Recent content by Bob Rivers

Cucurella plays on the left.

Chelsea aren't buying anyone just for the sake of it. We've replaced Rudiger with Koulibaly, Alonso with Cucurella, Werner with Sterling and are atttempting to replace Christensen with Fofana and Lukaku with Aubameyang.

All this torture for weeks and weeks only to be totally deflated when FDJ inevitably reaches some sort of agreement with Barca and stays put. Why are you doing this to yourselves.

My sources are telling me the falling out between FDJ and Barca hierarchy started over dinner in a restaurant where the Barca honchos were trying to convince the player to renegotiate his contract. Once Laporta finished stuffng his face with paella they brought the bill. Laporta supposedly said...

Had all all three at Ajax , didn't stop him from leaving.

But why would FDJ want to stay at this point after everything he's been put through by the club? Perhaps I'm just being naive but insisting on getting what you're owed is understandable, it's staying on where you're clearly not wanted and have been publicly humiliated, that's the part I don't...

That's what I've been thinking throughout this whole saga. Unless the "I'm staying" stance is just a tactic employed by his agents to let Barca know he won't leave without his money.

Here's an article, it's in Spanish. https://www.cope.es/programas/el-partidazo-de-cope/noticias/barcelona-pone-150-millones-euros-para-hinchar-venta-sus-dos-primeras-palancas-20220805_2233892

Incredible. Spanish radio claim Barcelona jointly set-up a holdings company to which it paid €150m of its own money to buy its own assets (to inflate value of sale). La Liga rejected it as not "new" money. Barça must now pay €37.5m tax on this payment. (per Collin Millar).

Well, probably because they're not certain he wants to come and don't want to get burned like they did a couple of times already this summer (Raphinha, Kounde). I think it's fairly obvious what's going on. United made a bid hoping ETH connection will convince the player to sign, Barca accepted...

Barcelona are about to activate the fourth economic lever and sell the remaining 24.5% of Barça Studios to TPG Luma Partners, owner of Cirque du Soleil. The club will get €100m. (via @relevo) Maybe they won't have to sell FDJ at all.

Only if you pay off the wages we owe him from the previous ownership on top of the fee.

Encouraged by whom, the club or the player? Because I think that's a very important point.

I actually trust Fabrizio Romano on the matter. He says what everyone heard many times before, United has had a deal agreed since the beginning of July with Barca but no personal terms agreed with the player because FDJ wanted to stay. The player still wants the money issue resolved and while...

He's a free agent at the end of the season.