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Originally Posted by phelan
45 and I think Cesc is gone. But I do agree Barca is pretty much the only team who will buy him and he'll be happy to play for. I think his Arsenal blood is enough that even if Mancini wanted Mansour to pay the full 50m, Cesc will never play for any other team in the EPL. Nor Real given his Catalan roots (we'd get some pretty fun stories out of the Spanish media if that happened though!). But the argument that Barca have the playmakers already is flawed, since they had them last year too - that didn't stop them from trying. Idiots.
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Which is why I couldn't understand why they wanted to spend the money so badly last year. I suppose they want to add depth to the bench, but they've gone and signed Mascherano. Lets not forget they also have Keita, Jeffrén, and Busquets. Not trying to diminish the quality of Fabregas, but where does he fit? Barça already have a lot of debt, and in hindsight, it was probably better for their club to pass on signing Fabregas until his stock goes down a bit, if that ever happens.
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Originally Posted by phelan
What the hell happened to Kaka? He was lighting it up as little as two years ago...I don't think even Man City will get him, not with David Silva in the side. Although who knows what happens with the Citizens, they might blow up the entire team if they don't get a CL spot, and start over  I could see him back in Serie A. Really don't think he has a spot at Chelsea, his free-flowing game doesn't really fit. Seems to me Chelsea's front line is very demanding of the ball, and it'd reduce Kaka's effectiveness.
Hell, I don't even want him at Arsenal. Go figure. |
Unless Florent Malouda or Zhirkov is sold, there isn't a place for him here either. We still have Kakuta on loan at Fulham, and we are already looking at much more promising Brazilian, who's skills were on display this weekend against Scotland.
I can't picture a move to the Premier League for Kaká. There are only about 6 clubs in the top flight that could actually pay him, and all are crowded already with midfielders. However at the end of the day, you never know really. I would have never guessed we'd sign Torres during the transfer window, and its still a little strange to see him wearing a Chelsea shirt.
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Originally Posted by phelan
Other news - I feel REALLY bad for Kevin Doyle. Always puts in a solid 90 minute shift for Wolves, lost to injury in an international friendly. It's not even a team I care for, but good god I hope someone can figure out a different schedule for soccer. These internationals are killing clubs!
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Its hard to choose between the two. Answer the call for your country and run the risk of injury at the expense of your employer? Such is the life of a footballer I suppose. I don't know how much they can actually change with scheduling. Unless they want footballers playing year round, there's not much that can be done.
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Originally Posted by phelan
I'm gonna pick up one of the red USA shirts today  |
I like the new kits too, but what a terrible game. There were a few bright moments, but as a whole we looked pretty bad. I wish we could score a clean goal without relying on the opponents keeper to screw up.
I really hoped Klinsmann would have become the US National Team Manager, as I feel our boys would benefit tremendously from a foreign coach with experience playing and coaching in the highest level of football played in Europe. Here is a manager who has coached Germany to a World Cup Final, and I'm pretty sure has better credentials than Bob Bradley to coach a national team. He nearly landed the England job. I can understand the patriotism of an American coach for the national team, but I would gladly accept a foreign manager if it meant getting a higher quality team. Maybe one day US "soccer" federation will wake up.