Sportsoff

The Romanticism to continue between Barca and Leo?

For the first time in a while, Joan Laporta(Barcelona President) gave a real clue about the renewal of Lionel Messi’s contract, which is going to expire on June 30, 2021, he recently came out in the media and said, “Leo Messi boots will continue on the Camp Nou pitch. He wants to stay. I do not contemplate a no. But it isn’t easy. We’ll do what we can. There is no need to seduce him, he is determined if there are a series of circumstances to stay.”

As a fan, what can we make of this argument?
Over the past month in Spanish media, there is a real optimism about Messi’s renewal and as days are passing, he is more inclined towards extending his contract than to leave Camp Nou. And this is a big sigh of relief for every Blaugrana supporter as with Messi, Barca is more superior than without him and I understand I don’t have to explain this because at the age of 33 he is still producing unbelievable performances and every attack for Barcelona starts with him and generally ends with him. And it is expected that after Copa America the first thing Messi will do is, he will sign the contract with the club.

But what things have changed from last year, when Messi badly wanted to leave. I think first of all Barca got a new president who is a true leader who wants to take this club forward as Messi has said in the past he feels mistreated by the last president and he had lied on many occasions but Laporta is a man who believes in transparency and before a president, he is a fan of this club. And secondly, too many young players are coming in the team with the great level in terms of footballing terms and what Messi always wanted is winning sporting project which he didn’t found in under the presidency of Bartomeu and thirdly Barca have signed one of his best friend Sergio Aguero for many viewers it can be an absurd point but Messi always likes to play with those people whom he can connect and can enjoy his football and on his way to retirement Messi wants to enjoy his last years at the top level and even considering club financial difficulties he is already ready to take a big pay cut which is believed to be more than 50%. I think for Messi money was never a factor because at the time he got offer a triple of his salaries but he never chases money he always follows his love for Barcelona which shouldn’t be questioned. Coming to his contract details it is believed that it will be a 10-year long contract in which till 2023 he will play for Barca and he will play in MLS, USA and after playing their 2-3 years he will be club brand ambassador and will work in a sporting structure of the club.

So as a football fan, I would like to see this romanticism of Barcelona and Lionel Messi continue and I just can’t imagine him in other colors.

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WTC FINAL- INDIA BEST XI

Only three days are left in starting of the first World Test Championship final and the excitement for the final is massive because India is playing in that final.

When comes to big matches there is always speculation in media who should play or whom to drop. I think for Virat Kohli this is a good headache to have such kind of variety in the squad and to be honest, every player seems ready to play and make their mark.

But today we will break out the probable playing 11 which is going to face mighty New Zealand who recently thrashes England on their home soil.

Starting with an opening -Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill are the main contenders to start and in the real world, the team will go with them despite Shubhman failures against England but considering his performances against Australia and his talent he should start and there is no doubt over Rohit Sharma what he can do and how major role he can play in this historic test.

Coming to third position Cheteshwar Pujara is out an out starter, If you are making India test 11 in the current scenario and you are not adding him then probably you are doing crime. And on 4th position the fan-favorite and our captain Virat Kohli will come and I hope we will see his some classic Kohli cover drives and Coming on 5th position, Mr.Cool Ajinkya Rahane will come, Rahane will be a Vice-Captain of the team and I hope we will see his inside out shots and he will make us fall for his batting again. And in 6th position the destructor Rishabh Pant our wicketkeeper batsmen will come and I am pretty sure he will show off his muscle by hitting sixes out of the ground and in my opinion he will be the X-Factor of the match because of how he bats if he plays one session everyone knows how he can turn the match in India favor, I have lots of expectations from him and I will not be surprised if we see daddy hundred in front of his name in this match.

Now real trouble starts whether captain Kohli wants to go with 5 Bowlers or 4 Bowlers in this match. In a realistic world Team India should go with Jadeja for position 7 because he is rock solid, he is in great form he is one of those players who can do anything at the highest level what he offers to a team is impeccable his Batting, Bowling and Fielding he ticks all the department which a team wants from a player and now for position 8 there will be a good internal debate whom to play- Ashwin or Siraj, Reports suggest Siraj swing and pace tempts the Team Management but Ashwin is Ashwin one of worlds best spinner at the moment. But in my opinion, I have checked the weather of Southampton and there is a high probability that rain will come or it will be cloudy which means there will be more moisture in pitch, in that case, Siraj what I will go for but if it is a sunny day in Southampton then Ashwin will go to an option for Team India I think this whole saga will depend on Weather and it will be a tough decision for management.
Coming to the next 3 Bowlers I think there should be no doubt that India will go with Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ishant Sharma but there are rumors if Ashwin plays there is a possibility that Siraj can play in place of Ishant Sharma but I feel Ishant Sharma deserves this opportunity he got great numbers in England and even in practice match he looks good as per reports and what he brings to the table is something that you need at big matches he has an experience of all those big matches so in these high-pressure match I feel India should go with Ishant Sharma.

So this is the lineup that I feel India will go with and on a personal level I don’t expect any crazy changes but if happens then there should be a good reason behind that.

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Luis Campos to Real Madrid CF

WTC- India or New Zealand, who will go for glory?

On 18 June 2021, the world will witness the first-ever Test World Cup final in the history of cricket which is to be played in Southampton, England. And it is fair to say that World Test Championship is the ultimate dream of both sides. Where Kane Williamson will enter in the ground to heal the wounds of 2015 and 2019 defeats in 50 overs world-cup while Virat Kohli has a chance to clinch his first ICC Tournament.

So in this blog, we will talk about both sides’ strengths and challenges.

First We will start with Team India, I assume that Virat Kohli is as much desperate to win the ICC tournament under his captaincy as many Indian fans are. The main responsibility lies on Opening batsmen. In my opinion, Rohit Sharma and Shubhman Gill will be lining up for the final and they got a huge responsibility to give a good start in beginning because in overseas tour especially in England your opening batsmen are instrumental if they give a start of 50-70 odd runs and then batsmen like Virat, Pujara, Pant, Rahane can capitalize that start and India can eye the total around 350-400 runs which will be a very good score for this bowling line-up. And India Bowling needs to find a solution how to get wickets of New Zealand tailenders because over the past 5 years India always pulls early wickets but suffer against lower order and this time India can’t afford this to happen because every 10-30 runs partnership matters. And if we talk about certain players India always suffers against those bowlers who tall and left-handed bowlers, Kyle Jamieson and Trent Boult can give them a tough time, so how Indian batsmen will approach them will be a delight to watch.

And also if we analyze the India squad they got depth in every department but I feel Indian selectors miss the trick to select any wrist spinner and India will miss proper fast bowling all-rounder likes of Hardik Pandya in their squad who can give 10-15 overs a day and can make some good runs for his team and wrist spinner can come handy in Rose bowl stadium where the pitch is pacy and bouncy so wrist-spinner will give you different type of variety and New Zealand batsmen is not considered proficient against wrist-spinners.

Coming to New Zealand, their captain Kane Williamson undoubtedly will be their biggest strength if he found himself in good rhythm then India bowlers will found themselves in a critical situation because he is not the kind of player who will be happy in making only 70-100 runs once he finds his hands he go for daddy hundreds which can kill the game. And also they will be playing in England and they will find themselves more comfortable in England because of conditions which are very similar to New Zealand and before WTC they will be playing a Test series with England in England so they have more time to prepare themselves for that big match they can try different options and the biggest thing is that they will get match practice in England against the quality bowling line-up.
But if we compare their batting line-up with India they look weak because Ross Taylor, Colin de Grandhomme is coming from injury, and also their opening order didn’t look solid on paper so this is the department which team India might look to hit hard and take advantage of that and It will be interesting to see how their batsmen will handle those pressure moments. And also they have to tackle one Roorkee boy who can become a headache, yes you guess it right he is Rishabh pant we all know his capability to change the match, I feel Rishabh Pant will be the one from whom they will be most scared of because of his playing style and killer instincts.
But in the end, bowlers will be crucial for both teams how they bowl and how they set the tempo of the match. And whosoever team wins the toss they should Bat first because no team will be willing to face the pressure of chasing runs in 4th innings.
So from 18th June, I hope every sports lover will sit in front of their Television will enjoy this match between two world-class teams.

IPL-COVID ALERT!!!

In the last 24 hours, there have been concerns over the continuity of the IPL as on Monday morning the news broke out from the Kolkata Knight Riders camp that their 2 players Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier have tested positive and according to some reports it is stated that Varun Chakravarthy went to the hospital for some sort of scan for his knee for which he left the Bio-Bubble of the team and then without any quarantine he had entered Bio-Bubble again and 2 days later he tests positive along with Sandeep Warrier but the good news is that rest of KKR squad is tested negative and also match of Kolkata versus Bangalore has been postponed which is going to take place at Narendra Modi Stadium on Monday Night.

But it is not only from KKR camp where we got this type of news but also from Chennai camp we got the news in the afternoon that 3 staff members of Chennai have been tested positive which include their Bus driver, CEO, and their Bowling Coach. And also there is a rumor that 5-7 members of DDCA ground staff of Arun Jaitley stadium have also been tested positive this is a rumor, not confirmed but it is possible as we can see the outbreak of COVID has reached to Teams Camps and also there are many doubts on the tomorrow match which is going to be played between MI VS SRH because on Saturday MI played CSK and CSK staff members have been tested positive so there is a chance that it does get spread. And also there are serious doubts about the continuity of the IPL, will the matches of Ahemdabad and Delhi leg will be rescheduled or the IPL will cancel or matches will happen normally. There are many questions that need to be answered by BCCI because we all know how rapidly it spreads and every player wants to be safe as they have their families and career and most importantly their health.

But the main question arises why Varun Chakravarthy was not quarantined for some definable period why he is taken back immediately and how CSK staff members have tested positive even when they are in Bio-Bubble is there a mistake from the franchise end? But as a fan what you want, you want IPL to be canceled or rescheduled?
Comment down below your answer.

Rishabh Pant- The next big thing in cricket?

How many of you have seen James Anderson conceding a six by Reverse-lap in a Test match with a second new ball?
I think this is rare but we have seen this from our homegrown talent, Rishabh Pant.

So, today we are going to discuss one of the most exciting talents in the world whose name is Rishabh Pant. If I have to describe Rishabh Pant in one word that will be “Fearless” a new phenomenon in the cricket world. It will be generous to say that he is in the form of his life and shut down all his haters and critics mouth in the last 4-5 months. But this journey of his is full of pebbles till now which makes his story interesting and inspiring.

When he was 19 he came to the attention of people by his blistering knock against Nepal in Under-19 Cricket World Cup when he hit 75 runs off 24 balls and followed up with the century against Namibia after some months in an IPL auction Delhi franchise have bought him and he played a part in 2016 season of IPL and despite not playing any big inning in that IPL but he became the center of attraction in that very IPL season and there is a famous saying which applies here “coming event cast their shadows before”. And in 2017 he had wonderful IPL seasons and made his international T20 debut but it doesn’t go as expected but he doesn’t give up and gave a solid performance in IPL 2018 this season is arguably the best season for him and he also scored 1century against Sunrisers Hyderabad and after that season he got his first Test call for Team India against England series and there he doesn’t miss his chance and in his third test match he played a mouth-watering innings where he scored a hundred and his domination doesn’t end he showed some sort of batting style in Australia also when he became the first Indian Wicketkeeper to hit hundred in England and Australia and in both series he named some records in front of his name like he became the first Indian to hit a six as his first scoring shot in Test cricket, the highest number of catches in a match and also the highest number of catches in a series and all these feats are achieved in only 2 series this is quite a dream start for any player.

But on other hand in white ball cricket things were not quite working for him as he got many chances but he subsequently failed to maximise on those chances and even having a wonderful IPL season of 2019 he didn’t get selected in World Cup roster which is one of the saddest moment for him as he admitted openly in media but he was lucky that Shikhar Dhawan got injured which is really unfortunate for him but one loss is another gain same happen with Rishabh Pant he entered into the roster but he in that tragic Semi-final loss he is one the who got massive hate because of his inmature batting and playing lofted shot when team was in real critical position despite it was a collective failure of Indian batting lineup and then even after World cup things gets worse for him ,he got dropped in test cricket beacuse of his bad wicket-keeping, at that moment of time there is all darkness for him and all odds were against him but worse has to come in 2020 we all know how pandemic affected the game and all matches got cancelled and in lockdown period he gain some weight and when he comes for IPL season he was unfit at that time and 2020 IPL season is probably the worst IPL season for him he managed to score to only one fifty and his strike rate which he known for dropped to 120 and with this effect he got dropped from Australia tour in T20’s and ODI’s but he got slected in Test matches but he was not the preffered one to play the Test matches he was going as a 2nd wicket-keeper but he needs one opportunity what he got in 2nd Test but he didn’t make maximum out of it but he never gave up and winners are made when things are not working for him even Rishabh Pant know it is now or never and then finnally the day arrives when he show the world who is he, on tough pitch of sydney on day 5 it was looking impossible to save match for India and when he came to Bat india was down and that moment loss was imminent but he came he conquered he make Scintillating 97 runs missed his hundred but played a one of the heroic knock in Indian history batting and we draw that match but this was the start of a rise of a player when India going to 4th test match everyone predicted that India will not win because Kangaroos haven’t lost any Test match in Gabba from last odd 30-40 years and it was was a series decider on 5th day India needs more than 300 runs in day which is not quite easy to make but he make 89 runs and win the match and series for Team India this win is considered as the best victory in India cricket history and the main protagonist was Rishabh Pant and he goes from zero to hero only in 2 matches and in England series which is home series he outperform eveyone and even in white ball this time he make his batting speak.

Arguably, he is one of the most dangerous batsmen in the world in current scenario and if he keeps this hard work and determination surely I will not be surprised if he ended up one of the best wicket-keeper batsmen in the history of cricket.

European Super League- A War?

18 April 2021: The black day in the history of football when there is an official announcement of the European Super League, fans have protested by pulling banner in the stadium by saying “created by the poor stolen by the rich”.

What does it mean? what is the European super league?

let’s understand this.

Well, it is reported that this concept of launching a new league comes from the Real Madrid president Florentino Perez who has been the main protagonist of this league and 12 elite football clubs have joined there hands and decided to form a new league which will replace the champions league and will forever change the history of football. Those 12 clubs are Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea these are the European giants who have agreed to join this league where three European giants FC Bayern Munich, Dortmund, and Paris-Saint German have denied to be a part of this league but I feel it is a matter of time when they join their hands with these clubs too. It is said that it will be a 20 team format and 15 top clubs will remain constant and other 5 will fight for the relegation spot so for top clubs there will be no relegations which are bit strange for me and the format of this league could be Round-Robin format where 20 teams will be divided into a group of 10 and from every group, 3 teams will advance and play-offs format could mirror the NBA Playoffs-style which in football could be quite strange.

The main reason given behind the starting of this league is to improve financial support and football quality. But in my opinion, it’s just a game of money driven by greed where all big clubs in Europe want a big piece of cake and want to back themselves with more governance and more money. It has been reported that J.P Morgan (America-based bank) have committed $5 Billion to the super league and simply by accepting an offer of invitation a club will receive $450 million. This process is fast-forwarded because of this pandemic situation where most clubs depend on Tickets-Sponsorships which have been heavily disrupted because of COVID-19 and now every club needs financial stability which is certainly not given by UEFA and FIFA so big clubs have taken this step.

But FIFA has taken a firm stand and publicly opposed this idea and said the clubs who will play in this league will be banned from playing in any other competition at domestic, European, or World level, and their players could be denied the opportunity to represent their country. And even with immediate effect the domestic league of this year and champions league this year could be suspended.

This league is a disgrace and embarrassing for me which only runs the motto of greed and power, where all small clubs will suffer, there will be no big opportunities, the excitement in the football will vanish, there will be no champions league nights, without the best teams in their respective domestic leagues it will make domestic leagues boring and it could hamper the growth of young footballers also as they may not face the toughest competition in domestic leagues. And only all the time watching big European teams will become boring and not so exciting after a certain period as in Champions league you don’t get to watch every weekend we have to wait which maintains our excitement for the tournament. And big players will no longer be a part of International Tournaments, World-cup without the best talents of football I Just can’t imagine that.

By this tournament richer gets richer and poorer gets poorer. But the main concern is how it helps to evolve football, how it will last long and how will you keep this league exciting? And how it will not damage football?

Is the era of fc Barcelona over?

Never in the past, someone questioned Barcelona’s dignity but in September 2020 when FC Barcelona suffered the heaviest loss in their history, sports magazine Mundo Deportivo wrote and I quote “Shameful end of cycle”.
so let’s understand what they meant by this.

After winning the treble in the 2014-15 season, Barcelona had always been looking like their shadow. Their fans face embarrassment after the embarrassment in terms of results. It is safe to say that they were all historic humiliation and every match now feels like it leaves a question on Barcelona dignity and when we talk about FC Barcelona we talk about one of the best football clubs in the world who always play this game in different style which is famously known as Tiki-Taka. Defeats like 3-0 at Rome, 4-0 at Anfield, 8-2 to Bayern Munich left fans of FC Barcelona shocked and disheartened.

So let’s dive into this and understand the reason for the downfall of one of the biggest football clubs in the world.

The main reason behind that is the MANAGEMENT of the FC Barcelona who govern this club It’s easy to say that Barcelona was governed by some cowards like Josep Maria Bartomeu who put this club into immense debt amounting to €1.2billion, out of which €700 million is reportedly short-term debt.

Barcelona had done some of the poorest signings in their club’s history over the past 6 years, Barcelona is always been the club who trust in their la Masia(youth academy) graduates but under him, we never looked at them they always try to find some lucrative stars for the team who even didn’t fit into clubs philosophy and comes with high wages and hefty transfer fees and some of the prime examples of these signings are Philipe Coutinho which cost them around €120 millions plus variables which is reportedly said that this figure goes €145-160 million another one is Antoine Griezmann who comes for a similar type of transfer fee followed by Kevin- Prince Boateng, Arda Turan, Nelson Semedo, Malcom, Andre Gomes and the list doesn’t end here.
Besides signing wrong players under him FC Barcelona signed a manager called Ernesto Valverde who has a big hand in all those defeats but as a coach what people expected from him, he fails to deliver that, he never trust La Masia graduates and never given them fair chances and also he got his tactics wrong on many big occasions despite winning 2 league titles back to back and 1 Copa Del Rey and after when he got sacked in mid-season Board again took a wrong decision and they replace him with Quique Setien who was in charge of 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich.

Another reason for club downfall is offering high wages and giving massive contracts to all players, in my view this is one of the reasons the club is in this financial crisis it is reported that Barcelona 70%of income goes by paying players wages. In FC Barcelona every player is on considerable huge wages which put the club in a difficult state and in November 2020 club was in a position of going bankrupt. But Bartomeu great achievements don’t end here he also managed to piss the best player in the club history named Lionel Messi when he did fake promises to the captain and after 2019-20 season when he wanted to leave he doesn’t allow him to leave and even Lionel Messi himself bashed him in an interview and said there is no sporting project and leadership in the club and also Bartomeu caught on some occasions when he publicly tries to demoralize players image and make them look bad.

But now FC Barcelona fans can take a deep breath because their club is in safe hands and under the leadership of Joan Laporta who won the club election in March 2021 and became the new president of FC Barcelona and as a football fan I also hope we can see that FC Barcelona type of football again.