Mateu Alemany (with added Alberto Benito and Pablo Rodriguez)

[KevinGage]

It could be that his wife/partner is giving it the Unsworth treatment too.

Or Martinez has convinced Lionel M of the wonder of Gaucho in Colmore Row and Many ales has got the hump.

[Dogtanian]

There’s no way he got as far as agreeing his early departure from Barcelona without having had a conversation with our owners of what his budget would be.

If it did then he must be pretty shit at his job.

[algy]

It could be that his wife/partner is giving it the Unsworth treatment too.

Or Martinez has convinced Lionel M of the wonder of Gaucho in Colmore Row and Many ales has got the hump.

I was bar manager at Knighton Town FC, then in the 3rd tier of the Welsh league, for a year or so. One of the best memories is being in the bar at the start of the season and the manager coming in and bollocking the players for not drinking enough in the club bar, that they should all stop coming in and having half a pint of lemonade & orange cordial and instead get on the pints, cos how was the club ever going to be a success when they were putting so little cash behind the bar!

Loved working there, it was comically badly run. The league meetings were also a laugh, all the teams from the west speaking exclusively in Welsh, all the teams from the east speaking exclusively in English, and some truly bizarre debates about things like (genuinely) if it was ok for a team to have their dressing room in a farm shed which was a 3/4 mile walk down a relatively busy A road from the pitch because otherwise they had to wade across a fast flowing river to get to it.

In case you were wondering, they decided (after about an hour's fierce debate) that it was OK for the forthcoming season but they had to do something about it the next season or they'd be automatically relegated to the 4th tier, which was less fussy about such matters.

[Hookeysmith]

I thought it was a massive statement at the time and a coup for the Villa
So this is a bit of a blow and I’m not going to pretend otherwise

Yes, that's how I feel tbh.

Thats a little how I feel - though never heard of him, when you read into it, it seemed like a proper statement. 

My sentiments as well. Hope UE does not feel pissed off by this

[dave shelley]

are we skint again then?

[tomd2103]

I thought it was a massive statement at the time and a coup for the Villa
So this is a bit of a blow and I’m not going to pretend otherwise

We don’t really know how far down the line negotiations were and if a formal offer had been made. 

It does feel like a bit of a blow if he has done a u-turn though.  If we are going to move forward and compete with the top clubs, we need to shake off the impression that they can just push us around and take our players from us. 

Getting people like him in from a club like Barcelona would have been a statement of intent, but let’s see how it plays out.

[Legion]

What financial problems are they making up now?

[Ads]

The same Spanish press that know fuck all who were saying we're quadrupling this blokes salary, spending £45m on this guy and £70m on that, are now spinning a yarn to say we don't have as much money as was lead to believe. All of it, is shite.

[edgysatsuma89]

Barcelona have turned into a bit of a dickhead club recently. I hope they get Messi back and continue to financially cripple themselves. Although saying that maybe him staying puts us in a good position doing dealings with them when they need to sell players to pay the Saudi shill his weekly wage.

[Paul.S]

Luckily we’ll soon be able to see how skint we are. Give it a few months and we’ll either have signed a few decent players or we’ll be mangerless and going cap in hand to Allardyce to help keep us in the league.
I know which one is out money on.

[tomd2103]

What financial problems are they making up now?

No idea where that has come from as there has been no mention of anything of the sort elsewhere.  Ex-pat Blues or Albion fan in the media out there maybe?

[Axl Rose]

Barcelona have turned into a bit of a dickhead club recently. I hope they get Messi back and continue to financially cripple themselves. Although saying that maybe him staying puts us in a good position doing dealings with them when they need to sell players to pay the Saudi shill his weekly wage.

Recently?

[edgysatsuma89]

Barcelona have turned into a bit of a dickhead club recently. I hope they get Messi back and continue to financially cripple themselves. Although saying that maybe him staying puts us in a good position doing dealings with them when they need to sell players to pay the Saudi shill his weekly wage.

Recently?

Ha, yeah, I was waiting for that. I don't know enough Barca history although I have read about Pep belittling an opposition player's experience of racism when he was a player for them.

[Axl Rose]

Barcelona have turned into a bit of a dickhead club recently. I hope they get Messi back and continue to financially cripple themselves. Although saying that maybe him staying puts us in a good position doing dealings with them when they need to sell players to pay the Saudi shill his weekly wage.

Recently?

Ha, yeah, I was waiting for that. I don't know enough Barca history although I have read about Pep belittling an opposition player's experience of racism when he was a player for them.

Sorry mate, I couldn't resist. But know exactly what you meant, though.

As for Pep being a wanker, who'd have thought it. I can't wait for the day that Unai schools that smug, cigar smoking fuckhead

[rooboy316]

It could be that his wife/partner is giving it the Unsworth treatment too.

Or Martinez has convinced Lionel M of the wonder of Gaucho in Colmore Row and Many ales has got the hump.

I was bar manager at Knighton Town FC, then in the 3rd tier of the Welsh league, for a year or so. One of the best memories is being in the bar at the start of the season and the manager coming in and bollocking the players for not drinking enough in the club bar, that they should all stop coming in and having half a pint of lemonade & orange cordial and instead get on the pints, cos how was the club ever going to be a success when they were putting so little cash behind the bar!

Loved working there, it was comically badly run. The league meetings were also a laugh, all the teams from the west speaking exclusively in Welsh, all the teams from the east speaking exclusively in English, and some truly bizarre debates about things like (genuinely) if it was ok for a team to have their dressing room in a farm shed which was a 3/4 mile walk down a relatively busy A road from the pitch because otherwise they had to wade across a fast flowing river to get to it.

In case you were wondering, they decided (after about an hour's fierce debate) that it was OK for the forthcoming season but they had to do something about it the next season or they'd be automatically relegated to the 4th tier, which was less fussy about such matters.

That’s brilliant!