Second treble on the table... and, they took it!

And, I saw them do it - live!  Visca, el Barça! 
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by PAM


I have been feeling really frustrated to have kept missing the UEFA Champions League matches this season.  In fact, my last post here on the Champions League was published on August 2013!  It's that bad.  

I know that there are trade-offs in the choices we make in our lives, but two years of not being able to watch a full match in the Champions League has been gnawing on my sanity!  Too much work... just too-too much!  It used to be worth it... but, without time to refresh my mind by indulging my (justified) hunger for great fun, adrenaline rush and tactical thinking through a healthy dose of the 'beautiful game' is 'killing me'... seriously!  OK, perhaps following the Spanish La Liga and the English Premier League, too, is a luxury, considering the choice I made two-and-a-half years ago... but missing the Champions League for two years??  OK, that's like sacrilege for a football fan!  

Football fan or not, I think we all deserve some time to have a little fun - even if only for health and sanity's sake.   


***
Putting my foot down... gotta watch the final!

Sooo, before losing it, I put my foot down and decided to mark my calendar and cancel anything else that coincided with the Champions League final in Berlin... especially that the final is between my favorite Club, FC Barcelona (o, yeah!), and Juventus FC!  As it turned out, I didn't have to cancel anything because the match airs live via cable on a Sunday at 2:30 a.m., Manila time.  So, I had to sleep early Saturday night to wake up in time for the game.  And, oh, boy!  What a treat it was!

What a reunion between Barça... and I! :)

The match was a fast-paced one, with the men from both sides starting with spirited sprint on that beautiful green turf of Berlin.  Everyone watching knew right off the bat that both sides were gunning for the cup with powerful artillery - no compromise!  Both sides have a worthy mission.  Both sides won their local Leagues and local Cups going into the Champions League final.  Juve was gunning for their first treble - the 8th Club to do so if they managed to get Lady Luck smile their way; and Barça was aiming to make history to become the first Club to achieve the treble twice.  Juve's manager/head coach, Max Allegri, was a worthy victor... but so was Barça's freshman head coach/manager, Luis Enrique, relatively young as he may be!  

Champions League followers were expecting the final match to be a battle of midfields, Juve's was led by the veteran, Andrea Pirlo, and Barça's was led by the brilliant Andres Iniesta.  Everyone was also picturing a duel between Barça's "magician", Lionel Messi, and the Italian side's seasoned goal keeper, Gianluigi "Gigi" Buffon, in front of the Italian Serie A champs' goal.  Naturally, a swarm of defenders were about Messi early on; and naturally, Lucho Enrique and Don Andres expected this, and so did Neymar Jr., who pressed the Juve defense early on.  It was a battle of midfield tactics alright.  In fact, duirng the first four minutes or so of the match, the quick-witted Don Andres Iniesta orchestrated the attack for Barça, getting his men touch the ball, once, twice on the turf as they gather towards the Juve goal.  Don Andres found a little opening, slipped the ball through to Ivan Rakitić, who acted quickly and decisively, and sent the ball past the surprised Buffon (and he's rarely surprised!) to hit the back of the net!  The Catalan side took the driver seat, 1-0, merely four minutes into the match!  And the sprinting and tactical battle intensified.  Whew, beautiful!

The rest of the first half was a great duel of wills between the two sides...  Barça pressing to provide a cushion to their lead, Juve was looking to equalize while resisting the advances of the opposite side.  Their horns were locked tightly, but I gotta say that the great tactician, Don Andres, and the South American demolition trio, Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, with the do-or-die hustle from Dani Alves, kept Juve mum, as they pressed relentlessly.  Barça's attack crew kept the ball with the Catalans, not giving the Juve attackers, led by Carlos Tevez, much chance to create damage.  

***
Finishing the task

One would think that in the second half, Barça would be running to finish the match with another goal, but it was Juve's Alvaro Morata who picked up the remains of a saved attempt for a goal by Tevez, about ten minutes into the second half, to equalize. That scattered the Catalan men for a while, and the Barça defense was the first to appear like they were feeling the heat.  It did look like Juve was going for an all-out attack of the FCB goal manned by the 23-year old German keeper, Marc-André Ter Stergen.  However,

Neymar, securing the win with a third goal for FCB.

the young goal keeper, calm and serene in front of the goal, proved to be up to the task - very impressive!  I have to say that Barça's defense, which was usually suspect when things go wrong, proved to be equal to the task as well... well, after recovering from their "initial shock" caused by the Morata goal anyway.  Call it the Don Iniesta calming leadership effect... that man has that effect on his team.  He gets them back on attacking track - fast!  

The formidable South American attacking trio in front of the Barcelona crew kept pressing... they launched many attacks that would've shattered to pieces a goal keeper made of less finer stuff than Gigi Buffon was.  At some point though, something had to give.  In one of the blistering attempts by Messi to get FCB in front again, Buffon saved, but spilled the ball, which was apparently went too weighty after being walloped by Messi's left foot.  The hungry Suarez, without hesitation, sprinted to send the loose ball to the back of the net as Buffon was still sprawled on the turf recovering from Messi's assault, 2-1.  Such is the lethality of Barça's attack line.  Just as quickly as he scored though, Suarez picked up a yellow card as soon as the game re-started after Barça's celebration of his goal! :)  Oh, boy!  At least, the yellow card did not involve biting of someone's ear. ;)

The lead could have been stretched by Neymar to 3-1 about the 70th minute or so, but his header was ruled out as the ball accidentally touched the back of his right hand before flying to the goal. That little touch couldn't have changed the trajectory of the ball... but it was disallowed anyway, and it was fair enough.  Juve then continued to press for opportunity to equalize, as Barça's South American attack trio did the same relentlessly, propelled by the midfield, which was led by the great Xavi Hernandez in the last 15 minutes or so of the match. After a few rolling around by Suarez, whose wailing can be a bit embarrasing and/or irritating at times, Lucho decided to pull him out, and Pedro Rodriguez came on.  During the last minute of the five-minute stoppage time, Messi, Pedro and Neymar ran for a final attempt for a goal, which sent my heart all a-thump-thumping with crazy excitement!  And Neymar kicked the last goal in with such force uncaring about any sort of destruction that such force may cause - no chance for even the likes of Buffon to stop - claiming the 2015 Champions League trophy for good... and FCB's second treble!  And, into the history books they went!  Yowza!  

Awesomeness?  Ah, well... no other way to describe it!  I was glad that, at least, I watched the final - live!  If only for that, I resolve to avoid ranting (here) for the next... uhm, five (working) days, maybe? :)


***
P.S. Footie Beautie

I have to say, I love this Barça - Lucho Enrique's Barça, that is.  Their movement as a Team is very fluid.  They still play the "possession football" that was central in Pep Guardiola's Barça, and they still work wonderfully as a Team as in the "Pep era", but there's a bigger component of "no-excuse attack" that makes this current ensemble very exciting to watch.  There is a hint of "savagery" in their hunger to get those goals coming... there is a flavor of unabashed display of enjoyment as they make those goals after a relentless pursuit.  There is raw desire for the best result possible... it's honest, it's compelling, it makes one wants to celebrate with them, it's great! 

Pep's Barça was all about tantalizing movement.  They moved beautifully and gracefully in a well-timed approach to the goal that they were just breathtaking to watch.  They seemed to be playing football on their own, without opponents!  The fantastic goals seemed like mere "icing on the cake", and the trophies are more of a payment to the display of beauty rather than a prize for winning the competition.  Lucho's Barça has more 'muscle', and they have no qualms about displaying it, and they do so as beautifully as possible, too.  They are not only beautiful to watch, they produce nail-biting excitement in their devil-may-care attacks, but in a well orchestrated moves that involve the whole Team nevertheless!  They keep you on the edge of your seat, they make their spectators gush adrenaline, and they challenge their opponents to match their pace.  Pep's 'delicately beautiful men' have been transformed to Lucho's 'exciting men's men'!  It felt different to watch this new Barça, and I love it! 

And, I love all the show of love among the 'beautiful men' of this 'beautiful game'... all the kissing and hugging without any hint of self-consciousness, all the good cheers after the match that show true sportsmanship, are just fantastic to watch.  I missed seeing all this for the longest time... it has been killing me!  But, I got good dose of my 'wonder drug' from the Berlin final of the Champions League.  Life is good!  It is, ya know! :)    

***

Photo credit:  I took all the photos in the collage from the Balls Channel live feed via Skycable (Channel 34), except the center photo, which was obtained from the UEFA Champions League's twitter account - thanks.

*** 

Saturday photo



Cool it!

When the going gets tough... the tough cools it.  When the going gets rough... the lame employs an abrasive ghost writer - to write her e-mails. =)  Nah, don't worry, we'll try to never be lame... just always sincerely passionate... and plainly honest - honestly!  :)   

***
Footie talk is cool talk

Alright, Foodball Captain, where are you?  I need someone to write my e-, er, rave with over the second leg of the FC Barcelona vs. Paris Saint-Germain UEFA Champions League quarter final tie in Camp Nou.  :)  That miracle of a 1-1 draw (3-3 on aggregate, and won by Barça on away goals), with an equalizer for Barça care of Pedro Rodriguez who was set up by the injured Lionel Messi, was a thing of absolute beauty - it deserves some raving here. 

In the first leg in Paris, Barça's defense was kind of rattled by PSG's fierce and fast counter-attacks, resulting to a hard-earned 2-2 draw, and an injured hamstring for Leo.  In the second leg, the Catalan defense was struggling completely, and their frontline reduced to a toothless kitten.  With the injured Leo not in Barça's starting XI, the first half and the first 20 minutes or so of

Defeat is uncool... when the big-eared cup is on
the line. Therefore, change the game - win!

(Image credit: Shaun Boterill/Getty Images)

the second half was painful to watch - especially for Leo.  Good thing, Leo and Tito Vilanova had the courage to gamble on the four-time Ballon d'Or winner's injured right hamstring... and their courage was rewarded.  Like a heaven-sent archangel, Leo changed the pace and the fabric of the game when he came on, jolting his teammates from 'sleeprunning' to fierceness, and evoking unacknowledged fear from the visiting Parisians. The Catalan crowd came alive... soon, there was electricity in the air!  With a mesmerizing drib-drib-dribble, Leo created the play, which was kept alive by the all-of-sudden sharp David Villa, and superbly finished by Pedro to an equalizing goal. Bea-bea-beautiful, I tell ya!  

And just like that, Barça moved to the semis... which essentially is going to be a Spain vs. Germany affair:  Real Madrid vs. Borussia Dortmund on the first half and then FC Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich on the other half.  Barça'd better be ready, 'cause the Bavarians are a tough (and rough when needed) lot.  Is it smelling like an El Clasico in Wembley come May 25?  Gosh, speaking of tough... and rough!        

Oh, and that Manchester derby in the Old Trafford a few days back, where ManCity beat ManUnited, 2-1... that was good stuff!  Fast, fast, fast-paced affair that was... and raining with yellow cards, too.  In the end, a serious brawl almost erupted... and it wasn't between Roberto Mancini and Sir Alex Ferguson either.  Yep, tough and rough! 

Yes, yes, and yes, I am sick!  These days I only get to watch football when I'm sick.  Alright, Foodball Captain, where in UEFA's leather ball seam are you hiding?   I want to talk footie here! 

***

The Spanish Conquistadores completed their Italian Job

Viva, España!  Woohoo! 
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by PAM 

Europe and the world saw red!  Glorious day for La Roja! 

La Roja... Campeónes de Europa!

They did it! The beautiful Spanish Men in Red wrapped the Euro Cup with the Spanish flag in Kiev, Ukraine... and
Iker Casillas, Número Uno...
El Capitán de la selección
española de futbol.brought it home, to stay for another four years on Spanish soil. And they did it so superbly, so beautifully, so worthy of a place of honor in the history of the 'beautiful game'... made even more beautiful by the dazzling way they play it. 

Their victory in Ukraine is indeed historical... Vicente del Bosque González and his brilliant men, captained so ably by "the 1 and only", Iker Casillas, catapulted Spain to a place of honor in the history of the 'beautiful game'.  Theirs is the only other side (the other one is Germany) to have won the European Cup thrice! Theirs also became the FIRST and the ONLY side - ever - in the history of UEFA Euro to have successfully defended the title.  They won with a record margin, 4-0, too!  They also stand as the only European country to hold the European title back to back and the World Cup at the same time = hat-trick of titles, a FIRST in the history of... uhm, mankind!   :)

Following a number of eras of brilliant Spanish players with so much promise, but that stayed unfulfilled, Casillas's illustrious era, with Del Bosque's guidance, finally fulfilled the great promise of Spanish football brilliance. They continue to dazzle the world with the beauty of their game.  The streets of Spain, and other places in the world, flooded with red-donning fans who shared the joy of La Roja!

Glorious Age, indeed, for Spanish Football! Woohoo! 

Just being lazy...

...'cause on vacay! :)
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by PAM


I know, I 'whine' - not so often... but often enough - about vacation not coming soon enough... especially when the going gets impossibly and punishingly tough in the workplace for a 'normal' human being to take! :)  Three or four days of vacation is glorious, I think... beyond that, while I still cannot lay my eyes on backlog from work, the bed surprisingly seem to have ceased as inviting as it was five days ago!  And, it was Holy Week, too... the beach wasn't as enticing as it normally did, even when all the Week's obligations have already been fulfilled.  Therefore, today... time to go on a trip - to the bookstore! :)  Wait... how 'bout we check what's on-line and what's playing in the sports channel first?  Brilliant!  Hey, I never said I wasn't boring!

***
Oldie and wisey

So, I came across this interesting article about how wisdom is related to age, and how this relationship varies among Americans and among Japanese.  As Asian (reasonably familiar with Japanese culture) who lived a number of years in the US, I find the article truly "entertaining".  The link to the article arrived in my inbox (ages ago, apparently) from The Economist.  Hmm... so, we learned that the...

"...five crucial aspects of wise reasoning: willingness to seek opportunities to resolve conflict; willingness to search for compromise; recognition of the limits of personal knowledge; awareness that more than one perspective on a problem can exist; and appreciation of the fact that things may get worse before they get better."

and that...

"Americans do get wiser with age... Japanese (high) scores, by contrast, hardly varied with age."

Making the author conclude that...

"...Japanese learn wisdom faster than Americans."

Are you fascinated now?  Ah, just you wait 'til you read the "exchange of wisdom" between readers in the comments section!  Fun read, I think... but do proceed, with caution, open mind... and, uhm, wisdom!  :)


***
Footie beautie!

Yeah, I did watch football on Holy Week.... 

And so, from 10 points in early March, it became 4 this part of April!  Yes, yes, yes... and yes (!), I'm talking about the lead of Real Madrid CF over FC Barcelona at the Primera Division of the Spanish La Liga!  After their successful ventures in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) quarter-final round last week, qualifying in the semis, the two Spanish football giants went into the weekend, separated by six points - with the Blancos on top - and then emerged with only 4 points separating them. 

Barça faced Real Zaragoza last Saturday with overgrown flowering grass at La Romareda.  What the... uhm, sad joke was that about?  Oh, well....  Pep Guardiola made some changes in his starting line-up compared to his first XI against AC Milan at the UCL QF in the middle of the week.  In the absence of Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Gerard Piqué (who was injured) in the starting line-up, the World Champions didn't seem as superior as they should be over the hosts, who were playing splendid football!  But then, Lionel Messi was on the pitch... so, what else could any side who has this genius could ask for?  None apparently.  Eventually, his genius shone through!

And so, after heart-breaking misses (I can just imagine) from the hosts, fine saves from Victor Valdes (about time, too!), a lucky follow-up goal from the hosts, a wonderful picking-up-remnants goal from the focused Catalan Captain, Carles Puyol, emotionally charged air where yellow cards were waved and the Zaragoza squad getting reduced to ten men,  lady luck showed which side she favored amidst the flowering grass!  Messi hit his 59th (via a vintage Messi, Alexis-assisted thing of beauty) and 60th goals (via spot kick) of the season (37th and 38th for La Liga) in all competitions.  Therefore, the "flowery day" at the La Romareda was the day when Messi became the first man to reach 60 goals in a single season since the 1972-73 season, getting closer to breaking Gerd Müller's record of 67 goals in
Hmmm... it's that bad, eh? But, come now, Crissy... hush!that season for Bayern Munich. Oh, my... and the 'little man' is only 24!  Wait, there's more... the magic man also assisted Pedro Rodriguez in the latter's rare goal after coming back from injury-induced hiatus, bringing the final tally to a 4-1 win for Barça.

Over at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, the hosts were held by the visiting massive force that was Valencia CF, in a scoreless draw, 0-0, on Easter Sunday.  Hmmm... I wonder what kind of 'conspiracy theory' this time is being toyed with by José Mourinho's "special mind" to put the blame on for his side's unsuccessful run in their very own turf.  If Pepe's frustration, which he expressed like a wounded animal by kicking his own teammate, is anything to go by, the draw must be indeed very bad.  Therefore, maybe it would serve everyone well if they caged Mou and his beloved pet, Pepe, for a while... or until the "hurt" subsided.  Oh, and we're not even talking about Cristiano Ronaldo's "pain" yet...  on second thought, uh, nah, let's not go there... too "painful"!  ;) 


The current fourth place, Valencia, was gunning for points - any point at all - to keep their bid for a place in the UCL next season
Hmmm..., amigo, I believe that ball is mine.intact.  The draw proved costly for Real Madrid, who dropped 2 points, cutting their lead over Barça to only 4 points now, with seven more La Liga matches to be played, one of them is El Clásico coming up on April 21 (April 22 in this side of the world) at Camp Nou!  Oh, boy... I'm not sure if I could pack enough courage to watch that Clásico... it might just turn to a 'gory bloodbath', especially with Mou and Pepe's growling emotional state... that Dani Alves do not have a drop of appreciation for!   *sigh*  And, just imagine how Crissy Ronaldo would hurt if he missed a... uhm, spot kick??  Talk about (melo)drama!


But, yeah, the weekend did blow the La Liga Table wide open!  Whoa, hello adrenalin!  Vacation, you are so welcome!  Please stay!  :)


Over at the English Premier League, looks like Manchester City's bid to win the League title this season collapsed in slow motion right before Roberto Mancini's very eyes as the Gunners' Spanish playmaker, Mikel Arteta, kicked the winning goal for Arsenal home, to claim 1-0 victory in their weekend meeting.  Before this must-win match for both sides, Manchester United won against QPR, 2-0, at lunchtime, widening their lead over second place, Manchester City, to eight blistering points, with only six more matches to be played.  Of course, City failed miserably to respond, getting walloped by Arsenal instead at tea time.  Their win over City moved the Gunners to third place, keeping their hope for UCL qualification next season alive.  If you think about where Arsene Wenger and his men were at the beginning of the season, this achievement is quite a feat, I must say!  It's the reverse of the high-spending Manchester City's case, who ventured to capture the League title this season with hefty amount of money invested on buying football superstars whose antics on-and-off the pitch are proving to be too much to handle for Mancini.  Oh, well... I guess it's a matter of management, after all... and that Wenger is still a more bankable manager?


While there were many 'collapsed' dreams, unfruitful attempts, diva-ish hurtings and heartbreaking misses over the weekend... they were all delivered via beautifully played games.  Therefore, hurray, footie beautie!

***
Photo credits:  Photos were grabbed from the Zimbio website - thanks!

Whew, sweet!

Too much sweetness for just one day!
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by Philipina A. Marcelo


Sugary fictional romance...

Ugh! So I've been stressing out the whole day today thinking about the sneak preview, which I saw last night, of today's episode of "My Binondo Girl". In the preview, the desperate Patrice, who has a thing for Andy, came on to him like a woman-gone-mad in his office. Andy struggled to shoo her away - like a faithful married man in love with his wife... which he was! But the desperate girl threw herself on Andy's lap like an awfully bishy home wrecker... which she was, too! And then, in
Sweetness...the name of all that's incredibly soap opera-ish, Jade walked in! Of course, I was like, "oh, no, not again!" and with feelings, too! Tsk!

Naturally, I went back and forth imagining the next scene! What will Jade do? Will she let herself be influenced by the half-truth she just witnessed, walk out in tears... and crawl into the darkness of the I-felt-cheated-ow mental breakdown? Will she go ballistic and walk out of Andy's life... this time, for good, and never to return again? Will she finally admit to herself how much she loved 'her Mr. Wu', assert herself and her feelings, channel her inner tigress, and claw Patrice from Andy's lap - with an angry growl?? Aw, gosh!

Of course that got me so distracted the whole day that I'm not sure I did justice to the wonderful Kremser Equation in one lecture, and the incredible dietary fiber in another! Whew! Uhm, nah... Kremser is in no way related to dietary fiber. The lectures are for two different purposes, I assure you! Haha..... But I digress... I know, there are more pressing problems in the world than the Andy-Jade primetime TV romance to be stressing out about... but, hey, this is too sweet, it deserves a day of stressing out... and a blog post, too! :)

Well, to make the 30-min long story short, it turned out that the Patrice "sneak attack" led to a myriad of confrontations: between what Jade thinks and what Jade felt, between Andy's feelings and his ever-faltering will to assert it, between Jade's love for Andy and his even bigger love for Jade. True feelings won, and the victory was celebrated with a kiss! Aaaaawww... kilig! :)

***
Speaking of 'sweet'... ants 'beelined' to Camp Nou

FC Barcelona 4-0 CA Osasuna... Fabregas (14'), Fabregas (18'), Messi (72), Messi (90+1). Oy, sweet!

And so, 'Incredible Barça' opened 2012 with a spectacular win over CA Osasuna in the first leg of their Copa del Rey tie at Camp Nou.
FC Barcelona in action... dazzling!With the well-oiled Barça ball-hogging artillery once again displayed on the pitch, the Pep Guardiola tactical prowess-fueled win showcased the brilliance of Barça's midfield Maestro, Xavi, and the awesomeness of Camp Nou's prodigal son, Cesc Fàbregas. And then there's Dani Alves's lethal all-around game on the pitch showing up a number of times and the impressive Sergio Busquets rocking the defense-midfield interface again with a silent flair that could only be associated with his name. Of course, El Capitan Carles Puyol and the maturing talent, Thiago Alcantara, were beautiful to watch on the pitch, too. It was as if the squad was unaffected by the holiday break at all!

Oh... and then there's Barça's dazzling superstar, Lionel Messi, who just got back from his holiday in Argentina barely two days before the match. He was initially 'parked' by Pep on the bench due to a suspected flu in the morning, and then he came on for the just-recovered-from-injury, Pedro Rodríguez, during the last 30 minutes or so of the match. Like a real magician, he defied sickness and banged in two massive goals like the best player in the world, which he is, should!

Sweet! :)

***
Sweet Homecoming...

...not mine, but by my former student's who is currently based in France - doing something really awesome there. :) It is always heartwarming to meet again a former student who comes to reminisce the "good old days" at school... and to share with us, their former teachers, their exciting adventures, as well as their funny (and not-so-funny) misadventures. It's like seeing the world and the exciting field of
Seeing the world... through someone else's eyes.engineering through their eyes - sometimes quite a peculiar experience... most of the time, absolutely refreshing!

Earlier today, I had a great time catching up with a former student. She was this quiet and serious, and really diligent honor student who never realized how pretty she was, oblivious to the admiring boys around her. Now, she has transitioned to being an important part of a giant multi-national and have become a really engrossing conversationalist - no longer shy and quiet. :) She's bloomed to a truly lovely person... and I'm really proud! :) More than all her joyful accomplishments and her incredibly fun adventures, it warms my heart to see that she's never forgotten her roots... and she swings joyfully to reach and touch that place where her roots lie the deepest.

Shhh... yep, she's still single. And I hope she's not thinking that I am advocating that she stays single... 'cause I'm not! =) Therefore, I wish her sweet 'love and romance' in 2012... a la 'Binondo Girl'! ;)

***
Photo credits: Barça photos grabbed from the Zimbio website - thanks!
Jade (Kim Chiu) and Andy (Xian Lim) photo grabbed from "My Binondo Girl" Facebook fan page public album - thanks!

Busy, but never busy enough...

...to ignore Barça's awesomeness! :)
==============================================================
by Philipina A. Marcelo


You bet, I've been waiting for an excuse good enough to set aside work for a few minutes to drop by here - yes, work on a Sunday night. *sigh*

September has been unkind so far... and I'm praying that it stops harrassing me with work and many other concerns. But it doesn't look like work will let up until the middle of October... so, I'm preparing to coil flat until then. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited about my "lab affairs" lately... but the work involved to keep the "excitement" going while making sure that I stand between the students and the white board - on a regular basis - is horrendous! Aargh, I wish teaching didn't involve too much gear shifting... it's too energy taxing, even when one summons the ideality of Brayton Cycle! Ugh! I know... what a nerdy thing to say - and on a Sunday night, too! Tsk!

But enough about work... at least, for the next few minutes!

***
A thorough and painful sanding of the blade...

Ya know, I'd be lying if I'd say that the FC Barcelona - AC Milan 2-2 draw in their first outing in the Group Stage of the
Strike a pose. Barça's frontline and midfield
figuring out the AC Milan "Pato-esque" surprise.Champions League - in Camp Nou, no less - didn't shake me a litte bit... especially that it happened after another draw - with Real Sociedad at the Spanish La Liga. Barça conceded a super-early goal on the 24th second after the opening whistle via a superb Alexandre Pato runaway shot that took Victor Valdes - and millions of fans for that matter - by surprise. It was only after the scoreboard confirmed the Pato goal that Javier Mascherano and Sergio Busquets realized what happened - the Brazilian ghosted by them while they were still telling themselves what their roles were at the back. While uncomfortably stunned, the Catalans regrouped immediately and went on their attacking football game, with the forwards and the midfielders
Pato, surprises Barça. concealing a makeshift defense with fast passing. But Milan wasn't fooled, they kept pushing to exploit the thin defense during the first 15 minutes or so in the first-half, and Barcelona seemed to realize the opponents' awareness of their weak points at the back, and it affected their focus on the attack.

While the Catalans moved forward with one eye at the back, one genius in their side wasn't straying from the goal though. Lionel Messi kept the visitors busy all night, especially Alessandro Nesta, who did well trying to prevent the little bag of football fireworks from exploding. La Pulga set up Pedro Rodriguez for an exciting equalizer, and then David Villa sent a curling shot to the Milanese goal, via free kick, in a fist-pump-evoking beauty! Woohoo! It
Lionel Messi, always superb.did look like the Catalans were closing Camp Nou last Tuesday with a 2-1 win against the visitors from Milan, keeping ball possession almost all throughout the second half to protect their precarious lead, and trying to penetrate the Milanese defense for a cushion of a goal. But, on stoppage time, Thiago Silva found an "anomalous opportunity" and took his chance against Sergio Busquets via a header winner. That gave the Italian side their second goal and earning them the bragging right of having survived Camp Nou with a 2-2 draw - in their opening match against the reigning European Champs. I have to admit, it was quite a feat! Then again, AC Milan is Italy's best - the 2010-2011 Serie A champions... something that the Catalans seemed to have missed in their "reminders list" before setting out to meet Massimiliano Allegri's side from San Siro.

***
And brilliance blinded the football universe again!

While the season has merely kicked off, for a Barça fan, two consecutive draws in big games was quite worrisome. The Catalans set themselves up in a spectacularly high standards that a draw has become
Fabregas and Messi: megabrilliance.synonymous to defeat. But, just when pundits started writing-off (would you believe it???) the best club in the business today, the Catalans went on a goal rampage against CA Osasuna over at La Liga. The 2010-2011 Campeones treated their fans at Camp Nou (and elsewhere in the universe) with an 8-0 win. While that, in my opinion, does not make up for that losst opportunity in the AC Milan draw at Camp Nou last week, it did assure fans that the last two draws were anomalies rather than the tone of the Barça symphony this season. Nevermind what unreasonable pundits shove in front of us... and what José Mourinho thinks!

Yep, after a "Pep talk" on complacency in view of the previous two draws, Pep Guardiola loaded his big guns... and the Catalans fired at will in the field - mostly, from Osasuna's half of the field - clearly taking out "complacency" in their game equation. Prompted by Busquets, Dani Alves, who was playing in the right wing (and moving "all-natural" in that position, too, I must add) set the scoring pace with the opening big assist. Lionel Messi picked it up and turned it into an early lead. Cesc Fábregas then completed a nice
David Villa... and his new hairdo are lethal.Messi assist with a truly lovely volley. Later, David Villa joined the scoring party with a little zigzag here and a kick there. Fábregas then returned the favor to Messi as he set up the Best Football Player in the World to pick up a brace as the first-half closes with Barça tallying five goals, including an own goal from Roversio.

Pep Guardiola's men opened the second-half with "murder" rather than "complacency" in mind. The midfield maestro, Xavi Hernandez, put his boots on scoring mode, and picked up one via a follow-through from a Messi rebound. Fábregas then kicked one to a well-positioned Villa for a seventh goal, and a Villa brace. The Catalans closed the scoring spree by letting
Dani Alves, a pleasant surprise on the right wing.Lionel Messi give an all-in-one display of footballing prowess with a little help from Cesc Fàbregas, picking up his first hat-trick of the season - to the fans' tingling delight! Barça, Barça, Barçaaaaaaaaa!

Barça will face the current occupant of the La Liga Table top spot, Valencia CF, next. Surely, Valencia will take off shooting to defend their sumptuous rank... but Guardiola's men seem to have been cured from their alleged complacency syndrome that allowed the draw with Real Sociedad and AC Milan. Valencia will push them - hard - and I'm hoping that the Blaugranas will stand their ground... and go on attack - like there's no tomorrow! Visca el Barça!

***
And then there's this and that...

So, after Barça picked up 3 points to better their La Liga Primera Division standing,
If only Mourinho
could cover his (foul)
mouth like that...
more often!Real Madrid CF fell in the hands of Levante UD via a 0-1 loss, keeping their Liga points nailed at 6 and kicked down to 5th place... for now. Los Blancos opened their match against Levante with the injured Cristiano Ronaldo sitting it out on the bench, and had to finish the match with 10 men as Sami Khedira was shown two yellow cards before half-time.

Always looking for an excuse/scapegoat in defeat, José Mourinho naturally, and most specially, pointed at Khedira as the culprit... before adding his part of the blame, that is - just to avoid Madridistas wrath? And then, as his usual obssession of Barcelona, he said, "All points are important and it's better to lose one game than to draw two. Losing is tougher psychologically than drawing a match, but drawing two is worse than losing one." Sure, sure, Mou... now, would you like vinegar to dip those grapes in... just in case they aren't sour enough? And, oh, oh, by the way, would you please comment on Marcelo's second yellow card (which got converted to red card) for diving during your UEFA meeting with Dinamo Zagreb? :)

The good news is, Mou didn't poke anybody's eye this time. Now, that's an improvement! Looks like the psychiatric division of Real Madrid had been absolutely busy the past how many days. Poor Real Madrid... 'cause they have to put up with a jerk (sorry, can't find a polite term to describe Mourinho) like Mourinho! *sigh* And pity for the Madridistas 'cause they have no choice but to side with a deranged person like Mou, and make all sorts of pathetic excuses in doing so. *sigh*

Over at EPL, the pretty Portuguese tactician, Andre Villas-Boas, suffered his first
Red Devil Nani, impressive!defeat as Chelsea manager when Sir Alex Ferguson's Red Devils slapped The Blues with a 3-1 win at Old Trafford. While Chelsea went on ferocious attack that was more than impressive, Manchester United's speed and mind-connection-on-the-pitch was on such high level that there was no way for The Blues to match it. While Wayne Rooney went from a brilliant goal to a "say-what??" unbelievable miss, Nani was pure brilliance on the pitch, it was impressive! On the Blues side, while Fernando Torres did play wonderfully, and in fact, clicked with a goal
Fernando Torres, his best wasn't good enough.in the first half - hurray! - he blew a big opportunity (in a "most unforgettable" fashion, too - not in a good way) a few minutes before the final whistle... which sent Chelsea's confidence (mostly in him) blown to pieces. While ManU's fantastic win was at the expense of Stamford Bridge's pride, the match was a classic in its peculiar ups-and-downs, highs-and-lows, brilliance-and-booboos - one for the books! :) But the way ManU are running these days, they look like a side that is looking to win it all this season! That's good news to all football fans - excitement is in the offing.

Alright, I think that's all the fun I could have today. I have to do something to this threatening flu, while I set out to yet another BIG WEEK of incredible WORKLOAD! *sigh*

***
Photo credits: All photos were grabbed from the Zimbio website - thanks!

Remarkable week of football...

...Barça relentless, and so were Irene and Mina!
====================================================
by Philipina A. Marcelo


Yes, it's been a week of good harvest for Barça. And why not? Now that the new Spanish La Liga season and the Group stage of the UEFA Champions League are kicking off, it might just be the best time to re-establish dominance. Whether or not that was what Pep Guardiola and his men had in mind last week of big days, they brought excitement to the Barça fans and many other followers of the beautiful game. However, work had been brutal for me, there was no time to capture the moment here. Even the extremely rainy Saturday demanded a full day's work... and more! Aaargh! But, hey, some people have to work for a living, and hobby always takes the backseat during brutal times. Reality, baby... and it bites, too! :( The good news is... it's looooong weekend! Yaay! :) And while I got away from work (very) late into the weekend... I'm back in my "happy place"! There will always be (plenty of) time to worry about work - as always. Yaaahoo! =)

***
European Super Cup

So, the 2011 UEFA Champions League winners, FC Barcelona, and the Europa League winners, FC Porto, clashed in Stade Louis II
FC Barcelona and FC Porto vie for the 2011 UEFA
Super Cup at the Stade Louis II in Monaco.in Monaco last Friday. No, I didn't see it live... only managed to see the highlights after the match while uncoiling from a (very) long day at work so not possible to comment. I read that it was not the "typical" Barça game of exceptional brilliance. It was slow and peppered with mistakes - from both sides... the highlights confirmed that as well. I was on a "what-the..." mode after seeing Pedro Rodriguez waste a great opportunity, losing control of the ball, kicking too soon when the ball was still hanging too high in midair for what could've been a nice finish of an Andres Iniesta assist. But it was easy to forgive him, remembering how efficient he usually is in patrolling his side of the Barça wing. Most of the time, he seemed to be at the right place, at the right time, especially when a goal is crucial. He just needs more confidence in finishing big attacks.

Speaking of confidence, or the lack of it, David Villa was a quarter of a second too late to finish a Lionel Messi pass through five men. It's no secret that Villa has been having a painful "on-again-off-again affair" with his confidence in front of the goal. And the reason, I think, is these days, he usually takes a split second to position himself before firing when the ball arrives at his feet... and that gives defenders and goalkeepers plenty of time to position for a save. He should revive his risk-taking quick moves that baffled many defenders and goalkeepers in World Cup 2010. He shouldn't view himself as the next best thing to Lionel Messi in front
Guardiola's La Masia boys - Iniesta,
Fabregas and Messi: deadly trio. of the goal. He has an important role in the Barça line-up, and he should trust himself to be the best in that role... simply because, he is the best in that role!

But, yeah, there wasn't much in the match to launch a tired woman to her feet from her seat in the match. But even the most drab of matches will not supress the brilliance of Lionel Messi, that's for sure. Barça's phenomenal "resident genius" shot the first goal on the 39th minute. Picking up a pass from Pedro, who wisely put Andrés Iniesta's steal to safety by entrusting it to their #10, Messi avoided Porto's goalkeeper, Da Silva Helton, and then fired the first goal with no serious challenge. And then, as the match was nearing its close, set up by the stand-in Captain, Iniesta, the enclosed-in-a-circle-of-enemies Messi sent a brilliant pass to Cesc Fabregas, who came on from the bench with only 10 minutes left to play. Barça's new "precious one" caught the spinning ball with his chest for a quick control before volleying to a beautiful finish on the 87th - remarkable! That sealed the hold of the Catalans on the 2011 UEFA Super Cup title with a 2-0 victory over the Portuguese side.

Barça now earned their twelfth title under Pep Guardiola, making
FC Barcelona: 2011 UEFA Champions League
winners + 2011 UEFA Super Cup winners.the former Barça captain the most successful coach in the Club's history, in terms of titles won, surpassing the coaching achievement of the legendary advocate of total football, Johan Cruyff - Pep's mentor. The victory also made Barça's midfield "High Priest", Xavi Hernandez, the winningest player in Barça's history, with 18 trophies... and earned Fabregas his second trophy in just eleven days since his unveiling in Camp Nou. Awesomeness? Definitely... and the truly big days are yet to come... I hope! :)

In the meatime, congratulations to Barça!!!

***
Little (in stature) yes... and, yet, the biggest (talent) in Europe

Speaking of historical achievements, Lionel Messi - Barça's phenomenal #10 - received the inaugural "UEFA Best Player in Europe Award" in a ceremony held in Monaco last Thursday. He finished way ahead of
Lionel Messi: 2011 UEFA Champions League
winner w/ Barça + 2011 UEFA Best Player in Europe.runners-up, his teammate, Xavi, and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid CF - the Spanish La Liga's 2010-2011 Pichichi awardee. Messi garnered 39 votes from the 53 sports journalists in Europe who chose the winner, while Xavi earned 11 votes. The three remaining votes went to Ronaldo. In his usual soft-spoken and thoroughly shy speech after receiving the unique trophy, Messi shared the award with his teammates (which, I suppose, included Guardiola?) and thanked them for their help in making his latest win possible. And, in response to host, CNN's Pedro Pinto's query, La Pulga assured everyone that while his personal trophies are quickly filling out his trophy shelves at home, there surely is enough room for more. Of course, I can imagine how that could be dismaying to many who aspire for the award in the future... at least, within the next six years or so.

The current winner of both FIFA Ballon d'Or Best Player in the World + UEFA Best Player in Europe... Lionel Messi is a "real genius" of football! Congratulations, Leo!

***
"Whoa!" and "uh-oh..." moments at the EPL

Yep, 8-2... that's how awesome, or bad, depending on which team one is supporting, Manchester United and Arsenal's match was at Old
Whoa! Wayne Rooney
hat-trick.Trafford yesterday! :) One side was "trigger happy", firing at will on the pitch, while the other was completely trashed - obviously! And it was Arsene Wenger who felt "humiliated" after the final whistle sounded, and Wayne Rooney was the one celebrating his latest hat-trick that helped catalpult the Red Devils to the top of the EPL Table! So, yeah, the Gunners went out of the pitch with their man-bag of pride totally drained... they weren't just beaten by Manchested United, they were toyed with on the pitch like they were a bunch of disconcerted golf players who stepped on the wrong field of greens! :) But the truth is, I wasn't sure if Man U was really being absolutely brilliant out there, although there were strong evidences that they were... or if Arsenal was simply just in a "chaotic phase" after losing experienced midfielders in Fabregas and Samir Nasri, and Jack Wilshere and many others being sidelined due to injuries. Hmmm... I guess we'll find out when the Red Devils
Uh-oh... Arsene Wenger and his beautiful boys
faced thorough defeat in Old Trafford.face the current second place, the
reinforced Roberto Mancini squad, at some point, huh? In the meantine, let's leave Wenger alone with his thoughts - and pray that he could endure it - for now, shall we?

Speaking of Mancini, Machester City, in their own version of "weekend mission enemy demolition", routed Tottenham Hotspur, 5-1, in the latter's very own backyard at White Hart Lane! City's big guns, led by Edin Dzeko, unleashed big ones that choked Harry Redknapp's side, they could only manage to respond once.

And, over at Stamford Bridge, a surprisingly tight and dramatic contest against Norwich City sent Blues striker, Didier Drogba, airborne
Juan Mata, whoa!on a challege against John Ruddy, was knocked unconscious in midair, and then hit the ground flat in a horrifying thud. Oh, gosh! He was carried out of the pitch on a stretcher, still unconscious, with a breathing instrument strapped on his face. Meanwhile, on a happy note, the new Spanish conquistador on English pitch, former Valencia main man, Juan Mata, debuted in Blues jerseys with a third goal for his side - allowing the Blues to keep home supremacy with a 3-1 win. Ah, here we go, Andre Villas-Boas's response to Mancini's Sergio Aguero, who debuted with a brace of goals? Whatever it is, Mata looked perfectly fitted in the Blues line-up... and his good looks, which make him looked like AVB himself's brother or something, and enthusiasm on the pitch belie the lethal talent that will surely spark more excitement at EPL. I can't wait to see how the EPL Table will go this season.

***
UEFA Champions League... on Group Stage

Hmmm... looks like most Clubs did some overhauling of their sides last summer (Ahem, sorry, Monsieur Wenger, didn't mean to sound insensitive. Please go back to your conversation with yourself now....). Perhaps, to stop FC Barcelona from winning the UEFA Champions League title again this season? I can imagine the sigh of relief from fans after finding out that their teams were not in the same group as Barça after the draw in Monaco. But, it looks like Silvio Berlusconi will have an opportunity to test his hypothesis. The AC Milan "godfather" acknowledges Barça to be the best squad in Europe today. However, in a subtle imitation of José Mourinho's complete lack of subtlety, he thinks that only 50% of Barça's success is due to class, skills and tactics.. and the rest is luck. Uh-hmm.... Well, awesome news for Mr. Berlusconi: AC Milan and Barça are in the same group! :) Please let us know your findings, Mr. Berlusconi (if you survived, that is)! BTW, how's Italy's economy these days? Cheers! :)

Oh, and Group A is a "nightmare" of a group! It has Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Villareal and Napoli! I'm sure these sides are hoping to wake up from the nightmare... and into the Round of Sixteen. Let's see who's better in surviving sleep apnea. Can't wait!

***
Angry females

While New York prepared for the dangerous onslaught of hurricane Irenethis weekend, in Manila, people watched tropical storm, Mina, dampen a torrent of rain during the country's long weekend. Uhm, good thing, it's vacation time for me. The northern provinces of Luzon were badly hit by Mina, leaving many homeless and devastated. The government's initial estimates of agricultural damage alone were at a whopping PhP 880M! Tsk, tsk... y'see, that's why you shouldn't mess with a woman, 'cause she'd blow you away to devastation!

***
Photo credits: All photos were grabbed from the Zimbio website.

Hot moves from Barça...

...and they kept the Joan Gamper Trophy, too.
======================================================
by Philipina A. Marcelo


With no sleep - at all - from the previous night, blame it on 'dedication to work' (yeah, right! ugh!) and killer stomach ache I staggered home on Monday afternoon, checked via BBC World News if the looking-like-he's-stoned strongman Gaddafi had already woken up to reality over there in Libya (hmm, still stubbornly holding on to power), and then I prepared to hit the bed - at 5 pm. I passed out before my back hit the linens! *sigh* I was barely aware of the pounding rain late in the night... and at about 2:00 AM, an image of Lionel Messi shooting a beautiful goal past Iker Casillas, with the on-his-knees Cristiano Ronaldo at his heel - from the Supercopa final - pulled me back to consciousness. Dang, live telecast of the Joan Gamper Trophy final at Camp Nou! Naturally, that hit me like a caffeine punch! And so, morning prayers, and then... game on!

After Cesc Fabregas hit his first "grown-up goal" for FC Barcelona - the first of five by Pep Guardiola's side's rout of Italy's SSC Napoli - to help Barça claim their 35th Joan Gamper Trophy, I got the feeling that it was going to be a fun night - well, early morning here in Manila. And it was! :)

***
Five "smash hits"... and they're up, up, and away!

Barça marched on the pitch with "the other little genius", Andrés Iniesta,
Captain Iniesta, flying high!wearing the captain's arm band. Of course, the "pale assassin" looked every inch "it", too - nice touch there, Pep! :) Cesc was in the first XI, with Manuel Pinto manning the Barça goal, and the brilliant young fellow, Thiago Alcantara, roaming the midfield. While the Barça first XI mainstays from last season - David Villa spearheading the attack crew, Gerard Piqué, leading the defense crew with Adriano sharing the responsibility - were in the first XI, there was no Messi or a Xavi to send the "usual" anxiety to the men from Italy. If the fans had any doubt on Pep Guardiola's Joan Gamper campaign first XI, it wasn't at all obvious. I was excited to see them "dance" on the Camp Nou pitch, "just a friendly" match notwithstanding. And they did, too - dance on the pitch!

The 2:00 AM priceless fun began with a Fabregas goal on the 25th minute. Set up by Iniesta and fed by Adriano (who was playing like a Dani Alves + Javier Mascherano out there) with a solid assist via a graceful cross, Cesc got away from his marker and fired the first goal! Aw, gosh... what can I say, all of us
Cesc Fabregas, making his first goal in Blaugrana
shirt... as a grown-up.know he will be brilliant in whatever shirt he'd choose to wear, right? It's just that he's best suited with a Blaugrana shirt. :) Barça did great doing all they could to get this brilliant culé back in Camp Nou, that's for sure. While I think it was worth the long wait, I will always feel a little bit sad for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal, of course, as I'm sure Cesc is, especially after that Gunners loss in the hands of the visiting Liverpool squad at The Emirates Stadium last weekend. Oh, dear... but, I guess... a culé will always be a culé and it's heart will always be restless until it's settled at home: Camp Nou.

Picking up where Cesc left off, Seydou Keita went for help from Captain Iniesta, sending a long pass to the "pale assassin" behind him before speeding towards the goal, through a crack in the Napoli defense. With the most perfect timing possible, he then jumped for a beautiful header to send a well-calculated Iniesta overhead return that completely eluded Napoli's goalkeeper, Morgan De Sanctis.
Seydou Keita, heading a big one home - lovely. Just fantastic! The men went to half-time break with the score at 2-0, for Barça.

In the second-half, several Blaugrana attempts merely collided with the Napoli goal's frame, including two big ones from Pedro Rodríguez... and it sent Guardiola's mouth open in disbelief! While errors mounted, it didn't look like Napoli were about to give Barça a chase... although I'm sure they were trying. Nevertheless, Guardiola loaded the deadly Barça gun with his "big bullets". Lionel Messi came on for Cesc Fabregas - to the loud cheers from fans, appreciation for Cesc, excitement for La Pulga's entry. Later, the "High Priest of Midfield", Xavi, came on for Thiago, and the fans went ecstatic! :)

Messi made his presence felt right away with a curved free-kick shot over a five-man wall that was intercepted by De Sanctis... but not to
Messi & Pedro: deadly bullets, thriller when together.safety. The quick-as-a-bullet Pedro caught the rebound and gave it a powerful header to find the back of the goal, redeeming himself beautifully from his previous uncharacteristic misses, 3-0. That was followed quickly by a beautiful Messi-to-Xavi on-the-run pass through heavy traffic going into the Napoli thoroughfare. Xavi, with his usual "20/20 vision" and precision passing, zeroed in and fired to the speeding Pedro on the left wing. Pedro caught the ball beautifully, ran with it fast and pretty before issuing a delectable cross that Messi brought home to an incredible finish, 4-0! Too awesome! Camp Nou went crazy... and so did I!

Not contented with a 4-0 lead, Barça kept going. The last goal was scored by the Camp Nou's "resident genius", Lionel Messi, in keeping with Barça's relentless overachieving attitude - almost to the "embarrasment" of Club President, Sandro Rosell, in deference to the visitors. :) Messi drove home a nice through-ball from Eric Abidal with his fave left kick on a nimble "mini jump" from the left side of the goal through two defenders - too cute, it was a delight to watch! :)

***
What the (exciting) future holds... at least, from one fan's point of view

Hmmm... looks like Barça is "coming together" now for the season. They were totally "in the zone" out there... unlike in both legs of their Supercopa tie with Real Madrid CF in the previous week where they were merely being their natural brilliant selves, but lacking in their usual fantastic rhythm as an extraordinary team on the pitch. But, apparently, that was enough to beat Los Blancos though, even when the Mourinho men brought
Guardiola's vision: "Something new, something old."
This season's Barça is all about "variety" - in attack.their for-desperate-measure "destroyers" game with them! :) I guess I'm just one "very spoiled" Barça fan who has gotten so used to entertaining football to come with brilliant winning everytime the Blaugranas step on the pitch.

What is exciting about Barça's showing today is that the latest line-up (which includes the all-of-a-sudden looking like "all grown-up" Sergi Roberto and Andreu Fontàs from Barça B!), with their solid talents and the flexibility of most to perform well in various roles, will give Pep Guardiola lots of attacking options - hopefully, better than last season, when Pep struggled to fill in injury-induced gaps in his First XI in crucial matches. But Pep's strength as a coach is his being such a visionary playmaker - a natural gift Barça sharpened during Pep's own time as the squad's playmaker and captain. Pep could "tweak" and take advantage of his men's talents by making traditional positions in conventional formation on the pitch as flexible avenues for his men to be creative - and effective, too. Rather than weakening in the face of injury-induced deprivation of his line-up's stalwarts, that approach gave his team the element of surprise that proved hard enough to figure out for most clubs they faced - yes, including Real Madrid! Now, with that strategy and with more capable men in his stable, he could, yet again, revolutionize football - Barça style. So, yeah, lots of reasons to fix my work sked to tolerate "reasonable busyness" only so there'd be "enough time" to enjoy fave hobby - appreciating Barça football! :)

All the best, Pep! All the best, Barça!

Alright, that's all the fun I could have today. Back to work....

***
Photo credits: Photos were grabbed from the Zimbio website - thanks!