⚽ Sportsbet.io ⚽ Spanish La Liga ⚽ Football Pool Discussion Thread 2023/2024

[Gianluca95]

friendly reminder to all my fellow La Liga fans that today around this time (8pm Las Vegas, zzz i'm sleepy), we're gonna have a pre-season El Clasico 😳

Pre season classico was just Barca according to stats. Did not watch it since it was middle of the night but it seems like Real did not even had one serious chance to jeopardize Barca. It also seems that Raphinha clicked good with this Barca side which I am glad since I did not consider him as the big signing they all said he were.

yeah, Barca deserved the win... Remember the 0-4 at the Bernabeu last season? it was pretty much the same thing today, could've been 5-0 but Courtois was immense. No benzema, no threat in the attack, if he gets seriously injured then we'll probably write the season off,, grim. Overall, i can see why Barca fans are so excited about the next season, team's looking very solid in all fronts

Exactly, I see Barça to be really competitive this year thanks also to Lewandoski that has signed in for their team (I was shocked to see that, considering that bayern wouldn't have sold him for any kind of reason). We'll see

anyway many interesting thing, Real will not repeat his performance of last year and Barça finally will become team that deserves to be.

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[Erdogan]

friendly reminder to all my fellow La Liga fans that today around this time (8pm Las Vegas, zzz i'm sleepy), we're gonna have a pre-season El Clasico 😳

Pre season classico was just Barca according to stats. Did not watch it since it was middle of the night but it seems like Real did not even had one serious chance to jeopardize Barca. It also seems that Raphinha clicked good with this Barca side which I am glad since I did not consider him as the big signing they all said he were.

yeah, Barca deserved the win... Remember the 0-4 at the Bernabeu last season? it was pretty much the same thing today, could've been 5-0 but Courtois was immense. No benzema, no threat in the attack, if he gets seriously injured then we'll probably write the season off,, grim. Overall, i can see why Barca fans are so excited about the next season, team's looking very solid in all fronts

Exactly, I see Barça to be really competitive this year thanks also to Lewandoski that has signed in for their team (I was shocked to see that, considering that bayern wouldn't have sold him for any kind of reason). We'll see

anyway many interesting thing, Real will not repeat his performance of last year and Barça finally will become team that deserves to be.

Barcelona won very deservedly. It was obvious that they were a better team today. Lewandowski seems to fit in very well with Barcelona's playing style.  It looks like this season for Barcelona will be much better than last one. There is definitely a lot more excitement waiting for us at the top of the La Liga table. I wonder if Atletico can handle Barcelona or Real in the coming season.  

[buwaytress]

igehhh didn't know you were the kind to be watching all games on all screens. My simple mind actually prefers one game at a time, I might switch to another game at half time but not come back and switch back and forth. In fact, there is this really annoying local channel called Switch -- when they can't decide which game to actually follow.

Great that you enjoy goals and incidents then. The entire game, buildup, sum of all its ugly parts, the way the pendulum swings, that's how it works for me!

Oh Barca, they actually do look pretty don't they? Heard rumour from friend Catalan government soft promised a bail out if Barca collapse.

[Igebotz]

igehhh didn't know you were the kind to be watching all games on all screens. My simple mind actually prefers one game at a time, I might switch to another game at half time but not come back and switch back and forth. In fact, there is this really annoying local channel called Switch -- when they can't decide which game to actually follow.

Great that you enjoy goals and incidents then. The entire game, buildup, sum of all its ugly parts, the way the pendulum swings, that's how it works for me!

I have one or two favorite players in each EPL club, so I try to catch as many of their games as possible. I'm also on some EPL pages where I provide match insights and news. I enjoy watching three or four matches at once, especially when my club is not in action.

Oh Barca, they actually do look pretty don't they? Heard rumour from friend Catalan government soft promised a bail out if Barca collapse.

This Brokelona club will be liquidated within the next five years; they are selling their future in order to remain relevant in the transfer market; they have ruined our transfer market; I despise this club now.

[Harkorede]

Oh Barca, they actually do look pretty don't they? Heard rumour from friend Catalan government soft promised a bail out if Barca collapse.

They only way out now is for Barcelona to win major trophies for the next few seasons and make some sales too but who is the current most valuable player the club would rather lose if not De Jong ? if neither should happen, it's going to be a complete disaster, they're well over playing their hands especially with the oldies. I value the Kounde and Raphinha deals so far, and but the Lewandowski deal still doesn't sit well with me... He was impressive against Real Madrid and Barca look to be alive again, but it's all just still way to early to make any speculation on how the season would go.

This Brokelona club will be liquidated within the next five years; they are selling their future in order to remain relevant in the transfer market; they have ruined our transfer market; I despise this club now.

I think Chelsea have done us a few bad in this transfer window too, as Barcelona have been forced match the offers from Chelsea for Raphinha and now probably Kounde too, I think if Chelsea had not submitted an offer Raphinha earlier Barcelona would have gotten him for lower price since the players themselves preferred Barcelona to Chelsea but the clubs have no reason to obliged to a deal of lower value, if an higher one has already been made.

[tomahawk9]

I think Chelsea have done us a few bad in this transfer window too

nah, it's more like Chelsea can't stop taking big L's left and right whenever Barcelona join the conversation, it's like they're getting bullied by a catalan chad, and by chad i mean this majestic mofo called Laporta:



Chelsea are being gazumped by Barca all the time,, got Raphinha and now they're about to do sign another top target in the Chelsea camp like Koundé. The catalans have also toyed with the idea of signing Azpi and Alonso but now it seems like they backed out. Also, Barca wanted to sell Frankie De Jong, and according to some rumours Chelsea were preparing a bid for the dutch player, but a few days later Laporta says "he's still our player".

now Chelsea will prolly try to panic sign some random average second-rate players that nobody wants, even today Chelsea just keep taking L's, it's hard to watch,, meanwhile the laporta pic above imo perfectly decribes the mood in FC Barcelona  

[Harkorede]

I think Chelsea have done us a few bad in this transfer window too

nah, it's more like Chelsea can't stop taking big L's left and right whenever Barcelona join the conversation, it's like they're getting bullied by a catalan chad, and by chad i mean this majestic mofo called Laporta:



Chelsea are being gazumped by Barca all the time,, got Raphinha and now they're about to do sign another top target in the Chelsea camp like Koundé. The catalans have also toyed with the idea of signing Azpi and Alonso but now it seems like they backed out. Also, Barca wanted to sell Frankie De Jong, and according to some rumours Chelsea were preparing a bid for the dutch player, but a few days later Laporta says "he's still our player".

now Chelsea will prolly try to panic sign some random average second-rate players that nobody wants, even today Chelsea just keep taking L's, it's hard to watch,, meanwhile the laporta pic above imo perfectly decribes the mood in FC Barcelona  

It must be frustrating for real, because that's some weird shit, and it's the whole world that shocked about how Barcelona are getting these deals sealed despite being broke.. I don't know the what the main update on Kounde is but Fabrizio twitter earlier that Sevilla aren't considering Barcelona's bid since it's more or equivalent to that of Chelsea, but the player would rather head to the Catalan.

I was stunned by some sneaky move from Barcelona too especially on that Azpi and Alonso appproach, that's sneaky af probably tryna use some Spain national team trick. with the world cup looming and every player would need to be in a great shape and playing at some right level to make the list as it's still very much open for them all, and playing week in, week out in Barcelona or Real Madrid might be somewhat advantageous in this case, and it's mostly like going to be both players last world cup chances.

[buwaytress]

I have one or two favorite players in each EPL club, so I try to catch as many of their games as possible. I'm also on some EPL pages where I provide match insights and news. I enjoy watching three or four matches at once, especially when my club is not in action.

Well, look forward to seeing those insights in the Premier League pool then

Me my "insights" are nothing you can't find on your own, they tend to be on longshot bets, and almost always purely based on value (likelihood vs odds).

Oh Barca, they actually do look pretty don't they? Heard rumour from friend Catalan government soft promised a bail out if Barca collapse.

This Brokelona club will be liquidated within the next five years; they are selling their future in order to remain relevant in the transfer market; they have ruined our transfer market; I despise this club now.
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Much as I prefer that not to happen, perhaps it will take a catastrophe like this to wake the rest of the clubs up. But we said that about Chelsea (instant money) and Real (Galacticos) almost 20 years ago... they set a trend that kept on going.

[Trofo]

Without giving it too much thought, I belive that Barca success over Chelsea in this transfer window comes from few very simple facts:
1. Players would rather boast to their children that they played for Barca, screw Chelsea, Barca is still much bigger name
2. They know Chelsea will not win premiership while Barca is probably first favorite for title in Spain. All the main players in Real are one year older and they are reaching their limits. There will have to be generation change and we all sow how it looked in first half against Barca when old-timers weren't on the pitch.

[casperBGD]

-snip
1. Players would rather boast to their children that they played for Barca, screw Chelsea, Barca is still much bigger name

actually, it is hard to agree with this, maybe in last decade, with Messi, but it was just a period in time where they were close to Real, and they could slide down
Chelsea was also great in last decade, with two CL trophies (Barca had also two), but two Europa league trophies as well, Barca does not have any

on domestic field, Barca has 6 La Liga trophies, Chelsea two Premier leagues, but it really hard to compare those on same level

and this decade could be much different to both, leave them trophyless on European level

disclaimer: Valencia fan, so not adding Real to this story, but Real is arguably next level for Barca

[Igebotz]

I think Chelsea have done us a few bad in this transfer window too, as Barcelona have been forced match the offers from Chelsea for Raphinha and now probably Kounde too, I think if Chelsea had not submitted an offer Raphinha earlier Barcelona would have gotten him for lower price since the players themselves preferred Barcelona to Chelsea but the clubs have no reason to obliged to a deal of lower value, if an higher one has already been made.

We've been in a shithole since Marina was sacked, she brought in some dead woods but she was smart in transfers and never took L, the Raphinha case is different from that of Kounde because he only wanted Barcelona, he had an agreement with them 4 months before the end of the season and Chelsea just assumed they'd be able to hijack the deal because Barcelona were in financial shambles. And, yes, Chelsea's presence in the deal only harmed Barcelona financially; Raphinha was valued at €30 million prior to his agreement with Barcelona, and the Chelsea bid forced Barcelona to pay twice that amount.


As I previously stated, the Kounde deal is slightly different; he's been negotiating to join us for the past two seasons; we had an agreement with him last year, but Seville shifted the goalposts after we had a verbal agreement, so we backed out of the deal; Kounde was frustrated; he removed Seville from his social media pages and refused to return to team training; the deal was very close, but Seville were so unprofessional.

If Kounde moves to Barcelona, I won't blame him after the treatment he received from us this summer; he even came to London on vacation, taking pictures with our fans, expecting us to reactivate our interest, but we never did; instead, we put Deligt, Aker Koulibaly, and Kimpembe ahead of him; and while we were chasing Deligt and Aker, Barcelona and Xavi were calling and convincing Kounde to join as their first choice CB. Chelsea only reactivated interest after the Deligt, Aker, and Kimpembe deals fell through. If I were Kounde, I would choose Barcelona over Chelsea for keeping me as the fourth choice all summer. We earned this SHIT.

This season, we made Barcelona look like they owned us, while we were the ones trying to hijack their already done deals, with no plans.

[Trofo]

-snip
1. Players would rather boast to their children that they played for Barca, screw Chelsea, Barca is still much bigger name

actually, it is hard to agree with this, maybe in last decade, with Messi, but it was just a period in time where they were close to Real, and they could slide down
Chelsea was also great in last decade, with two CL trophies (Barca had also two), but two Europa league trophies as well, Barca does not have any

on domestic field, Barca has 6 La Liga trophies, Chelsea two Premier leagues, but it really hard to compare those on same level

and this decade could be much different to both, leave them trophyless on European level

disclaimer: Valencia fan, so not adding Real to this story, but Real is arguably next level for Barca

It is not about pure stats and objective view here, it is all about prestige and percived greats. Barca is one of the European greats and Chelsea is not, it is as simple as that.

Same goes for Milan, and they are rubish for a very long time. While City is arguably best team in the world but does not have that same name pedigree.

[Igebotz]

It must be frustrating for real, because that's some weird shit, and it's the whole world that shocked about how Barcelona are getting these deals sealed despite being broke.. I don't know the what the main update on Kounde is but Fabrizio twitter earlier that Sevilla aren't considering Barcelona's bid since it's more or equivalent to that of Chelsea, but the player would rather head to the Catalan.

Kounde is open to moving to Chelsea as well, remember we have also agreed personal terms with him, it's a four team deal so it's difficult to just conclude, Seville wanted a bidding war from both teams because they are only going to keep 80% of the transfer fees, the other 20% is going to Bordeaux who are currently in financial shambles, no way they would allow Seville to settle for a lower bid, Chelsea are growing impatient after waiting far too long, while Barcelona have yet to make an official bid to Seville. Accepting a lower bid in an OPEN bidding war would be unprofessional of Seville. Kounde is tempted to join Barcelona because of Xavi and the treatment he received at the club, but he is still willing to live in London. A better city than slumbering Barcelona.

I was stunned by some sneaky move from Barcelona too especially on that Azpi and Alonso appproach, that's sneaky af probably tryna use some Spain national team trick. with the world cup looming and every player would need to be in a great shape and playing at some right level to make the list as it's still very much open for them all, and playing week in, week out in Barcelona or Real Madrid might be somewhat advantageous in this case, and it's mostly like going to be both players last world cup chances.

The Spanish teams do this every time the World Cup approaches, which is why Barcelona was willing to swap Depay for Morata last season; 80% of the current Barcelona team is made up of Spanish players. To be honest, Azpi and Alonso would fit right into the Barcelona first team, as both players are strong defensively and offensively, but if Kounde joins Baceloma, the Apzi deal is off. We'd let Alonso go because we have Emerson, Kennedy, and Chilwell in that position.

It is not about pure stats and objective view here, it is all about prestige and percived greats. Barca is one of the European greats and Chelsea is not, it is as simple as that.

Yes, their history speaks for itself, but since they stopped bribing UEFA officials, they've been getting knocked out like shit, and Chelsea has won more recent UEFA trophies than Barcelona, who last won the Champions League in 2015 before the introduction of VAR. Barcelona's only chance of winning something is if Messi returns.

In this day and age, a player seeking to win trophies would prefer to join Manchester City or Chelsea over Milan or Barcelona.

[casperBGD]

-snip

In this day and age, a player seeking to win trophies would prefer to join Manchester City or Chelsea over Milan or Barcelona.

agree, there is also age preference, if you are 35-40 years old, you are probably more inclined to Barca/Milan that have a lot of success in 2000's, but if you are younger, you perceive PSG/City as great clubs, because you actually do not remember Barca from their better seasons

if you are 60+, you would probably vote for Nottingham, Liverpool, Ajax and Bayern, that won all CL trophies in 1970's

[tomahawk9]

Barca success over Chelsea in this transfer window

now it looks like Chelsea are keen on Inter Milan's right back Dumfries,, how long until Fabrizio romano says Barca are interested in the player? 🤭

talking about barca, anyone watching Barcelona v Juventus tonight?

[darxiaomi]

I really think like igehhh, Barcelona its selling the soul at the evil, i think in a few years or the Catalonian government save the club or they have to sell the club to the arabs.

The main problem with Barcelona its the people itself, because they have a lot of "foreign fans" and not real fans as i see.
Another problem its the lie of the "La Macia" im not saying they dont make good players but..... man Barcelona spends thousand of euros buying players in all the markets, at the same level of Real Madrid, but all the press and the people keep caliming "Barcelona its a team who only play with the players of his lower divisions" come on man..... And now we see the results a Broke club.

[Trofo]

talking about barca, anyone watching Barcelona v Juventus tonight?

There is some really good memes on Chelsea-Barca situation, cracking me up on twitter several times per day

I would really want to watch Barca tonight but it is middle of the night for me, early morning, to be exact 2 AM and I am getting up for work at 6 AM. No way I can squeeze even a halftime of Barca and be able to function properly tomorrow. Screw that USA market and popularity contest. Why can't we have proper friendly games in Europe?

Still placed a bet on Barca ML @1.8 and odds have now fallen under 1.7 so I guess I have value, now it just needs to come

[Harkorede]

talking about barca, anyone watching Barcelona v Juventus tonight?

There is some really good memes on Chelsea-Barca situation, cracking me up on twitter several times per day

I would really want to watch Barca tonight but it is middle of the night for me, early morning, to be exact 2 AM and I am getting up for work at 6 AM. No way I can squeeze even a halftime of Barca and be able to function properly tomorrow. Screw that USA market and popularity contest. Why can't we have proper friendly games in Europe?

Still placed a bet on Barca ML @1.8 and odds have now fallen under 1.7 so I guess I have value, now it just needs to come

Yeah, no way I'm going to miss that, I'd like to see what Barcelona could look like for the new season, it's scheduled for 1:30 AM in my local time, I really don't understand why they usually opt for USA and the some times middle east for these game, but my best guess is it going to be a combination of the sponsorships, aesthetics and for the obvious fact that play all season long in Europe, what could be better than having a summer holiday in the United States while combining a bit of work and majorly pleasure and potential sponsorship deals, I guess being used to NBA and it's game time line made it a bit easier for me to stay up for games like these occasionally.

[buwaytress]

It is not about pure stats and objective view here, it is all about prestige and percived greats. Barca is one of the European greats and Chelsea is not, it is as simple as that.

Same goes for Milan, and they are rubish for a very long time. While City is arguably best team in the world but does not have that same name pedigree.

Sorry but have to agree with Trofo here, prestige you can only earn with history. I don't even mind saying Liverpool was shit for an entire 2 decades when I was watching them, and yes, they didn't get many young fans where I was, those all wore Chelse or later City blue, but it was still a bigger name.

Like Liverpool, Milan's also been shit for a time, and arguably I'd say Napoli even have bigger prestige then Newcastle if they suddenly bought the title.

Anyone want to hazard a guess at next seasons Caponieri or whatever Golden Boot (yeah, on mobile, can't be bothered to look it up)?

[tomahawk9]

Anyone want to hazard a guess at next seasons Caponieri or whatever Golden Boot (yeah, on mobile, can't be bothered to look it up)?

i'm gonna go with a super bold prediction: top scorer will be either Benzema or Lewa,, i know i know, no one saw that coming 🤭

seriously tho, i'll give the edge to Benz... new faces in Barca's attack, i could see them struggling to link up in a few matches, and it's world cup year so there's going to be a lot squad rotation, and since Real doesn't have squad depth (yet), Benz will be in charge of goals week in and week out