Chances of Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League – Part 1
Almost every year there are a few teams who are considered to be the toughest in the European competition. The Spanish giants Barcelona have always been one of them. However, in the past two years, Barcelona’s form in European competitions has been great.
They manage to defeat the unbeatable sides and they do wonders with the ball once they are on the pitch.
In 2008, Barcelona appointed a new manager who was a former player in the Catalan club and the name of the manager was Josep Pep Guardiola. That very year Guardiola managed to win everything that a manager dreams of accomplishing. He won it all with a “dream
team” that the Catalans managed to make with some outstanding players.
Barcelona are very famous for making outstanding players in their youth academy and this is very true. Currently, more than half the players that perform for the Spanish club are produced by the Catalans themselves and have emerged from Barcelona’s youth
system. They are definitely one of those sides who help youngsters become players and then become “stars.”
Lionel Messi is only one example from these players. The young Argentinean was scouted by a Barcelona youth academy coach and he was seen in South America while he was playing in a local club. His talent was simply outstanding, but he was suffering from
a disease, because of which he could not really continue playing football.
Barcelona decided to buy the kid and paid all the expenses for the Argentinean “wonder boy.” No one knew what Lionel Messi was going to become, however he became the youngest player ever to score for the Spanish team. Soon, while playing under the Brazilian
legend Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi learned his skills and became a player that many would die to become.
Messi accomplished it all only when he was 21 years old and became an integral part of the “dream team” that won all the titles under Pep Guardiola. With Guardiola’s “tiki taka” style of play, the team became simply “fabulous” and started to play beautiful
football as they moved the ball around to add goals to their names.
In 2008, under Guardiola, Barcelona won all the six trophies that they were competing for and these trophies included the three very important ones; the Spanish La Liga, the FIFA Club World Cup and the most important, UEFA Champions League.
Champions League is a stage where teams from all around Europe compete to show what they are made of. Currently, Barcelona’s rival club Real Madrid has won the highest number of Champions League in the world and that is simply because they recruit the best
talent from all over the globe. However, Barcelona does not believe in that strategy and they polish their own young players to make them “the best.”
A few more players in the Spanish club who can become a real threat to the oppositions would definitely include the midfielder and the Spanish mastermind, Xavi Hernandez. Xavi Hernandez is a player who is above every league. He shows the world how easy the
game really as he passes the ball around with immense confidence and makes now mistake while delivering the ball at the feet of his team mate.
With his simple passing, he really helps Barcelona’s style of play and moves the ball around. He is the player who runs throughout the field to help the team defend and attack. When the team is under pressure from the oppositions, he moves back and helps
the team by being a holding midfielder. One the other hand, when the team is trying to destroy the opposition defence and is trying to find a gap between the defensive walls of any team, there is no better solution than Xavi Hernandez. He moves forward, find
his man and delivers the ball inch perfect so they can finish it into the net.
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