May 2008 - Posts

• Guardiola is Laporta's big gamble

  After two years of failure which has led to the departure of Frank Rijkaard, Joan Laporta has turned to local hero Pep Guardiola in the hope of bringing success back but is his lack of experience too much of a gamble? The favourite among fans and the directors seems to have been Jose Mourinho but Laporta keeping faithful to his advisor Johan Cruyff has gone for Guardiola more than anything because the Portuguese wanted complete control of running the football aspect of the club which was very unpopular with sports director Txiki Begiristain and Cruyff. Guardiola though is a massive gamble and if it does not work then it could be the end of Laporta who is already on the back foot due to dictatorial style and the team's recent failures. Guardiola is definitely going to be given a big reception because of what he means to the club - a home grown player who played football how fans like to see it played. The fact is though his only experience has been running the Barca B team for a season, it looks as though it will be a case of him sinking or swimming.   Posted May 14 2008, 01:13 AM by Tim with 1 comment(s)

• Rijkaard set to resign

  Coach Frank Rijkaard is about to stand down as Barca coach according to a confidante of the Dutchman and it brings to an end five years at the Camp Nou where he brought the second Champions League success. After two years without a tropy everyone has been expecting him to go but it will be a sad end to Rijkaard who brought winning ways back after the dark days of Gaspart's presidency. No one will forget the way Barca played in its prime with Ronaldinho leading the way, alongside Deco and Eto'o. Insiders claim the failure to continue Barca's good run has been down to politics in the dressing room and infighting between egos. It looks as though Rijkaard has not been hard enough on these players with Eto'o, Ronaldinho and Deco at the centre, and this has led to a lack of commitment. Perhaps Barca's failure was to see the loss of Ten Cate two years ago, a tough coach who has now helped Chelsea to the Champions League final as Avram Grant's assistant.  Posted May 01 2008, 09:01 AM by Tim with 2 comment(s)