Former Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen moved to Barcelona in a £15 million deal last summer, but injuries have prevented him from playing a single minute for his new club this season. Despite this, when Barca clinched their 23 La Liga title after beating Atletico Madrid 1-0, Vermaelen was out on the pitch celebrating with his theoretical teammates, wearing his Barca away shirt maybe for the first time ever (coincidentally he wears No. 23).
Tag: Barcelona
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s expert analysis of Bayern v Barca: leg two
You did it, Pep. You found a way to beat Barcelona and still send your club’s supporters away feeling like they just watched their dog get run over by a freight train that drove through their kitchen. I Zlink your work here is done.
Jerome Boateng’s congratulatory letter to Lionel Messi
Dear Leo,
Congratulations on beating us to reach another Champions League final. You caused me great embarrassment in the first leg of our semifinal, but I just wanted you to know that there are no hard feelings and I am honored to have shared the pitch with you once more.
DT programming note and recommendations
I’m going to be away for a couple of days (I’m undergoing a cosmetic surgical procedure that will make me look like Sepp Blatter so I can overthrow FIFA from within). With no DT posts to peruse, I have some suggestions on how you can best spend your time during this brief interruption of service.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s expert analysis of Barca v Bayern: leg one
Well. Well. Well. Not such a genius when you’re going against Messi, are you Pep? Zlahahaha!
Leo Messi dismantles Bayern, makes the Camp Nou explode with tremendous goal
It took him 77 minutes, but when Lionel Messi finally ended Manuel Neuer’s goalkeeping masterclass in the first leg of Barcelona and Bayern Munich’s Champions League semifinal, he set fire to the whole school.
Just three minutes after his opening goal, he did this — turning Jerome Boateng into a pile of dust and chipping Neuer to realize what he couldn’t quite do in the World Cup final last summer. But beyond that simplistic description of events, there are no words to fully capture what Messi did in that moment. Just watch.
Zlatan gracefully accepts defeat to Neymar and Barcelona
Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned from suspension to stand on the pitch and watch Barcelona dispatch PSG from the Champions League in tidy fashion. It was yet another indignity at the Camp Nou for the former Barca player, who also lost there in the group stage this season and was eliminated from the quarterfinals there on away goals two years ago.
Argentine doctor more interested in watching PSG-Barca match than treating patients
A man in Salta, Argentina went to see a doctor after cutting his leg on a piece of glass. The problem here was that the doctor he went to see was busy watching PSG play Barcelona in the Champions league and really did not want to have his on the job Messi watching time disturbed.
Luis Suarez provokes the wrath of Zlatan
During the first leg of PSG and Barcelona’s Champions League quarterfinal, Luis Suarez nutmegged David Luiz and went on to score twice in a span of 13 minutes. Twice he did this! Twice!
Though Barcelona went on to concede a late own goal in the 3-1 away win, Luiz’s greatest embarrassment since last summer’s World Cup, naturally was the focus of the night. After all, Suarez even appeared to literally spank his bottom at one point.
Celta Vigo player sent off for throwing grass at Sergio Busquets
With Barcelona up 1-0 late in their match against Celta Vigo, Sergio Busquets took his sweet time preparing to take a free kick. Celta’s Fabian Orellana did not appreciate what he perceived to be Busquets wasting time, so he picked up a chunk of the earth and threw it at him.