monday to take part in the return leg of the Champions League semi-final.

    Ousmane Dembele has picked up a hamstring injury and is unlikely to play another game this season. Thus, the young Frenchman will stay at home and will not help his team at Anfield.

    Every other player has been included in the 23-man squad. Even Rafinha who is still injured will join his teammates on the flight to England.

    Two Barcelona B players Moussa Wague and Inaki Pena accompany the senior squad too.

    BarcelonaLive

     

  • UPDATED: Barcelona beat Liverpool 3-0 in first leg of UCL Semi-final

    Barcelona Captain, Lionel Messi, put the team on the verge of Champions League final by scoring twice in a 3-0 home win over Liverpool in Wednesday’s semi-final first leg encounter.

    His brace took his goal tally for the Catalans to a remarkable 600 in the process.

    Former Liverpool striker, Luis Suarez, reminded the visitors of his clinical finishing by splitting a tense and finely-balanced game at the Nou Camp in the 26th minute.

    However, Liverpool went on to carve out a number of chances, but spurned them all.

    Messi scored the all-important second goal of the night in the 75th minute, chesting the ball down on the rebound and dribbling it over the line.

    It followed Suarez’s effort which hammered the crossbar with a shot, with his knee.

    The Argentine then added to Barca’s already huge advantage to take into next Tuesday’s second leg at Anfield by scoring his milestone goal in style.

    Messi smashed the top corner with a sizzling free kick in the 82nd minute. (Reuters/NAN)

  • Barcelona reach first ever Women’s Champions League final

    If any of the Barcelona players who debuted in the Champions League on September 26, 2012, had been told that seven years later the side would be in a final then they would have surely thought it a crazy notion.

    But it has come to pass, and the Catalan club’s women’s team will compete in the Champions League final on May 18 in Budapest, becoming the first Spanish side to appear in European club football’s biggest match.

    They made it to the final by beating Bayern Munich in a tie that will be remembered for some time to come, especially as there was a record attendance of 12,764 at the Mini Estadi for Sunday’s second leg.

    Read Also: Breaking: Barcelona retain La Liga title

    This total is made all the more impressive given the hangovers likely being suffered by many fans who spent Saturday evening celebrating the men’s LaLiga Santander title, matched with it being election day in Spain.

    It was a solitary goal that ensured their place in the final, and that strike came courtesy of a Mariona Caldentey penalty at the end of the first half, with the Azulgrana having won the first leg 1-0 as well.

    Kheira Hamraoui was sent off in the final 20 minutes, but they were able to hold on with 10.

    Either Lyon or Chelsea will meet them in the final.

    That second leg will be played in London on Sunday afternoon and the French side have a 2-1 advantage from the first leg.

  • Six games that won Barcelona 26th La Liga title

    MD.10 – FC Barcelona 5 – 1 Real Madrid (28-10-18)

    The first big win of the season was the first LaLiga edition of El Clásico at the Camp Nou, as Ernesto Valverde’s men took a comprehensive victory against Real Madrid. A spectacular Luis Suárez hat-trick, plus further goals from Philippe Coutinho and Arturo Vidal, gave the three points to FC Barcelona.

    MD.15 – Espanyol 0 – 4 FC Barcelona (08-12-18)

    Two stunning goals from Leo Messi and strikers from Ousmane Dembélé and Luis Suárez sunk RCD Espanyol in the Catalan derby in December at Cornellà-El Prat.

    MD.25 – Sevilla 2 – 4 FC Barcelona (23-02-19)

    Barça showed the heart of champions by twice coming back from behind against Sevilla in February, led by Messi’s hat-trick heroics. Suárez confirmed the victory with the final goal for the Blaugrana.

    MD.26 – Real Madrid 0 – 1 FC Barcelona (02-03-19)

    Two Clásicos in quick succession were defining moments of the season, and both ended in Barça victories. They knocked Real Madrid out of the Copa del Rey at the Santiago Bernabeu, then a goal from Ivan Rakitic three days later earned them another important 3 points.

    MD.28 – Betis 1 – 4 FC Barcelona (17-03-19)

    Another Messi masterclass saw him applauded by even the Real Betis fans at the Benito Villamarín, whilst his hat-trick led to another win for FC Barcelona on their travels.

    MD.31 – FC Barcelona 2 – 0 Atletico Madrid (06-04-19)

    The two title contenders met in the closing stages of the season. Eight games from the end of the campaign, the sides first and second in the league table squared off at the Camp Nou and it was Barça who emerged victorious. Late goals from Suárez and Messi established an 11-point advantage over the team from the capital.

  • Breaking: Barcelona retain La Liga title

    FC Barcelona have won the Spanish La Liga title for the second year running.

    Captain Lionel Messi’s second half goal was the difference between the team and Levante.
    Over 91,000 fans in Camp Nou roared excitedly when the referee blew the final whistle.
    With the win, Barcelona confirmed its dominance of the La Liga title having won eight out of the last 11.

  • Firmino should be fit to face Barcelona-Klopp

    Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino, who missed Friday’s 5-0 Premier League win over Huddersfield Town, will be fit to face Barcelona on Wednesday, Manager Jurgen Kloop has stated.

    He expressed the optimism despite revealing the striker has a small muscular tear.

    The Merseysiders, who have moved back to the top of the Premier League table, take on the Spanish giants in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal at the Nou Camp and the loss of Firmino would be a significant one.

    The 27-year-old Brazilian was replaced by Daniel Sturridge in the Liverpool lineup on Friday after picking up a muscle injury in training on Thursday.

    READ ALSO: Salah, Mane earn braces to send Liverpool top of EPL again

    “Bobby trained yesterday completely normally. It was not high-intensity we just had to work on set-pieces a little bit and here and there a couple of things,” said Klopp.

    “I didn’t see it in training, it happened in the last situation of training and he felt a muscle a little bit. Now the official diagnosis is he has a small tear in a small muscle, so apart from the word ‘tear’ everything else is positive.

    “It is Bobby, so he might be ready for Wednesday, but we obviously don’t know in this moment. Because it is him, it’s rather likely that [he will be] than not, but we will see.

    “So, of all the bad news you can get it is pretty much the best, but it’s still bad enough that he couldn’t play tonight.”

    Firmino has featured in 46 games for Liverpool this year in all competitions, scoring 16 goals with eight assists.

    Klopp also said Netherlands defender Virgil Van Dijk, who brought Anfield to a hush when he went to ground with an injury during the second half against Huddersfield, was fine.

    “No, nothing. I asked him, he said, ‘No, no, all good,” added Klopp.