""Quotes""

Quotes for Barca Players, Coaches etc.. OR about Barca!

`Graeme Souness: Messi & Barca the Best Ever !!!

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQqk9Y14J-4&feature=player_embedded


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Gary Lineker believes Pep Guardiola's side can now become the greatest team of all time


`Barca completely outplayed Sir Alex Ferguson's side at Wembley, with goals from Pedro, Lionel Messi and David Villa enough to secure a comfortable victory for the Spanish champions.

Many believe that the result cemented Pep Guardiola's side as the greatest ever but Lineker feels that the current side must become European champions at least two more times if they are to emulate the greatest teams in history.

Writing in his News of the World column, he said: "Other teams have played wonderful football but when you add fitness and mental strength, you have a side that are well on the way to becoming the greatest club side of all time.

"To achieve that status, Pep Guardiola's team will have to win the Champions League two or three more times.

"However pretty your football, your legacy is ultimately judged on silverware. The early Real Madrid teams and Arrigo Sacchi's AC Milan lifted the trophy as well as raising the bar in terms of what football could be.

"You would not bet against this Barcelona team doing it. Only Carles Puyol is nearing the end of his career and they did not really miss him last night, did they?"

United had looked to get back into the game through Wayne Rooney's equaliser less than 10 minutes after Pedro broke the deadlock, and Lineker praised the Premier League champions for attempting to play their own game.

He said: "Wayne Rooney's goal came out of nothing but you have to give United credit. They approached the game in the right way.

"It is not in their nature to destroy, to play the sort of anti-football which allowed Real Madrid to win the Copa del Rey and spoil the semi-final. In those two games, Real did their best to bring Barca down to their level. We saw some of the theatrics which are probably Barcelona's only flaw.

"But United brought out the best in them. Even after the equaliser, there was only one team in it.

"The smile which Sir Alex Ferguson gave Guardiola at the end said it all: When Barcelona play like that, you really have no chance."

Lineker also lauded the game as a spectacle, insisting that it will have been good for football's image in the global sporting arena.

He said: "This was what football needed. At a time when the game is being dragged through the gutter again by events off the pitch, by allegations of FIFA corruption, by money, by agents, this was the antidote."


http://www.goal.com/en/news/1716/champions-league/2011/05/29/2508453/ex-barcelona-striker-gary-lineker-believes-pep-guardiolas

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`Ferguson: "We were well beaten. There is no other way to address the situation. But I expected to do better, it’s as simple as that."

"It is the best team we have ever played. You get teams who elevate themselves to that status and I think Barcelona are that team" [ manutd.com]


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Alan Hansen today became the latest former Liverpool player to declare newly-crowned European champions Barcelona the greatest club side of all time.

Last week Graeme Souness claimed Pep Guardiola's team was even better than the unstoppable ...Liverpool sides that dominated Europe in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Now, following their masterclass of football in sweeping aside Manchester United 3-1 on Saturday, Hansen concurs.
"They have taken football onto another level and possess one of the finest group of attacking players I have ever seen," said the Scot.

"Very little surprises me in football. Wayne Rooney's overhead kick for United against Manchester City earlier this season was a special moment, but we have seen overhead kicks before.
"There were moments in the game at Wembley on Saturday, however, when I saw things that I have never seen before. Barcelona's inter-passing, Messi's movement and ability to find space and the attacking brilliance of their forward players left me wondering how on Earth you could stop it."
Guardiola has brought three La Liga trophies, two Champions Leagues, one Club World Cup and one Spanish Cup back to the Nou Camp.

For Hansen, these achievements and the style of football delivered puts the current European champions ahead his second and third choices - Ajax 1970-73 (three Eredivisie, three European Cups, one Inter-Continental Trophy, three Dutch Cups) and Liverpool 1977-81 (three Championships, three European Cups, one League Cup).
He added: "With Johan Cruyff as their inspiration, Ajax revolutionised the way football was played and their dominance was such that the nucleus of the team almost won the World Cup for Holland in 1974 and 1978.
"We (Liverpool) had great players and a great team, but like Manchester United in recent years, our strength came in adversity. We might have been technically inferior compared to others, but our team ethic and spirit were huge factors."
Despite his belief that no team in history could match Messi and co, Hansen thinks his Liverpool would have equipped themselves better than Manchester United's class of 2011.
"The Liverpool team that I played in during the late 1970s and early 1980s won four European Cups in eight seasons and I'm certain that we would have given Barcelona a better game than United did at Wembley," he said.
"Barcelona decimated an average United team who had no answer to their opponents' ability. Our Liverpool team were a much stronger team than the present United outfit, but we would still have had to find a way of nullifying Messi, Xavi and Iniesta.
"The challenge facing Pep Guardiola and his players now is to dominate the Champions League by winning it again and again for a period of years, like the great dynasties of Real Madrid, Ajax, Bayern, Liverpool and Milan."

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Lippi (coach ITA): "As for what I have seen, this Barcelona is the best team of all times. No team played this good in the past."
"There sure have been exceptional teams like Herrera's Inter, the Ajax of the 70s, Sacchi's Milan, but this is a unique phenomenon."
[cdserra]

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Arrigo Sacchi (ex-coach Milan):

"I don't know if they're the best ever, but this Barça is a legendary team. I get emotional watching them play."

"France Football wrote years ago that football would never be the same after my Milan. The same happens with this Barça."

"Barcelona has a modern, innovative, fantastic score. It's a wonderful orchestra." [ser]

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Just Fontaine (all-time topscorer single world cup, in 1958): "You can only stop Barcelona by making fouls. Technically, they're perfect."

"Brazil 1958 or 1970 was immense, Cruyff's Ajax and Madrid 1950s too, but, as for football, this Barcelona is the best team."

"I thought Pele was the best, some talk about Di Stefano, but now I think Messi is superior." [l'equipe via efe]

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`Possibly the Best Team Ever?

`Cover: La Gazzetta dello Sport, "Possibly the best team ever"
http://bit.ly/cxMYp7

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Jonathan dos Santos: "I'm at the best club in the world, contract for 1 more year. Promoting is difficult but I feel good and want to stay."

"I'm working hard to show my best football to the Mexican fans. They don't know me well since the B games aren't on tv here."

"There was speculation about me playing for ESP or BRA, but I'm 100% Mexican and never thought about that." [via efe]

Reina on Barca:
“They’re the best team I’ve seen in my life. Xavi and Iniesta are the best players in their position in the world. They are world leaders in every sense. Fortunately, they (Xavi and Iniesta) are Spanish. They’re the two best players in the world at giving the final pass.“

Read more: http://www.totalbarca.com/#ixzz1ORxSgYAw

Read: View from Madrid - "Barcelona rightfully recognized as one of the greatest ever" http://bit.ly/msgsI5 [by sid lowe @sidlowe for si]

You're busy arent you khaled

jibers wrote:You're busy arent you khaled

haha i'm done.. i copied most of the thread to here:)

Great compilation Khaled

Abidal: "Puyol did something extraordinary, never seen in football, giving me the captain's band so I could lift the cup."

Retiring at Barça is my goal. I have one year left, the club wants to renew me and I think we'll find the right formula."

"I have a good relationship with Messi. Two years ago, I told him he'd win 3 Ballons d'Or in a row and he's not far from that now."
[tf1 via sport]

http://www.totalbarca.com/2011/news/abidal-my-goal-is-to-end-my-career-at-barca/

Video: Documentary about the roots of Abidal http://bit.ly/lB7DnQ (in french) :S

Motherfu*ker jinxed it

If Abidal retires at Barca that would be nice, he probably wants to burn out and not fade away so I can see why he wants to retire so early after next season

Baresi: "Barça's secret, the players are happy"
Jordi Clos



Legendary Barça defender Milan, Franco Baresi, has declared himself an admirer of Barça. He feels the key to Pep Guardiola’s success is that “he encourages the players, and gets everybody participating, making them happy when they play”.






Franco Baresi is one of the living legends of world football. The master sweeper was the last line of defence for the great Milan side coached by Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello and also for Italy in the 80s and early 90s. He retired in 1997, but still collaborates with Milan on various projects, and today spoke to Barça TV and www.fcbarcelona.cat about the current-day Barça team, which he compares to Sacchi’s Milan and considers better organised than the famous Dream Team.

- Barça fans remember Franco Baresi from the days when Milan played Johan Cruyff’s Barça. What do you remember of those games?
“I certainly remember that Barcelona was a great team. I didn’t play in the 94 final because I was suspended, but it was a nice game for us. Exceptional. We feared Barcelona because they were such a strong team, they had won the league and had some good players. Cruyff’s football was always spectacular, but I think Milan deserved to win that final, we played great football”.

- ¿Is the current Barça an evolution of the one managed by Cruyff?
“It’s different, they’re both great teams, with great players. I think Guardiola’s team is much more organised. They play attacking football but are also well organised, very skilful, great quality, fast with the ball... I’m sure the current team is much more complete, and much harder to beat”.

- ¿How would you define Guardiola’s Barça?
“It’s a nice team to watch. For football lovers, I think it’s a pleasure to watch Barça because they have some formidable midfielders and forwards. I like them a lot because it’s nice football and because of the show they offer”.

- They’re often compared to Arrigo Sacchi’s Milan. As somebody who played for one of the two which do you think will leave the biggest impact?
“It is hard to make comparisons. They are different times, different moments. Sacchi’s Milan was a great team, they played a new kind of football, it meant a major evolution, the way they combined quality with organisation. I think you can compare them with Guardiola’s Barcelona in this sense. Great players and well organised. They are two great teams that are difficult to compare”.

- Which do you think has innovated football the most?
“Sacchi was fundamental for Italian football at that time, because of the new ideas he brought to Italian and world football. He was very important. Now Guardiola is also giving Barcelona continuity of play and results. It is never easy to win in Spain, also in the world, when they play such nice, attacking and organised football. That’s their strength: continuity of results and putting on a show”.

- They are saying that this Barça is one of the best ever. Do you agree?
“Yes, I think so, In recent years, Barça have won a lot and have played well, and kept it up. In the last five or six years, Barça have had fabulous, great players. It isn’t easy to win everything they have recently”.

- Is there any current Barça player like Franco Baresi?
“I like a lot of the players. The defenders Piqué and Puyol and the midfielders Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets. They’re extraordinary. It must be a pleasure to play with them. And also Messi and Villa, all of them. I should really name them all, they’re such a complete team. I was once asked if I’d like to play where Piqué does in this team. I said that Piqué has fun because he can see what the team’s doing. He’s very good, and so important in defence, and I think it would be great to play with team mates like that”.

How do you think Gerard Piqué is progressing?
“He has a great future, he’s very young and he’s won everything. He’s world champion and Spanish champion with Barcelona. He has made huge progress and has a massive future ahead”.

- And Carles Puyol’s career?
“Puyol is standard, a legend for Catalans, for Barcelona. He is an example of professionalism, of behaviour, of rapport. And he’s played at that level for years, I congratulate him”.

- How can you explain the way these two defenders receive more fouls than they commit?
“It’s a massive skill to be able to get the ball off opponents without committing a foul, and they also help support the attack. That’s the secret to Barcelona: the players are encouraged, and everybody participates, making them happy when they play”.

- Is there any way of stopping the European champions?
“Can they be beaten? You have to play well and perhaps be quicker than them, but it’s not easy. You need to catch Barça off their form and then perhaps you can beat them”.

-Would you like to have had any of these Barça players in ‘your’ Milan?
“I think Milan would have made good use of Iniesta, Xavi and Messi. They’d have done us good”.

http://www.fcbarcelona.com/web/english/noticies/futbol/temporada10-11/06/12/n110611117969.html

khaled, I read a short version of this interview previously but thanks for posting the detailed version.

messixaviesta wrote:khaled, I read a short version of this interview previously but thanks for posting the detailed version.

welcome JD:) why did u change your name:P

Cesc (Arsenal):

"What I have with Barça is very profound. Even if they wouldn't be the best club in the world, my dream still 'd be to be part of it."

"I'm very competitive. Arsenal have a great team, a great coach and very loyal fans. It's possible to win trophies."

"I respect Guardiola a lot, he's a mirror for me, as a player and now as a coach, for his way of being. He has always been my idol." [sport]

16.06.2011 14:18

Rosell: “We hope common sense will prevail"

Speaking to the media today, the president of FC Barcelona explained that he had waited before responding to the many accusations this season due to “social and sporting responsibility”.



Claim against COPE“There are two ways of acting”, said the FCB president about the claim for libel against the radio station. “We have worked with the facts, with our claim against COPE and the appeal to UEFA, using words”. In particular reference to COPE, Rosell said “we are currently making claims. COPE has imposed measures to delay our intervention. They have put sticks in the bicycle’s spokes to stop it from going fast, but it is still moving forwards”. After Sandro Rosell had read out the FC Barcelona institutional statement, he answered questions about the different accusations against the club over the season. He revealed that it was for reasons of social responsibility that he had not spoken about these things earlier.

Doing what’s right

He said that the Board had preferred not to interrupt the good performances by the different teams that were heading for so many titles. “Anything that wasn’t in the script could have affected what our teams were doing … Events have shown that we did the right thing. It was right to make this statement today”.

Relations with Real Madrid

Rosell hopes that none of the accusations against FC Barcelona this season will ever be repeated again, for that could lead to the severing of all relations with Real Madrid. He said that “there is nothing in life that can’t be sorted out” and that relations with the all-whites “will get closer and better. The Barça values include human quality and this always offers a second chance. And we want to give it a second chance”.

As for Real Madrid president, Florentino Pérez, Rosell does not think he was the main man behind what went on, but “got dragged into it … but he is still the leading figure at his club”.

Dignified behaviour

The Barça president said that from now on he expects what is famously known in Catalan as ‘seny’ to govern the way the institutions behave. He admitted that this has been an uncomfortable year, and that “we are sports people and in sport you can always win or lose but always within the boundaries of the field of play.” However “I had to explain what has happened … I hope it never happens again. And if it never happens again, we’ll have achieved our objective.”.

Standing by Guardiola

Asked for his reaction to the comments by Madrid manager José Mourinho about the doubts surrounding the way Barcelona had won certain titles, Rosell said “if a high executive or employee of Barça had done what Mourinho did, he would get a warning”. The president agreed with what Guardiola said before the Champions League first leg against Madrid and said it was something he would rather not talk about. “Everybody has their area of action and we are now speaking as an institution. At that time, Pep was speaking as one coach to another”.

Rosell also denied that he had failed to protect his first team coach properly. “Barça was always behind him. We have done more than we have spoken about, we did a lot”.


`Source: http://www.fcbarcelona.cat/web/english/noticies/club/temporada10-11/06/16/n110616118029.html



Rosell keen to avoid transfer talk


President Sandro Rosell has asked for discretion regarding possible new signings. Looking back at the season, he highlighted the 5-0 win over Madrid, the triumph at Wembley and the recovery of Abidal.


After making his institutional statement, Sandro Rosell turned to sporting issues. “It is an honour to be president of the club. Especially now, after the most titles ever in a year in club history.” Asked what he’ll remember most, Rosell said “the 5-0 win over Madrid that was seen around the world, the win at Wembley, because it was our fourth European Cup, and when Abidal played again at the Camp Nou”.

He also said that the hardest decision was that to sell Ibrahimovic. “It was very difficult, but I don’t doubt that it was a great decision.” As for self-criticism, he remarked that “the pending issue is probably improving communication. We’ll work on it. We have done a lot of things until now but perhaps we should have spent more time explaining them … I also made a big mistake by holding a charity sweepstake”.

Transfer talk

But the pressmen were hungry for information about potential new inclusions in the first teams. “It is not in our interest to talk too much about signings” he insisted, but despite calls for discretion, he could not prevent the name of Cesc Fabregas coming up yet again. “Who wouldn’t want to come to Barça? I suppose Cesc wants to, like most people, but I don’t what’ll happen. If he is interested, then we will act rationally. We aren’t going to go pushing the boat out too far.” In his opinion, the Arsenal midfielder is worth “less than 40 million.”

As for how much the club might spend on new players, Rosell said “the ideal thing would be too observe the business plan, which is to put aside 45 million a year plus sales. If that’s not enough to give the coaches what they want, we can advance some of the money budgeted for the following year”. He also insisted that the young players groomed at La Masia will only leave “on loan or with an option to repurchase”.

Austerity and competitiveness

He also spoke about the adjustments to the budget to be invested in other sports teams. “Their competitiveness will not be affected” he said. “Prices are only rising in football, in the elite, because of the influence of teams like Chelsea and Manchester City. There is deflation in other sports and we know that through good management we can build teams that are just as, if not more, competitive on a lower budget. Because our competitors will have to reduce their budgets even more”.

“We had a debt of 532 million and the fiscal year will close with one of 483. Reducing the debt by 50 million and still producing sporting excellence is not easy. We have shown that you can be austere and still be very competitive” he said with pride, and thanked his directors for helping to do that. “Our work will involve thinking about the club in general, and it is already in a better state than how we found it. And we will do that through decisions that the people won’t always understand”.

`Source: http://www.fcbarcelona.cat/web/english/noticies/futbol/temporada10-11/06/16/n110616118030.html

Khaledbarca wrote:
welcome JD:) why did u change your name:P

The current trend is for people not to use their real name but to use a name that represents their identity in a metaphorical sense.

Messi, Xavi and Iniesta are essentially my window into the football world. They are probably the reason I follow this game so regularly and passionately.

Hence I like the idea of combining parts of their names into one user name for myself which is also my Twitter id. I invented this name myself and am thus quite fond of it. Besides till now I haven't seen a user name that is a combination of the names of three or more players. Hence it feels like a unique creation.

Also note that in my avatar as well as in my signature there is a clear reference to 'The Holy Trinity'. Actually that is taken from the Hinduism religion where the three main gods are referred to as 'The Creator', 'The Preserver' and 'The Destroyer'. So I have mapped that into our very own holy trinity of Barcelona.

khaled, I liked reading the entire details of Rossell's comments which I had only read a summary of before. It's nice to see him take a clear stand on things. Also his pragmatism is something I appreciate. Take this sentence for example - "Last year we offered €40m for Cesc, this season his value is less.". Also loved this one which felt like it had been snatched from my mouth - "The news conference that the Real Madrid coach gave after the Champions League semi-final first-leg at the Bernabeu shamed anyone who considers themselves an athlete."

messixaviesta wrote:

Khaledbarca wrote:
welcome JD:) why did u change your name:P

The current trend is for people not to use their real name but to use a name that represents their identity in a metaphorical sense.

Messi, Xavi and Iniesta are essentially my window into the football world. They are probably the reason I follow this game so regularly and passionately.

Hence I like the idea of combining parts of their names into one user name for myself which is also my Twitter id. I invented this name myself and am thus quite fond of it. Besides till now I haven't seen a user name that is a combination of the names of three or more players. Hence it feels like a unique creation.

Also note that in my avatar as well as in my signature there is a clear reference to 'The Holy Trinity'. Actually that is taken from the Hinduism religion where the three main gods are referred to as 'The Creator', 'The Preserver' and 'The Destroyer'. So I have mapped that into our very own holy trinity of Barcelona.

thx for the explanation Jd
btw i love your sig

messixaviesta wrote:khaled, I liked reading the entire details of Rossell's comments which I had only read a summary of before. It's nice to see him take a clear stand on things. Also his pragmatism is something I appreciate. Take this sentence for example - "Last year we offered €40m for Cesc, this season his value is less.". Also loved this one which felt like it had been snatched from my mouth - "The news conference that the Real Madrid coach gave after the Champions League semi-final first-leg at the Bernabeu shamed anyone who considers themselves an athlete."

me 2 !

it would have been better if he said "we are not interested in Cesc this summer..."

WE TRuST THIAGO & YOUTH! + Xavi & Iniesta are @ their peak.. so NO need for cesc now!

Young Barça midfielder, Thiago Alcántara, has revealed that although he hopes to continue on at the Catalan champions, his biggest intention is to make a name for himself within football generally, whether that be at Barça or otherwise.

Speaking to Reuters, the young Spaniard said, “I would be lying if I said that my dream is to succeed only at Barça. My dream is to succeed in football. I want to be a player that the people remember for ever. [A player] that the people recognise as someone that entertains them with what he does.”

“Football makes me happy. When I play it makes me forget myself and all the other things around me. It’s what makes me complete. At that moment on the pitch I feel like my life is centered around something,” said the player.

Explaining how the game seems to come naturally to him, he said, “I see the ball coming and I have the play in my head. I do not think about it. I have it already drawn out in my head. I have always lived with the idea in my mind to try and do things differently than others.”

Continuing on, Thiago revealed that he has no intention to leave Barça anytime soon, with his focus set on issues a little more immediate to him than any potential transfer. “It’s not a thing that I consider at this time. I have two years remaining on my contract. All I think about now is winning the European championships with Spain (under-21s) and to achieve a place at the Olympic Games. Then I will go on vacation. And the moment to think about this will arrive during the pre-season with my team.”

Despite hinting that his future may lie elsewhere, the young midfielder did accept that current Barça coach, Pep Guardiola, has been a positive influence on his career, saying, “Guardiola is a coach that during all these years has shown confidence in me.”

On the subject of his father, Mazinho, Thiago admitted having learned a lot from the former Brazil international: “I have a good mix. Brazilian roots from my father, his entire family playing football, as well as the family of my mother. And in Spain, I found order, and the tactical mind. It is a mixture of everything that generates what I do in football.”

Still on the lessons he had learned from his father, Thiago gave an interesting insight into the ambition that drives him to succeed, saying that his dad had taught him that “In work you never think about the things you have already done because if you do that you do not set yourself goals in life.”



Read more: http://www.totalbarca.com/2011/news/thiago-i-want-to-be-remembered-forever/#ixzz1Pg0fMqNE

Valdes: "Wembley was the greatest thing I ever experienced. Not only because the third CL, also because of the opponent and the scene."

"In 2005, Iniesta and I had set ourselves the goal of winning 3 Champions Leagues. It was our challenge, our dream."

"I gave Zubizarreta my Wembley shirt. I played the final with Zubi's spirit. It was his shirt, his colour, we won the game together"

[el periodico]

Ambrosini (AC Milan): "We can compete with all teams in Europe, except Barcelona, who are three levels above the rest." [gazzetta]

Khaledbarca wrote:Ambrosini (AC Milan): "We can compete with all teams in Europe, except Barcelona, who are three levels above the rest." [gazzetta]

It's hard not to be arrogant with all this praise. :p

Khaledbarca wrote:
thx for the explanation Jd
btw i love your sig

Most welcome and thanks a lot.