#barça isn't the club it once used to be and i do think messi going back there would be. idk. risky? im not sure what word to use here

[meowmeowmessi]

https://twitter.com/BarcaTimes/status/1627562485950586881 this shit again, wallahi romero is such a weirdo 😭😭. i bet he's taking credit for the extention not being signed yet as if leo waiting to see how the ucl pans out wasn't always a given?? like he wants to win the ucl, it makes sense???? some people tried to be like "oh you can't say he's wrong bc he only talked about the extention, not messi going to barca" but first of all yes he did, second, he's doing it again now lol. this man has zero access to and no relationship with messi and he's talking about what leo's supposedly saying to his entourage???? and some people are even blaming kun saying he's telling romero stuff just bc they do business together 🤡. it baffles me how its the exact same pattern of catalan outlets or even laporta himself "reporting" on a messi return just to end up making him look bad and like he's turning barca down and people still buy into it. if he truly wants to go back and laporta grovels for it (a personal request) then good for him but romero??? drunk twitch streamer on laporta's payroll quit speaking on the world champion challenge 😐

gerard romero my detested oh my godddd

i swear the culers who are desperate to have messi back choose to turn a blind eye to the fact that he's infamous for being laporta's lapdog just bc it suits their agenda. i don't think i have much to say regarding this entire transfer saga bc you've succinctly explained everything already, but might i just mention what a fucking clown romero is? i didn't see his interview with araujo myself but i saw twt posts about it, and the fact that he tried to bait the kid into saying something potentially offensive about vinicius (obviously for the clicks) by showing him memes instead of asking him, you know, actually relevant questions is so telling. araujo literally sat there like 😐 you could tell he was feeling like he'd been put on the spot (but thankfully he handled romero's prodding with grace). what's wild to me is how culers were getting a laugh out of it too like bro what happened to shame 😭 i swear these people get the kind of "journalists" they deserve actually

[swaggypsyduck]

Yall I’m new to stanning football. I came here straight from the world cup and I’m not gonna lie this shit is beating my ass. Is it always in the mud like this? I chose psg because that seems like the best option because they got messi, neymar, and mbappe who are literally the three players that caught my attention during the tournament! Yall I really thought this was going to be fun. 😭 What’s going on? Why does everything feel so confused and chaotic (not in a good energetic way, more like headless chicken running kind of way) but also weirdly sluggish and slow? Yall I don’t understandddddddd. It’s like the team has four different personalities all at once? It’s so… unpleasing to watch yall it was not like this during the world cup. 😭

I hope they get better. But I’ve been reading the psg girlies on tumble and … it seems like nobody has hope it’s going to get better? I mean surely it will? Right? I feel like everybody has given up on the season and I’m scared. 😭 I hope Kylian feels better soon. I was thinking maybe we can do trades with other teams but apparently business hours is already closed and will next open in the summer? The fuck? But we dont got anyone? And almost everyone is dropping like flies? What happens if the big guy on the fishnet gets a flue or just gets sick in general? We just dont get anyone?

Also the coach looks like he should be in a martin scorsese film with robert de niro and joe pesci. The fuck is he doing on the pitch tho?

We need to bounce back QUICK! We need positive vibes! Energy! We need God to be honest but I feel like I’ve spent all my credit with him praying for Messi to win the world cup. My account with God is all maxed out. Yall. I cant sleep until I figure this shit out. Somebody do something!

Do we have a secret weapon? Like what is the plan here? What is plan b? Oh my goddddd. This parasocial relationship is with these players really do beating my ass. I’m out here worried for them!

hi anon! wow this is a doozy. ill try to break down my response but idk if it'll do ur rant justice LOL

1) Welcome newcomer! as u may have seen in the world cup, if there's one thing someone should tell u before u enter the football world is that ABSOLUTELY NOTHING is guaranteed. you could have the strongest defense, the best goalie, gamemaster midfielders, and strikers w amazing finishes and you'll still lose to an underdog team who has better teamwork and chemistry. or just one player decides "uk what? imma earn my paycheck today" and demolishes the other team.

2) psg is a joke. ill tell u right now. lose any and all expectations. we clown on them bc even if they played shit before but at least they were winning. now they're playing shit and LOSING! and thats the problem we have. the 4 personalities at once thing is absolutely correct. you have 3 well seasoned forwards who are used to being the "it" strikers of their team. on top of that we have NO MIDFIELD AND A SHIT MANAGER WHO CANT GET A TACTIC OUT OF HIS ASS EVEN IF I SHOVED IT IN THERE MYSELF!!!... sorry i lost it a bit there lol.

3) as yes transfer window closing. see that's also Galtier and that fuckin toad incharge of players who DIDN'T MAKE A TRANSFER UNTIL LAST MINUTE AND LET CHELSEA FUCK THEM OVER. and sorry to burst ur bubble but there's a chance key players might leave/retire by that summer so lets hope they promise them to bring in an actual proper midfield by then.

4) So another thing to consider if one of the reasons u chose psg was for messi... i wouldnt. This isn't his club. this is his retirement club. ramos too actually. they've finished their careers. they actually have absolutely nothing to lose LOL. messi's heart will always be in barcelona. as in he literally knows nothing else except barça

5) injuries suck. but they are a part of the game. if u play any contact sport u know the feeling. even non-contcact sports there r still big injuries. everyone is hoping kylian gets better soon. he needs all the rest he can get 🤲🏼.

6) Our secret weapon? BHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! prayers i guess. nah im kidding. but there really isn't any secret weapon unless u count galtier deciding to pick up a tactic book? or leaving and getting replaced by pep or zidane. to use ur weapon analogy we have a dented shield that still works (defense) and a bunch of bullets (forwards) but no gun (midfield) to load them.

7) ik u were joking about that last part but the parasocial relationship?? do ur absolute best to minimize it. like as someone who's been watching the beautiful game since i was a kid its okay and fun to joke about it and worry/send love to ur faves but u have to remember: those are grown ass men getting payed hundreds of millions to kick a ball around while those in their cities that pay to watch them are in heating/housing crisis. so when we eat the rich ill be cutting them up w tears uk?

hope this helped LOL.

[palaugranetes]

Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s interview with La Vanguardia

Interview by JOAN JOSEP PALLÀS,  translated by me

They've always said that to be a goalkeeper, you’d have to be crazy.

Very strong beginning to the first question.. We are just like any other player, we’re only different from the rest because we jump after the ball wherever it may go. What we do is special but not crazy.

But the goalkeeper is all alone. The pression is felt differently.

Yes. But it was worse before. Back then, goalkeepers were more distant from the rest of the team, but the way of playing has changed nowadays, we are closer to our teammates, we know that we can help the defenders. It’s true that we train alone and that we prepare the matches individually, but at the same time we feel more part of the game and united in the same profession. 

Do you have a certain technique to better manage the stress? Meditating for example.

I know many players who do it, but I function well when I am at peace with myself. I know when I mess up and when I have played a good match and I don’t worry about what’s coming. There are plenty if opinions around me but I only care about the ones close to me, the goalkeeping coach for example. Then there’s my fiance. She understands little about football, but from a different point of view, she can tell how I feel. There are hardly ever moments where I am not feeling well, but when they do occur, she can tell how I feel. It’s another means of meditation.

Explain this to me.

If you have someone who treats you well, you reach something special. The same thing happens with Dela (De la Fuente, the goalkeeping coach), he’s very important for me, or with the boss. They explain the things to you in detail. All these opinions are the ones who I feel closest to me and who are the most important ones. They are enough for me.

Your self-confidence has always been surprising, despite your young age. At the beginning it was confused with arrogance. 

It’s essential to look ahead. There isn't another way to work. Dwelling on past failures is a mistake, you can’t change them.

Do you remember the first day you put on the gloves?

Buf.. It’s been a long time. I was nine. I liked the feeling because I was able to was the matches from another perspective, keeping track of the players’ movements going from one place to another.. It was fun because I was able to correct and help my teammates. In reality I liked being an outfield player better, but that’s football.

Why did you agree then?

Our usual goalkeeper got injured. I thought to myself “ yes, I’ll do it, it’s only one match. But I changed positions for good.

That’s where your ability to play well with your feet comes from.. 

I’ve always liked football, I didn’t care how or where I am playing, I’ve always had a ball with me. It’s my job now, and it’s seen differently. But there is always something new, it’s what I like most about this sport.

Do you ever regret being a goalkeeper?

Sometimes the coach would tell you things you don’t want to here and you go through some difficult moments, but you get through these moments with the help of a good family and people close to you. My mother was always important in that sense.

What’s more important for a goalkeeper, hands or feet ?

My job is to stop shots. The hands are much more important than the feet.

I say that because Zubizarreta discarded Courtois because his style of play did not fit Barça’s, but yours did.

During matches, you can help the team by going out to play the ball, inside or outside. It’s a way to generate a superiority, something important depending on which situations. Being confident is basic to be able to do that.

Do you speak to Zubizarreta regularly?

Once in a while. We have less contact now. But I will always be grateful to him for the way he explained what was in store for me here.

Zubizarreta was the goalkeeper of the first Champions League that Barça won in Wembley. 20 days before that, you were born. Are you interested in knowing about his history at the Club?

Yes, of course. When you play at a Club like this, you can’t limit yourself to only playing. It’ not only about that. You need to be familiar with its circumstances, with its past. I know that Barça went through difficult times, that it wasn't as successful as it is now, but it’s need to be said that politically, everything has changed a lot. Everything ends up happening when it’s done sensibly.

Let’s talk about the ‘Remontada’ against PSG. Your play, recovering the ball in the opposition’s half and provoking a foul will be remembered forever. Explain it. 

It cannot be explained. It was something so unique.. At the end of the day, you play and dedicate yourself to football to be able to live things like that. It was very special. In that moment I didn’t think that things were going to go our way. Sometimes, trying is the most important.

But what were you doing there?

I don’t know (laughs)...Being up there does not fit my position

Did you ask to go up or did the coach tell you to?

The boss gestured at me like he was trying to tell me ‘go on now’ and Unzue was saying ‘no, no, no, no, stay, stay’ and I tried to not look at him.Later on Luis (Suárez) asked me ‘what are you doing here?’. I told myself ‘come on, there is only one minute left’, ‘you have to take advantage of these moments, they rarely happen’.

What really makes that play different is that you did not commit a foul, but you recovered the ball to continue the play.

I know. The aim was to create a kind of superiority with an extra player, marking a rival payer. I had no intention in making a goal, just keeping things moving.

Have you ever seen the Camp Nou, or any other stadium in you career like that?

No. I hadn't lived anything like that until then.

What’s it like being a goalkeeper and facing Messi, Neymar and Suárez?

One prepares himself for everything but to stop those three you have to have a bit of luck because when they come up to you, it’s difficult. That’s why they are at Barça. What I can say is that I am happy I don’t have to play against them and I am even more happy that I get to play with them.

There have been talks that the referee helped you with the ‘Remontada...

Scoring six goals was not because of the referee. In that same match, there were many decisions for and against us. But football allows everything to be said, including things that aren't true. We started that match with a 1-0 in the 3rd minute. You don’t win those matches with the referee’s help, you win them with heart and with the path used to try to win. We achieved it because we wanted it and we fully believed it could be done in every moment, including after the 3-1, when everything seemed lost. 

How do you live the rivalry with Real Madrid?

From the beginning, as soon as I arrived, I noticed that it’s something different. It has to do with football but also with Politics. I prefer to focus only on football. We are eleven and we are not interested in the other part. We want to win. 

Have you spoken with Claudio Bravo since he left?

I have followed his course but I haven’t spoken to him. He is in a complicated situation but I am sure he will regain his spot, he is very good and he will do it. 

How football works. City wanted you...

I live in the moment. It’s the most important. I am happy here, with the teammates and with the friends, so I hope I win many more titles here, that’s the goal.

You’ve said once that you did not like to be defined as the goalkeeper of the future, but the goalkeeper of the present. Have you achieved it? Do you see yourself being here for many years?

I don’t know. I try to do what is best for me and for the team. Give the best of myself and improve. You never know what comes later on.

Will you miss Luis Enrique?

I think we are not there yet. He has won a lot of titles with us and he’s always done what’s best for the Club. I can imagine how difficult the decision he made was. We are very thankful for what he has done for us but there is plenty of Liga left, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey final.. It’s better not to talk about this and focus in the competition.

Your next coach could be a former goalkeeper. What do you think?

I don’t know. Each coach has his point of view. I don’t know who’ll be the next coach but I am not worried about that now. There is plenty left and we have to focus on the present. There are many matches in April.

If you win the Champions League, Arda Turan will lose his beard and you will shave your hair. You made the dare on twitter

If we win it, that’s what will happen, yes.

Who’s going to shave whom?

I don’t know. We haven’t talked about it, but I would like to do it. I will do it on the first day of the new season.

And what if Arda is not there?

He will be, he will be… (laughs).

[meowmeowmessi]

This whole "Messi returning to Barca" has wholly torn me. On the one hand, I know that he'll once again become the scapegoat for their failures (thankfully there aren't many recently). On top of that, there are the coolers. Some of them have already started to spew shit like "We don't need him", "we should look at the future", "he can't do what he used to", and "let's not bring him back". They say these things as if Barca's relevancy for the last two decades isn't because of Leo. He gave his blood and sweat for this club and they're so ungrateful for that. They're already saying "he won't fit" or "he'll take someone else's minutes" like STFU <3 Lionel is the reason your club has had any glory in the past two decades whatsoever! Also, I'm afraid they're only calling him back to earn more, instead of a long-awaited reunion. If that's the case, they'll just treat him like a cash cow and I don't want that to happen. He loves Barca too much.

On the other hand, I am sobbing at the idea of him being presented at Camp Nou and being cheered on by thousands of his fans. If they let him showcase his world cup too, I'll evaporate. Paris has literally sucked the happiness out of him. He has always said he loves football and wants to enjoy it as much as possible but Pee Ess Gee has taken out all the joy from the sport so I want him out at any cost. I would've loved for him to go to City but Barca is the best second option simply because the real fans love him more than anything and he deserves to feel all that love in the last years of his career (said while sobbing). Plus the teammates! I can't wait to see him play with Pedri, Busi, and Lewa! I understand we might be clowning for no reason but I genuinely want him to leave Baguette FC.

i don't think there's anything i can add to this— you basically summed up all of my feelings regarding the transfer saga lmao. i'm already seeing true coolers and messi fc duking it out on twt, one accusing the other of being "plastic fans" and whatnot.. literally got me rubbing my forehead while staring at my phone wondering what fresh hell is going to be unleashed upon us if messi does by some miracle return to barça

but speaking of twt, i do think we have to keep in mind that the club isn't making decisions based on what people are posting on social media of all things lmao. i think we fans tend to get lost in the noise of sm and forget that the board members and players and coaches actually have lives outside of the internet and they're not going to get rattled just bc the supposed "genuine supporters of fc barcelona and not dickriders of that pathetic midget who left us bc he's too greedy!!!" started making #xaviout trend for the umpteenth time (see: the aftermath of barça vs man utd)

at the end of the day, it's out of our hands. what i can say is these true coolers are daft the way they're already pinning the hypothetical future downfall of barça (as if it hasn't already happened; the club went from messidependencia to pedridependencia and the kid's been getting bodied by injuries bc xavi's been playing him like a workhorse lol) on messi bc the man you're putting all your hope and faith in this season, xavi himself, is apparently "obsessed" with the idea of having him back. even tebas has expressed interest in his return 😭 acting like you're financing barça with your tax money as you type away on twt isn't going to get you a catalunya passport so chill 😭✋