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FC Barcelona – Gerardo Martino Knows Records Mean Nothing, Titles Do
Does Gerardo Martino care that he’s only one match away from equaling the mark set by Guardiola’s side during the 2011-12 campaign, when Barcelona began the season by avoiding defeat in their first 21 games? Not really. He focuses on wins, sure, but eventually, what matters are the titles he ends up with.
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FC Barcelona – Neymar Happy Not Scoring Any Goals
A 4-0 win for Barcelona and Neymar didn’t score a single goal? Something must be wrong, right? Not really. The Brazilian has 4 goals and 8 assists so far this season, looking perfectly happy to be the set up man for Alexis Sanchez, Pedro and others (including Lionel Messi when he isn’t injured), showing that his arrival wasn’t meant to be about forcing him into the main star role.
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Lionel Messi – The FC Barcelona Injury Blame Game
After denial comes shock, and then comes guilt. At least when it comes to the injuries Lionel Messi has been picking up at an alarming race. At his club, Barcelona, it seems there are three things left to be done: Support him until he returns, talk about how they’ll do well without him, and trying to find a single person who can be used to pin the blame on.
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FC Barcelona – Lionel Messi Isn’t Superhuman
For almost five years, Lionel Messi was able to stay completely fit and hardly miss a match due to even the most minor of injuries. Suddenly, 2013 brings with it a turn of fortunes that also had to do with changes at Barcelona after Pep Guardiola left, and especially some of the people he took with him, making it less surprising that the team’s biggest star has been unable to shake off injuries for the last six months.
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Lionel Messi Taking Pictures With Disabled Fans
There weren’t too many smiles coming from Lionel Messi as he left the Camp Nou knowing that his injury isn’t going to be something that takes just a little rest in bed to heal. He still had the time and the patience to take pictures with kids outside the stadium, including a few disabled fans.
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FC Barcelona – Neymar Thriving With or Without Lionel Messi
A weird season for Barcelona, as Lionel Messi just can’t seem to keep himself healthy for more than a few matches in a row, but without the team really hurting for it. Neymar might not be the scorer the Argentine is, but for all uses and purposes, he has no problem filling those shoes when it comes to simply keeping the team coasting on top of the Spanish La Liga.
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Diving Footballers – Every Big Team Needs One
Diving in football is an epidemic, but one of the biggest problems is that some of the world’s most famous players do it quite consistently, on the biggest stage possible: From Critstiano Ronaldo, maybe the most recognizable athlete in the world, to Ashley Young, who isn’t a big star, but plays for the most popular side, Manchester United.
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Barcelona vs AC Milan – Neymar is Starring, Lionel Messi Scoring Again
A rivalry can be big only by name, because for the last few years, it’s not a really fair fight between Barcelona and AC Milan, a club in deep trouble after two or three years of completely mismanaging their transfer policy. On the happier side of the chasm, Neymar is playing like he’s in Brazil again, while Lionel Messi proves he hasn’t forgotten how to score and it’s only a matter of time before we’re going to see the numbers we’re used to from him.
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FC Barcelona – Lionel Messi Isn’t Scoring Because of Fitness Issues
While Barcelona keep on winning, there seems to be a minor problem growing within the team in the form of Lionel Messi not finding the net in four consecutive league matches, something that hasn’t happened in over two years.
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European Football – Still 4 Undefeated Teams Left
European football has only four undefeated teams left in its top leagues – FC Barcelona from the Spanish La Liga, AS Roma from the Italian Serie A, Bayern Munich from the German Bundesliga and Paris Saint-Germain from Ligue 1 in France.