Lionel Messi - v7

serghei

Senior Member
Valverde is a shit manager and I want him gone. However leo is not wrong to say it was on the players.

He is wrong. Every player has limitations. Limitations are basically in game situations where players are unable to show their qualities and instead show their flaws.

And it is down to the manager to find ways to not expose the bad side of players, and instead showcase their qualities. Valverde made sure to set up the team so that every flaw is exposed as badly as possible.

Liverpool have flaws too. But Klopp has a system. He knows how to set up the team so that Henderson, Milner, are very rarely in a situation where they panic and expose their clear technical limitations.
 
Last edited:

xXKonan

Senior Member
I'm not going to blindly accept Messi's words for the Anfield disaster saying it's the player's fault only for it.

To easy for the simpletons who blindly think everything that comes out of Messi's mouth is always correct. Valverde is the guy who is managing the team not the players, he's supposed to prepare the team and be ready to make certain adjustments to get more out of the players and counter-act the other team.

We have seen time and time again that Valverde gets easily outsmarted by managers who don't have anywhere near the squads we have and he only succeeds due actions of the likes of Messi pulling something magisterial off.

There's nothing good about having a team that is not even a team, just hoping that Messi does something is not how shit should be. If Messi is really okay with all that is going on along with the senior players, then be my guest and if we end up failing again don't give me that sob story about wanting to be competitive but still keep persisting in backing the coach like he hasn't done anything wrong.
 

Rory

Senior Member
He is wrong. Every player has limitations. Limitations are basically in game situations where players are unable to show their qualities and instead show their flaws.

And it is down to the manager to find ways to not expose the bad side of players, and instead showcase their qualities. Valverde made sure to set up the team so that every flaw is exposed as badly as possible.

Liverpool have flaws too. But Klopp has a system. He knows how to set up the team so that Henderson, Milner, are very rarely in a situation where they panic and expose their clear technical limitations.

Just don't think it's as black and white as that, it was a combination of incredibly bad managing and terrible play from a select few. Should they have all been on the pitch? No. Does that mean they get a pass if they play like crap? Not for 100k+ a week they don't. The same people saying it was only Valverde to blame almost certainly slammed into the players for their performances, so was it Valverde or the players? I want Valverde gone and believe he was the biggest factor in the anfield defeat and he's generally not good enough. I just think it can't be said it was 100% this thing or 100% another. Messi's comments to me are admitting the players part for it whilst being unable to say it was the management's fault without causing a whole circus, trying to read between the lines.
 

serghei

Senior Member
Just don't think it's as black and white as that, it was a combination of incredibly bad managing and terrible play from a select few. Should they have all been on the pitch? No. Does that mean they get a pass if they play like crap? Not for 100k+ a week they don't. The same people saying it was only Valverde to blame almost certainly slammed into the players for their performances, so was it Valverde or the players? I want Valverde gone and believe he was the biggest factor in the anfield defeat and he's generally not good enough. I just think it can't be said it was 100% this thing or 100% another. Messi's comments to me are admitting the players part for it whilst being unable to say it was the management's fault without causing a whole circus, trying to read between the lines.

It was terrible management the most. Not only terrible management obviously, but the biggest single cause of the debacle was Valverde. So when a player like Messi tries to imply that it wasn't, it's actually a very worrying sign, because it tells me how little the players think of Valverde. It tells me that the amount of authority and the level of influence a guy like Valverde has in the team is perceived as being extremely low, minimal one would say.

You actually hear managers, big ones not cowards like Valverde, taking the blame themselves after nights like Liverpool. Them making a step to take on the pressure and protect their players in the press and in front of the fans. Saying it was their fault. Yet, with a weasel like Valverde, it's actually the other way around. He allows the players to take on the blame only to clear his reputation a bit. But nobody who knows a thing or two about football believes this charade of nonsensical arguments even from players like Messi.

You can say it was player failing when players who otherwise shined in similar conditions had a terrible night. Like vs Chelsea in 2012. You expect a team of that quality, with those chances, to put 10 men Chelsea at home in the 2nd half on Camp Nou. Or you expect your keeper to save the 1 single chance Chelsea had all game and not receive a goal like the one Ramires scored. Or you expect the defense to be more focused in min 45 or so, and go at half time with 2-0, instead of 2-1. Or you expect Messi to score a very important penalty like that one.

It is not player failing first when a midfielder who suffers under pressure for example, is having a legit 'disasterclass' vs the best pressing team in the world. The manager had information about this issue, it was documented to the point that even the medium-knowledgeable fan here knew that Rakitic was going to be a real problem for our midfield had he played on Anfield. We got dominated at home, in the same setup, and if Liverpool can create enough chances to score about 4 goals on Camp Nou, it was pretty obvious that they can do that on Anfield too, considering they are like 3 times better when they play there. And we're like two times worse compared to Camp Nou.

You add two by two together, and you realize Valverde is one dumb manager at this level. Man is unable to read signals. He thinks that key aspects which go wrong when some conditions are met, magically get better without the manager intervening to correct things. Like playing a static slow midfield who struggle to keep the ball when pressed is going to magically perform better on Anfield than they did on Camp Nou (when they failed to stop Liverpool from creating big chances regularly). That is like testing the quality of an umbrella during a normal rain. The umbrella breaks. You then decide the same umbrella can do better if instead of the mild rain you have a fecking storm. Then you are surprised that the umbrella is turn to shreads.
 
Last edited:

FinBarcelonafan

Well-known member
It's on the players as well. We have too many players who have won everything multiple times. They are not as motivated as the other teams and it shows.

We need to get rid of some of the old guard.
 

Richard.H

Senior Member
If Messi truly thinks that the only problem is not having Neymar then he is clearly drinking the cool aid. Lucho or unzue with last years or this years squad would’ve easily won the CL.
 
If Messi truly thinks that the only problem is not having Neymar then he is clearly drinking the cool aid. Lucho or unzue with last years or this years squad would’ve easily won the CL.

Lucho didn't win it in 15/16 with a much much better squad. We had a great chance to win CL last year because of an easy draw and that flukey first leg over Liverpool, but our squad was nowhere near the best in Europe. Without Messi, that team would have struggled finishing top 4-6 in England.
 

BADGERBHOY

Senior Member
Lucho didn't win it in 15/16 with a much much better squad. We had a great chance to win CL last year because of an easy draw and that flukey first leg over Liverpool, but our squad was nowhere near the best in Europe. Without Messi, that team would have struggled finishing top 4-6 in England.

:lol::lol::lol:
 

serghei

Senior Member

I know :lol:

And CL finalists Tottenham were almost knocked out in the Group Stages because they couldn't beat our bench players, while we had nothing to play for. :lol: Needed PSV to snatch a draw away to Inter.

The things some come up with these days are crazy.
 
Last edited:

FinBarcelonafan

Well-known member
I know :lol:

And CL finalists Tottenham were almost knocked out in the Group Stages because they couldn't beat our bench players, while we had nothing to play for. :lol: Needed PSV to snatch a draw away to Inter.

The things some come up with these days are crazy.

CL is about very small margins. By all means Liverpool could have been out in the group stage without their last minute goal vs PSG or Dijk being sent off vs Napoli.. Napoli also missed last second chance vs Liverpool. Klopp has done good job but you need luck in CL as well.

Tottenham making the final was a joke for sure.
 

FCBarca

Mike the Knife
If Messi truly thinks that the only problem is not having Neymar then he is clearly drinking the cool aid. Lucho or unzue with last years or this years squad would’ve easily won the CL.

Then you perhaps didn't fully appreciate his interview - most who watched it saw the Neymar issue as only one issue, a competitive squad & the sporting direction (i.e. La Masia) was clearly expressed as imperatives

I thought it was a bit speculative back in July when Graham Hunter suggested Messi was holding out on his renewal until Neymar's return was secured but now you can put a lot together since early July and see there is definitely something to this - a war is brewing internally with it about to be played out in the media.

I believe this is going to escalate
 
Last edited:

Zica

New member
Then you perhaps didn't fully appreciate his interview - most who watched it saw the Neymar issue as only one issue, a competitive squad & the sporting direction (i.e. La Masia) was clearly expressed as imperatives

I thought it was a bit speculative back in July when Graham Hunter suggested Messi was holding out on his renewal until Neymar's return was secured but now you can put a lot together since early July and see there is definitely something to this - a war is brewing internally with it about to be played out in the media.

I believe this is going to escalate

Yep. Messi rarely gives interviews like this. This is pretty important and could have repercussions. Shots fired.
 

Ritchie

New member
Then you perhaps didn't fully appreciate his interview - most who watched it saw the Neymar issue as only one issue, a competitive squad & the sporting direction (i.e. La Masia) was clearly expressed as imperatives

I thought it was a bit speculative back in July when Graham Hunter suggested Messi was holding out on his renewal until Neymar's return was secured but now you can put a lot together since early July and see there is definitely something to this - a war is brewing internally with it about to be played out in the media.

I believe this is going to escalate

But had we signed Neymar and nobody else Messi would have been a lot happier. We still signed De Jong and Griez which are top players.

In reality it's an ageing team and the coach that are the problem. But try telling Messi that Suarez needs fucking off and Valverde needs shooting.

Messi has become part of the problem. Backing an inept fraud and his pub player best mate
 
Last edited:

Home of Barca Fans

Top