Hello From Bolton

[XaviMessiGirl]

Thanks for the the reply XaviMessiGirl!

N'Gog isn't doing great, he only got 3 goals last season, and seems to have done his back in over pre-season. We have another American called Tim Ream, who is a defender, looks like a good player, have you heard about him much?

No problem, I hope it helps

Yeah that's unfortunate about N'Gog, hope he picks up for you. As for Ream I've heard of him but that's about it, I'm honestly not much of a follower of American players.

 

[Deco 20]

Hi, I'm from a Bolton Wanderers forum called Burnden Aces.

We run a Q&A feature, where we get the views of other teams' fans. We play Barca B on Friday, and so I was wondering if some of you guys would answer these questions for us:
I hope I've posted this in the right place! I look forward to reading your responses!

Good initiative :beer2:


Who do you think are the best players in your team?

It's difficult to say, especially since some of the best players where promoted. 3/4 of the first choice defence (Montoya, Bartra, Muniesa) as well as the "defensive" midfielder Jonathan Dos Santos are now first team players. Add to that the certain starters Rafinha (Thiago's little brother) and Sergi Roberto, both central midfielders, joining the first team for the pre-season.
Since the winger Cristian Tello hasn't been given a first team number, he's probably the best player in the B-side, but I believe he's with the first team too (not strange considering that he played about 20 games for the first team last season).

Now for the players that I believe will play at the Reebok (that's your stadiums name, right??):
18 year old winger Gerard Deulofeu is by far the most shining star, having scored something like 9 league goals for Barca B last season as well as being elected the best player of the u-19 tournament this summer (he played last summer too, as a 17-year old). He has some attitude problems, and is known to take the wrong decisions on the pitch, but he can be a real nightmare to defenders with his pace. He'll wear #7 or #17, I believe.
Apart from him, two of the most talented youngsters in our youth setup have been promoted this year. The 17-year-olds Alejandro Grimaldo, LB, and Jean-Marie Dongou, striker, have been hailed as potential future first team starters. Grimaldo was an ever-present for the Spain side that won the u-19s, and that at the age of 16!

Also look out for the new loan signing Sergio Araujo from Boca Juniors. I haven't seen him play myself so I can't say much more than that he's supposed to be very talented.

On a final note Javier Espinosa might not be the best all-round midfielder at the club, but he's certainly the most graceful not to play for the first team. He's frequently been compared to Iniesta, but lacks consistency as well as much more, but he's a great player to watch.

Since this answer was much longer than I expected it to be I'll answer the other questions in a separate post!

 

[bwfcbob123]

Good initiative :beer2:
Since this answer was much longer than I expected it to be I'll answer the other questions in a separate post!

Wow! Thanks!

 

[Deco 20]

What style of football do your team play? Is it similar to that of the A team?

It's usually a bit more direct than that of the first team since they lack a player like Xavi or Thiago, and I expect it will be even more direct vs Bolton since there are so many new players joining and the whole first-choice midfield from last season is with the first team. They might try to take advantage of fast breaks on whichever side Deulofeu plays.

How have the B team been doing in their pre-seaon? What position will they be aiming for in the Second division?
I must admit I haven't seen any of the pre-season games, but I believe they've won one of them and drawn the other. What that implies I do not know since I have no idea of the level of the opposition.

The main objectives of the season have to be to develop youth for the first team and to stay in the first division, but I do think a top 10 finish is possible if the new players settle in quickly. A couple of seasons ago it could have been promoted to the first division if it were allowed, but the team of this year is definitely not as good.

The majority of posters on here seem to be from the USA or UK. What's it like to support a team from a different country?
It was tricky at first since I didn't know a single word of Spanish and a large portion of the news publicized in English is made up or heavily manipulated. My knowledge of Spanish has increased dramatically since (partly as a result of reading Spanish news about the club ) facilitating the information-gathering quite a bit. But yes, I do miss the opportunity of being able to see the team live... Although I plan to do so in the near future!

I've never felt any connection to the Swedish teams, since none of my parents ever cared about any specific football team except for the national side. While there are many Swedes who support Swedish sides, most support foreign clubs, be it "on the side" or exclusively. English football is especially popular, but Real Madrid and Barcelona (along with the top Italian sides) are the most supported clubs by immigrants and those growing out without the far-reaching influence of "Tipsextra" (which the older generation used to glue their eyes to). Another thing you should know is that everything in the media goes through "Zlatan-tinted" glases, which made being a Barca fan extremely annoying when he signed and then played for the club.

Do you know much about our team? Who do you see as our best player?
I'm afraid I do not know of your best players, or indeed any player of the current squad. I know that Johan Elmander used to play there. Saha did so too, right? You're supposedly good at taking care of youngsters, hence why Arsenal loaned you Wilshere and Chelsea did the same to Sturridge.

And finally, what do you think the result will be at the Reebok on Friday?
3-1 to Bolton

 

[Deco 20]

Can't believe I forgot Muamba and Kevin Davies

To compensate, here's a video of one of Barca B's pre-season games (haven't seen it myself, but if anyone here really hasn't got anything else to do...):

 

[bwfcbob123]

What style of football do your team play? Is it similar to that of the A team?
It's usually a bit more direct than that of the first team since they lack a player like Xavi or Thiago, and I expect it will be even more direct vs Bolton since there are so many new players joining and the whole first-choice midfield from last season is with the first team. They might try to take advantage of fast breaks on whichever side Deulofeu plays.

How have the B team been doing in their pre-seaon? What position will they be aiming for in the Second division?
I must admit I haven't seen any of the pre-season games, but I believe they've won one of them and drawn the other. What that implies I do not know since I have no idea of the level of the opposition.

The main objectives of the season have to be to develop youth for the first team and to stay in the first division, but I do think a top 10 finish is possible if the new players settle in quickly. A couple of seasons ago it could have been promoted to the first division if it were allowed, but the team of this year is definitely not as good.

The majority of posters on here seem to be from the USA or UK. What's it like to support a team from a different country?
It was tricky at first since I didn't know a single word of Spanish and a large portion of the news publicized in English is made up or heavily manipulated. My knowledge of Spanish has increased dramatically since (partly as a result of reading Spanish news about the club ) facilitating the information-gathering quite a bit. But yes, I do miss the opportunity of being able to see the team live... Although I plan to do so in the near future!

I've never felt any connection to the Swedish teams, since none of my parents ever cared about any specific football team except for the national side. While there are many Swedes who support Swedish sides, most support foreign clubs, be it "on the side" or exclusively. English football is especially popular, but Real Madrid and Barcelona (along with the top Italian sides) are the most supported clubs by immigrants and those growing out without the far-reaching influence of "Tipsextra" (which the older generation used to glue their eyes to). Another thing you should know is that everything in the media goes through "Zlatan-tinted" glases, which made being a Barca fan extremely annoying when he signed and then played for the club.

Do you know much about our team? Who do you see as our best player?
I'm afraid I do not know of your best players, or indeed any player of the current squad. I know that Johan Elmander used to play there. Saha did so too, right? You're supposedly good at taking care of youngsters, hence why Arsenal loaned you Wilshere and Chelsea did the same to Sturridge.

And finally, what do you think the result will be at the Reebok on Friday?
3-1 to Bolton

Thanks Deco!

Saha hasn't played for us, but yes, Elmander did. He wasn't that prolific a goalscorer, but last season you could tell we were missing something upfront.

We do seem to give youngsters a good stage to get into their club's first team. It's nice to watch Wilshere playing for Arsenal and Sturridge playing for Chelsea, and especially to see them playing for England. We have one young player on loan from Arsenal, Benik Afobe. Maybe we can borrow one of Barca B's players!

 

[bwfcbob123]

EDIT: Oops, double post

Thanks for the video Deco!

 

[Deco 20]

Hopefully not
The side is already quite short of experienced/quality players. You might be able to borrow one of the lesser known first team players though. I'm thinking Jonathan Dos Santos or Fontás (cb, just returned from injury). They're better than the players in the B-team but still far from the first eleven

Or just wait until one of the ex-barca Arsenal players turns 18

---
Damnit, Saha played for Everton...

 

[funsize1984]

what happened to N'Gog? I liked him at Liverpool and thought he had a bright future. He hasn't done much for Bolton?

 

[bwfcbob123]

what happened to N'Gog? I liked him at Liverpool and thought he had a bright future. He hasn't done much for Bolton?

No, he played all season and only scored 3.