Messi, Messier, Messiest: The Evolution of Lionel’s Battered Transfer Saga – The Warm-Up

At the beginning it was Messi. A convenient play on words to describe a story that is not yet a saga, but a bit more complicated than the typical single player story wants. This was after an 8-2 loss, after a head coach change, after a manager change, after his close friend was told he was no longer needed by the club, after they went ahead the presidential elections, but it was not called. immediately. This involved Lionel Messi and Barcelona.

And so it quickly became more complicated. He talks about exit clauses, release clauses, that the club remains firm, that the player still wants to leave, that he misses the Covid-19 tests and even that the League weighs.

It got even more complicated on Monday, with Messi snubbing training given that he no longer considers himself a Barcelona player, or so reports say, while the club don’t know whether to punish him for not showing up for fear of pushing him even closer. of the starting gate party.

Nonetheless. Everything that. It still feels like the most difficult is yet to come. This increasingly deteriorating relationship between the club and the greatest player in club history (football) will only continue to spiral out of control.

With the confrontational talks between Josep Maria Bartomeu and Jorge Messi underway on Wednesday, maybe then we will hit a maximum mess, but you feel like this will rumble far beyond the conversation between the president and dad and end up in court. The dispute to end all football disputes.

Meanwhile, it is now September. Wow this year has been going fast / slow etc, delete accordingly. It means that the 2020-21 season is upon us, and after a week of this super-wise of Messi, it seems like we are moving quickly but floating at the same time. So much has happened, so many updates, so much speculation, but we still don’t know how it will play out and when it will finally end.

It’s turning into a pretty sorry story now, for everyone involved, but the worst is on the way.

So is. The first Donny to hit these shores since Osmond was a special judge on Strictly Come Dancing six years ago is soon on his way to Manchester United.

And just as Van de Beek pushed Osmond down on Donny’s auto-complete game at Google, the Dutchman will soon have to get some midfielders out of the way at Old Trafford as well.

A deal that seems almost closed after Rio Ferdinand and Edwin van der Sar’s hilarious emoji swap on Twitter means United is finally in business this summer, but in an area where they hardly needed to get stronger.

Still, it’s time to push the bank, where Van de Beek could well find himself when he returns from international duty and gets underway with United. A quality signing, but it’s hard to see where he fits in the XI (Alexander Netherton has considered this conundrum here) while United fans will feel like it’s time for their team to sort out a couple of new defenders, perhaps a striker, and actually submit an offer. by Jadon Sancho to test Borussia Dortmund’s determination.

Come on Ed Woodward, they’re waiting.

If there was still an England B team (it was one thing kids) then maybe Jack Grealish would have had more international experience by now, but instead the Aston Villa patron has somehow made it to 24 without a senior cap on. your name.

The wait for a call-up is at least finally over by virtue of Marcus Rashford’s retirement, and now Grealish will work to make his debut against Iceland later this week.

Guest only due to some dropouts, Grealish may feel like he’s ruining the party, but instead of hiding in the corner, he’ll know this is his chance to show off some moves. Does anyone dance?

Moving from that vision of Grealish and Mason Mount facing off on a dance floor while the other England players gather in a circle, and back to reality, it’s clear that the former must try to seize the opportunity that is more likely than the latter. get. There’s time to convince Gareth Southgate otherwise, but it still feels like Grealish’s late call-up means he’s only on the fringes of the England manager’s plans.

Midfield spots are up for grabs, Mount will likely take one in Reykjavik on Saturday, but Southgate clearly sees Grealish as an exit option, where he would normally have Rashford but now has Raheem Sterling, Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood for company.

A tough crowd, but a Grealish is happy to be a part instead of playing against him.

“When you look at the England squad, they are not just the best players in the country, they are the best in the world,” he told The Sun. “I have played these guys when they have been playing for Liverpool, Manchester City and Spurs, without much success!

It is worth thanking the Shamrock Rovers who lured AC Milan in the Europa League second qualifying round, and adding what a shame it will be for the Irish team to play this match behind closed doors. Milan may not be the beast they used to be, but Transfermarkt estimates their team is worth € 393.2 million combined compared to Shamrock’s 1.95 million. Truly David vs. Goliath, behind closed doors, obviously.

Because of course you should spend four minutes and 45 seconds of your Tuesday morning watching England whip Germany 5-1 in Munich, with even Heskey scoring.

Today nineteen years ago. Pinch and bang (realize how old you are) on the first of the month.

It’s not your article, as is often the case here, but the very good human being Marcus Rashford is at it again, this time forming a task force with some of the biggest food brands to tackle child poverty.

He told the BBC: “I feel like sometimes people think they are looked down on if they ask for help, and I think in this generation … that’s something that should change. You should feel free if you want to ask for help for any thing. Keep your head up and if you need help, get help. “

More cycling. More tennis. More transfer news. Very little real football, but hey, it’s good to have a quiet time before the internationals arrive.

Ben Snowball will find something to talk about tomorrow, anything will do.