La Liga
DESPITE CLEAR OUT AT BARCA, MESSI NOT FOR SALE
New Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman is expected to oversee a massive overhaul of the squad as he leads them into a new era after their weaknesses were exposed in the 8-2 thrashing by Bayern Munich, president Josep Maria Bartomeu has said.
Koeman, one of Barca’s greatest ever players who was yesterday confirmed as the club’s manager through 2022, will oversee the transition alongside Ramon Planes, the new technical secretary after Eric Abidal left the club.
“The technical secretary and new coach will take drastic measures and they will affect certain players, who we should give a proper farewell to,” Bartomeu said in an interview with the club’s official television channel on Tuesday.
He did not say which players would depart but referred to seven players who were not for sale: Captain Lionel Messi, 33, goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, 28, defenders Clement Lenglet, 25, and Nelson Semedo, 26, French winger Ousmane Dembele, 23, and recent signings Antoine Griezmann, 29, and Frenkie de Jong, 23.
Gerard Pique, 33, and 32-year-old Sergio Busquets, who have been at the club since 2008, are the longest-serving players after Messi. They were omitted from Bartomeu’s list, meaning they could face an exit after 12 trophy-laden years.
Jordi Alba, 31, Ivan Rakitic, 32, and Luis Suarez, 33 – crucial members of the team that won the treble in 2015 as well as the La Liga titles in 2016, 2018 and last year – were also not mentioned in the list.
“These are players who have given their best days to the club and been part of the club’s best years,” added Bartomeu. “Some of those decisions have already been taken by others and some will be taken soon by different people. The players will not be consulted on these decisions. It’s very important to listen to opinions but the coach and technical secretary will take the decision together.”
Barca will face a challenge in selling some players due to having the biggest wage bill in world football, at a time when clubs are facing serious financial difficulties due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has stripped them of match-day revenue and ticket sales.
Players like Alba, Busquets and Suarez have all indicated their desire to stay, while persuading Messi – whose contract expires next year – to remain will be high on Koeman’s to-do list.
The 57-year-old, who had been in charge of the Dutch national team since 2018, will also need to find a way to get the best out of his compatriot de Jong. The midfielder starred at Ajax in the middle of a 4-3-3 formation but has often been played out of position.
In his first press conference yesterday, Koeman vowed to stay true to the club’s possession-based style.
“I’m Dutch and the Dutch like to have the ball and play well. I have experience and I’m ready to coach Barca,” he said. “We have to look for work and enjoy. It’s the first thing I’ll tell the players, they have to enjoy the football.”
He is set to lead by example after landing his dream job.
“Today is a day to be happy and proud,” he said. “Everyone knows Barcelona, to me, is my home.”
REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
It was mission accomplished, said Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti after his side fought back from two-goals behind to snatch a rip-roaring 4-4 draw on Tuesday for a 5-4 aggregate win that put them through to the Copa del Rey final.
Ancelotti brushed off questions about a sub-par performance by his side and praised his players’ effort in what he considered a highly entertaining encounter.
“We have achieved our goal today which was to reach the final and there is not much time to think about it,” Ancelotti told a press conference.
“It was an entertaining game with some mistakes and a lot of good things. It was fun and we are in the final.
“I never saw ourselves out of it because anything can happen at the Bernabeu. When we have to come from behind, we never give up. We never give up, especially at home, with the fans by our side.”
Ancelotti said David Alaba was not to blame after he deflected two balls into his own goal, calling it “bad luck” by the Austrian defender, but urged his defence to play with better focus moving forward.
“It’s not good to concede four goals in a game,” Ancelotti said.
“Right now we are a team that has a lot of effectiveness up-front, but little balance.
“However, we can’t ignore what we did in attack, scoring four goals against Real is not that easy. I think we are doing quite well.”
Real Madrid, who have won the Spanish Cup only once in over a decade, will play either Barcelona or Atletico Madrid in a mouth-watering final in Seville next month.
Atletico fought back to hold Barca to a thrilling 4-4 draw ahead of Wednesday’s second-leg in Madrid.
-Reuters
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Real Madrid’s legendary coach Carlo Ancelotti will go on trial next week for allegedly failing to declare income to Spain’s tax office, the Madrid court which will hear the case has said.
Prosecutors are seeking a jail term of four years and nine months for the 65-year-old Italian, accusing him of having cost Spain’s treasury more than one million euros ($1.1 million) in undeclared earnings from image rights in 2014 and 2015.
The trial will begin on Wednesday and it is expected to last two days, a spokesman for the court said.
Ancelotti, who as a coach has won a record five Champions League trophies including three with Real, must be present for the hearings, he added.
Prosecutors accuse him of only declaring in his tax returns the personal remuneration received from Real Madrid during those two years even though he himself declared himself to be a tax resident in Spain and indicated his home was in Madrid.
They accuse Ancelotti of allegedly setting up a “confusing” and “complex” system of shell companies to hide his extra earnings from his image rights as well as from other sources such as real estate.
A Spanish court in 2023 ordered Ancelotti to stand trial over the affair, but did not set a date.
Ancelotti dismissed the affair last year as “an old story that I hope will be resolved soon” when he was asked about the case.
He took over at Real Madrid in 2013, leaving in May 2015, before being appointed at Bayern Munich the following year.
The former Italy international midfielder, who as a player won the European Cup twice with AC Milan, later managed Napoli and Everton before returning to Real Madrid in 2021.
Aside from his success in the Champions League he has won domestic league titles with Madrid and Milan, in England with Chelsea, in Germany with Bayern Munich and in France with Paris Saint-Germain.
-AFP
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Spain’s former soccer chief Luis Rubiales told Reuters on Thursday he would appeal a court ruling which found him guilty of sexual assault for kissing player Jenni Hermoso without her consent.-
-Reuters
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