The KNVB Campus appears among the trees of Zeist as a small city of Dutch football. At the entrance, the past welcomes the present: a circle of bronze statues brings together the great myths of Oranje, from Johan Cruyff and Johan Neeskens to Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, or Edwin van der Sar. In the center, Rinus Michels, the coach that Cruyff himself chose to lead the Oranje of the century.
“We won’t let him down.” The FC Barcelona directors followed with logical interest Julián Álvarez’s first match with Atlético de Madrid at the Metropolitano after his now famous statements during the World Cup (“I want to fulfill my dream”) and their conclusions recognize the position of the Argentine footballer. The center forward fulfilled his obligations with his current team (he has a contract signed with Atlético until 2030), but he openly showed his discomfort. His body language on the bench, when he came on to play in the second half, as well as when the match ended (walking alone towards the tunnel while his teammates were at the other end of the stadium greeting the fans) needed no translation. Nor did the insults directed at him by the Atlético fans, which included a wide repertoire: there were choral ones (“tell him to leave once and for all”), individual ones (“plenty to go around”) and geopolitical ones (“damn Catalonia and damn Barça”) that will have to be seen if they are punished by the Anti-Violence Commission.
Joan Laporta, president of FC Barcelona, has contacted the 17-year-old minor who last Sunday was hit with batons by a group of police officers after being removed from a line formed to enter and watch the match between Elche and Barcelona at the Martínez Valero stadium.
Cycling, always outdoors and at the mercy of the sky and whatever happens with the weather, had to yield to the harsh meteorological conditions, with thunderstorms and hail, which forced the cancellation of the third stage of the Vuelta a España.
El FC Barcelona has issued a statement condemning the “disproportionate use of force” used by the National Police against a blaugrana fan at the gates of the Martínez Valero stadium in Elche, in the lead-up to the Sunday night League match.
Ferran Torres remains in a state of grace. PSG is already starting to capitalize on his signing for nearly 50 million. At the same time that Barcelona was playing in Elche, in the first 45 minutes the former Barça player celebrated his first goals with the Parisian club’s shirt. It was in Rennes and his brace served to rescue a draw for the two-time Champions League winner.
Hansi Flick is making decisions with his call-ups and lineups, and the most surprising has been the exclusion of Alejandro Balde from Barcelona’s debut in the League at Elche’s field. Before the match, on Movistar’s microphones, the German coach was very harsh about the defender’s commitment. “He is not here at 100%,” he reproached.
He made the Spiderman gesture at 0-1 from the penalty. Not to claim the arrival of ‘The Spider0, Julián Álvarez. Raphinha, that Brazilian who feels Barça and who has an undeniable influence over his teammates, recognized by Flick, also thought of his son, a fan of the mentioned superhero, on his first great night as captain. His goal was the start of a true feast that ended with a spectacular 0-5 against Elche.
Rodri and Adeyemi, new signings of FC Barcelona, have already been registered on the LaLiga website and will be able to debut this Sunday in Elche if Hansi Flick deems it so. They will not be the only ones. Gordon is expected to be the next to appear in the league database, along with Christensen’s new contract after his previous salary was reduced by 50%. Cancelo, the only signing missing, will appear this Sunday.
The commotion generated after the World Cup final between the Argentina and Spain teams, involving several players, already has sanctions. The Argentine players come off worse, as everything indicated.