Barca Buzz: First Training!

They're back! The team held their first training yesterday on the Ciutat Esportive, and we get a first look at this season's new outfits. The neon yellow training shirts are a tad too bright and flashy we think, but they're reminding us of the away kit of 2005-2006 in which Barca won the Champions League, so we're not complaining!

The manager's shirts are brilliant though. Much more vibrant and lively after last season's dull brown, and that shade of blue is amazing; Pep is looking damn hot.

Anyway, we're so happy to see the boys in action again. For some reason which we'd really like to know, Maxwell and Henry trained apart from the group. And they seemed to be getting quite well with each other too - was it love at first sight?

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We kid. We're joyful that Max is getting on with the rest of the boys, and that he's found a pal on the team already!

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After two months of seeing the players scattered here and there on their individual vacations, it's so great to finally have them together again. The very sight is beautiful. And even better, will be when we see them march out onto the pitch and doing thier thing, come the first preseason match in a few days... the team travels to London today in preparation, read more about thier stay here.
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Gossip on the Guys: Andresito's Barca Home

Barca's Andres Iniesta has a new home! His father Jose Anotonio, who is a bricklayer, has been overseeing the construction for the last year and a half, and now it's finally complete!

It's located in his homwtown of Fuentealbilla, on the street bearing name of Iniesta in the heart of the city, about one hundred kilometers from the club.

The house is described as a mini Barca "museum", with moldings in the club colors of blue and claret and a huge Barca crest set into the bottom of the swimming pool, as well as various framed pictures and the like from his days at Barca endorning the walls inside.

The outer facade bears his name as well as the crests of each of Barca and the Spanish national team, and his shirt numbers '8' and '6' for each one, respectively. A ball and a pair of Nike boots are also engraved at the bottom of the front door.

Barca Buzz: Preseason Kickoff

Offseason's over and preseason's begun! We're so happy that the boys are finally back and in action. We've missed them!

The B-team lads as well as a couple of first-teamers all reported to take their physicals yesterday, while the rest of the team are due back today - that is, except for those who have permission to stay later and won't return till the 27th: Dani, Pique, Puyol, Busquets, Xavi, and Iniesta.

Lionel Messi was also given a holiday extension along with those six, but incredible Leo just couldn't wait to join up with the team again, and asked if he could come a week early! His flight took off from Buenos Aires yesterday, and he should have arrived in Barcelona today.

The rest of the team took their physicals this morning. The tests for each player involve an echocardiography, electrocardiogram, a strength test and several other cardio and physical exams that work out the player's fat levels and weight difference compared to the end of the season, if any. Pictures from yesterday's physicals here and from today's here.

Pep Guardiola is back, with a shaved head but looking hot nontheless (yes, we see your tongue, love!) He spoke today in a press conference (photos below) - his first in almost two months, since the CL final in fact - and discussed many things, explaining that the decision for Eto'o to leave the club is entirely his as well as commenting on the other players and transfers, read more here.

The first training session of the preseason was held today at 18:00 CET, followed by another one tomorrow at 11:00 before the team flies to London, in prepartion for the first preseason match against Tottenham Hotspurs on the 24th.

Btw: We're particularly excited about the fact that nineteen-year-old Jonathan Dos Santos (Giovani's younger brother) got his call up, and he'll be starting preseason with the first team!
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Random: A Letter From Gabi, Checking In On The Dream Team & Camp Nou In The Sea?

- We've all been missing Gabi Milito terribly since he got injured, and now, over a year later, his recovery isn't looking any nearer. It's strange, how complicated this injury has turned out to be, but Gabi is still hopeful, so we'll follow in suit. He wrote a letter adressed to all of us, his fans, saying, "I know that I will overcome this and recover." Read the full letter here.

.- Ever wondered what became of the legendary players who made up Barca's Champions League winning "Dream Team" of 1992? This article reveals what all the squad members have been up to since then.

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- After Barca's inital plans to remodel Camp Nou, the Catalan architect Emili Vidal is now suggesting to build a new Camp Nou - in the sea. The stadium would be on a man-made island off the cost, with a seating capacity of 150,000. The club don't like it though, and the plan to continue with the original project.

- Barca's sports director Txiki Begiristain has renewed his contract for another year, until June of 2010. The club want it that way so that after next spring's elections, the new board will be able to replace him if they choose.

Transfer Talk: Goodbye Villa?

We've been stalling on reporting this because we're somehow hoping that something will still happen and signing Villa is still possible. But after all the recent reports, it looks like we can't ignore it any longer... Ibrahimovic's arrival in Barcelona seems inevitable.

Valencian sources claim that Villa has decided to stay in Barcelona. Catalan sources claim that Eto'o has agreed to join Inter, that the deal will be closed tomorrow and everthing is set. Ibrahimovic is quoted to say: "It's time to move on, I want to win the Champions League".

And it makes us feel just downright disappointed. If Ibra is to join Barca, we may as well try to accept it... but we're finding it hard to do so.

We know there are many fans out there who would welcome Ibrahimovic and see him as a good option for the club. Thoughts expressed on this blog are a personal opinion and nothing more; we simply happen to favor Villa. We hold no contempt for Ibra, actually, our difficulty in accepting this move is really about our huge preference for Villa, it hasn't got much to do with Ibra himself.

We wouldn't be so against signing Ibra, if not for the fact that Barca was so close to obtaining Villa, and simply gave up on him like that. Villa was by no means a closed door; Barca simply didn't want to pay just a little bit more. It's annoying that this transfer was spoiled because of a few million euros, when paying them is really not that big a deal for Barca - especially after Villa's offer to cut his salary.

Why did the club not take him up on that? Why did they turn a blind eye to this man's incredible effort to join the club, turn around and stab him in the back after leading to believe they were that eager to sign him? Villa has destroyed his relationship with Llorente in his attempts to get the president to let him sign for Barca... and for nothing. Now he's stuck on Valencia for another season, sure to be an awful one for him.

As for which player would be more suited to Barca, as a team, Villa or Ibra, we stand by Villa, for reasons that are obvious. Villa would fit in better, both on and off the pitch. He is better suited to Barca's style and has a lot of experience playing in the Spanish Liga. He speaks the language, is on great terms with many of Barca's players who are his compatriots on the Spanish national team and, most importantly, he is clearly unbelievably eager, anxious even, to join Barca.

Whereas Ibra? Joining Barca is an option that has been newly opened for him. It's not something he's been yearning for, as Villa has for a while, nor something he's even been thinking about. Yes, he was quick to get excited about this move, but for what reasons? Because, as he said, he wants to win the Champions League?

So basically he wants to join Barca after our treble victory, after seeing that we're a winning team. Would he have been this eager a year ago? We doubt it. Looks like the move is more about winning to him, when it should be about Barca. Clearly the type of player who would get fed up after a crappy season and want to leave, and not one who would stick with the team through thick and thin because it's his team.

Ibrahimovic is a great player, we've never denied it. But he's not Barca's type. He could never fit in with the team as well as Villa would. And he doesn't speak Spanish either. Communication is key; he'll never be able to click with the team, not right away at least, not until he can speak the language well. Lack of communication is the reason Hleb flopped once he came to Barca.

And say what you will, it can't be denied that Ibrahimovic is a player with an ego. He's arrogant. Is that the type of player we want on Barca? Some have argued that if Pep could tame Eto'o, with his attitude problems, he can surely handle Ibra. But why should we have to settle for a player that must be "tamed", when we can have the humble Villa with his earnest passion for Barca? Why are we getting rid of Eto'o in the first place? To replace him with another player who'll give us all headaches?

For all Laporta's talk about how different Barca are from Real Madrid, signing Ibrahimovic - the top class, arrogant striker with the huge transfer fee - is not much different than signing Cristiano Ronaldo. The way he's being glorified in the Catalan media, too, is sickening. It's Madrid and Ronaldo all over again.

Ibrahimovic claims he's willing to earn a salary of 7.5 million at Barca, lower than what he earned at Inter, because the club don't want any player to be paid higher than Messi. Some will say that that's a wonderful gesture from him, and shows how much he wants Barca.

Not really. It's not generosity, his willingness to settle for that. It's what's expected of him! Refusal to accept the lower salary would make him even more of an arrogant prick - rating himself above Messi who is, without argument, the best player in the world.

You want an example of willingness and unquestionable eagerness to join the club? Villa's humble offer to cut his Barca salary from 7.5 to 5.5 to help fund his own transfer. That makes him worth any price.

And again, signing Villa would be much more honorable a move for Barca. We've said this before, and listed our reasons, read it here.

The only explanation we can come up with, as to why Barca would prefer the Ibra deal, is because they really want to be rid of Eto'o. This way, they trade him off and sign a replacement, all in the same transaction. Signing Villa would still leave them with Eto'o to deal with.

But so what? We see it this way: If Eto'o can't be sold in this transfer window, let him stay. Sign Villa, and that way we'll have two great strikers. They can both be played for the first half of the season, via rotation, which would give Villa time to fully get the hang of things around Barca, instead of throwing the entire daunting responsibility of starting striker at him from the very beginning. Then, come winter transfer window, Villa will be ready to take over from Eto'o, who could then be sold.

This is how we see things. But the way things are looking, we may as well be yearning for the moon. We just wish things could have been different, and we could see Villa join Barca, and not Ibra.

Gossip on the Guys: Samu's Day With Bolt

In an event organized by their common sponsor PUMA, Samuel Eto'o met with Jamaican runner Usain Bolt at the offices of L’Equipe (a nationwide french daily newspaper dedicated to sports) in Paris last Wednesday. Even though the two speak different languages, they had quite an interesting conversation, full of laughs, via translator.

Later while they were autographing photos for one another, Bolt was very excited by the sight of Samu's gold-and-diamond wristwatch, and began to ask questions... which led the smiling Samu to present him with one of the custom-made watches from his personal collection. Bolt was "happy as a kid at Christmas", and went on to sign a jersey and pair of boots for him.

The conversation soon turned to the vuvuzela, on which Samu is apparently quite an expert. He had one for himself as well as one to give to Bolt, and gave him a lesson on how it's supposed to be blown.

Then, they participated in a "Speed Trap" running competition between the offices of L'Equipe and Team Canal+. Samu coached the team from L’Equipe while Bolt took on Team Canal+, with the two coaches cheering their teams on and taunting each other throughout the competition. In the end though, Bolt's boys were victorious.

Watch the video of the two athletes' day together here.

Transfer Talk: Villa Still A Possibility

Finally, news of the deal with Inter has been released officially by FCB. They're saying that there's a prinicipal agreement between the two clubs, but that both players in question - Ibrahimovic and Eto'o - have to settle their interests with what could be their new teams.

Barca president Joan Laporta also made clear that said deal is far from being closed, and that the club has not forgotten the option of David Villa.

Well, we're greatly relieved to hear that Villa won't be cancelled out so easily. Especially after Laporta said this: “The Ibrahimovic operation is not settled, as it is too early to say which of the two options – Villa or the Inter player – is the most satisfactory. In the end we will be going for the option that we consider best for Barça".

We're laughing at the fact that he called Villa by name while referring to Ibra as "the Inter player" – perhaps it means he's really only thinking of Villa? Then again, maybe he just can't pronounce 'Ibrahimovic' too well.

Anyway, we're starting to think the whole Ibra stunt is kind of a move by Laporta to put pressure on Valencia. After what he just said, that puts both possibilites on the line. Oh, you are clever Mr. President.

And we stand by our opinion that Villa is the better option. Not only does he have the obvious passion for Barca, and would fit in much better than Ibra ever could - signing him would be a much more honorable move for the club.

First of all, it would be downright unjust and also somewhat heartless of the club to turn a blind eye to the incredible effort Villa has put forth to try and join Barca. The news of this agreement must be crushing him right now, after all he's been through.

Second, the Ibra deal is a bit hypocritical, seeing as the club wouldn't pay more than forty million for Villa but are willing to give the same amount and two players for Ibra. Ibra is in no way worth more than Villa, and this is, in a way, Real Madrid-ish. We fully believe that that's the effect Real Madird have on other clubs, with their ridiculous signings: causing them to overprice their players this way. Inter rate Ibra far too highly, and Barca should not succumb to that.

And third, not only is this unfair to Villa, making it look like Ibra's worth much more than he is, but it's also very degrading for Eto'o. We agree that he's run his course on Barca and it's time he moved on, but we could never forget all that he's offered to the club. And neither should they. By including him in this deal, the club are drastically underrating him and being very unappreciative of what he's done here. Eto'o should be sold for what he's worth, in an honorable deal and not unceremoniously dumped like this.

In the end, there's nothing much we can do but just wait, and hope, that the club will come to a similar conclusion. The coming hours and days should bring more news, we'll just have to wait and see.

The Weekly Pick: Maxwell

Today has been a busy day for Barca's newest signing, Maxwell, taking all the steps to initiate his career at Barca, and he's been nothing but positive and cheerful all through it.

Maxwell arrived at the club at 13:00 CET from Los Angeles, and first thing he did was pose in front of the Barca crest (photos below), saying that he's "very happy and contented to be in Barcelona", also stating that he's very keen to start work right away with what he considers to be a "fantastic team" that plays "the best football in Europe".

He also got to give his first autograph as a Cule sooner than expected - a fan met him at the doors with a Messi away shirt from the 2005-2006 season, which he gladly signed.

After that, it was time to go in and take his physical, which went by without a glitch (photos here).

At the scheduled time of 5:30 CET, Maxwell's official presentaion to the press kicked off, where he lifted the Barca shirt with his name on it and claimed this to be on of the happiest days of his life.

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Last step was his presentaion to the fans wearing the complete Barca kit, which took place on the Mini Estadi due to the ongoing pitch renovations in Camp Nou.

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Random: Cup Opponents, Andres Again & The Mini Estadi Sold

- Barca players link hands and frolick together on the Mini Estadi, the stadium that has been, for a while now, the first team's training ground and the youth teams' match ground - but not anymore. The club will be using the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper instead, while the Mini Estadi will be sold so that the land can be converted into flats, a hotel, a series of parks and gardens, a nursery school and secondary school in addition to a health center.

- Looks like the opponent for Barca's customary Gamper Cup is set to be from South America, after failed talks with the likes of Inter and Porto, with negotiations ongoing with Brazilian club Corinthians, Argentine club River Plate also being a possibility. The match will be on August 19.

- Andres Iniesta never stops. After his beautiful gesture last week of giving away his Stamford Bridge boots, he's set to appear on this coming Tuesday at an event in the support of people with rare diseases in Murcia.

- Barca's Eidur Gudjohnsen has been given the greenlight to search for a new club, as he's reportedly no longer wanted on Barca... with a move to England being very likely, most probably to Westham. This intrigues us because Guddy is the current holder of the special number seven on Barca - who will claim it once he's gone? We vote Bojan - unless by some miracle we sign Villa, in which case we'd want him to have it.

Transfer Talk: No Damn Way Ibrahimovic Is Worth More Than Villa!

We can barely concentrate enough to write this right now, because we're shaking and fuming and about to scream our lungs out. We can really only think of one thing to say: WTF!!!

Various Spanish sources are confirming that Barcelona has reached a deal with Inter Milan, to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Apparently they have given up on Villa just like that - even after his amazingly awesome offer to fund his own transfer - and now they're bringing Ibra over here. And guess what the deal is to sign Ibra? Forty million euros. And Eto'o. And Hleb on loan. Excuse us?

Oh, so let us get this straight. The club don't think amazing Villa is worth fifty million... yet that overpaid, overrated clown of an Ibra is worth forty million, Eto'o, and Hleb? We've never heard anything more ridiculous.

Ten of Ibra wouldn't amount to one Villa! Villa is so much better a player. He's played in the Liga all his career, he knows this football, whereas Ibra does not. He's not such an arrogant prick as Ibra is. And, most importantly, he is passionate about Barca! This is a man who has been doing everything that is humanely possible to join our team, even offering to lower his own salary to complete the transfer fee! What player does that? No one but Villa!

If fifty million is what stubborn Valencia want, then to hell with everything, we say the club should pay it. If anyone, Villa is worth it! If you ask us, Ibra isn't even worth a swap for Eto'o alone. Yes, we'd rather keep Eto'o here as our striker than sign Ibra. Just the thought is painful. We can't picture it. We just can't. Ibra could never fit in with the team, not as Villa could.

We can't fathom a reason why the club would do this, except for one: they are that eager to be rid of Eto'o. Because this transfer ensures Eto'o's departure as well securing a replacement striker... and, we guess, Hleb thrown in for good measure. But again, we would prefer Eto'o to stay, and never have this happen. We're sinking into depression right now... this has ruined our entire day. No, our entire week. You know what? If this goes through, our entire season will be glum.

One thing though: The news has not appeared on the club's official website, nor has it been officially confirmed by them in any way. Until it is, we refuse to believe it. The club just can't be that horrible and do this. They shouldn't even be considering a single striker out there apart from Villa. Villa loves Barca. We love him. FCB, make everyone's dream come true and pay the damn ten or eight or five million or whatever stupid amount it is you and Valencia have been fighting over. But just don't do this.

Birthday Boy: Sergio Busquets

Pep called him up from Barca-B a year ago, and he's been shining on the first team ever since... Sergio Busquets is a simply phenomenal youth, who's proved what he can do on the pitch. True, he's a bit of a magnet for yellow cards, but the boy's got skill on the pitch and humor off of it, not to mention how cute he is! He turns twenty-one today, and at that young age, he's still got his whole career ahead of him, which we're glad is on our team! He had a great first season, and we hope the coming one will be even better for him.

Transfer Talk: Definitely Villa

The Villa/Eto'o saga continues, and each of the two lads have taken another move to fight for the striker spot on Barca. And we're with Villa, now more than ever.

As if his agent, Barca, and two or three other clubs haven't been haggling about him all summer, Eto'o calmly announced that he'll show up on July 20th with the rest of the team for the start of preseason. This assertation from him alarmed the club - they want him gone - so they've offered him an extra week of vacation, saying that he doesn't have to return until the 27th, along with Messi, Dani, Pique, Puyol, Iniesta, Busquets, and Xavi (who have the extended holiday due to internationals). That would give the club more time to try and reach an agreement with any club for Eto'o to transfer out of here...

And for Villa to take his place! Barcelona and Valencia haven't been able to agree over his transfer fee, causing Villa to step up and claim that he's willing to cut his own salary on Barca in order to help fund his own transfer. The club initially offered him 7.5 million a year, but he'll gladly take 5.5, and the extra two million will, over four years, amount to the eight million difference between Valencia's asking price of 50 million and Barca's offer of 42.

What a man! We can't believe this incredible gesture from him, my, we just love him more and more every day. This shows just how eager Villa is for Barca, how much he wants to be a part of our team and how generous and amazing he is! That kind of a player is worth any price; after this, we're feeling that Barca should let him have his full salary, and pay the difference themselves.

Also, Eto'o should take the hint already and pack his bags. Make way for the Villa!

Transfer Talk: Maxwell Officially Signed

It's official! The club has confirmed the deal made with fullback Maxwell Scherrer Cabelino Andrade from Inter Milan. This is a hugely awesome deal for Barca, the price for Maxwell being just 4.5 million euros, with an added 0.5 million in incentives.

Here's the background check on him:

- Age: Twenty-seven.
- Height: 1.75 meters
- Nationality: Brazilian
- Position: Left winger
- Previous Clubs: Cruziero, Ajax, Inter Milan, Empoli (on loan)

Our take: He's good. He's cute. The transfer was quick, simple, gave no one a headache. We're happy with it. You?