Pep Guardiola: Another Way of Winning: The Biography (49 page)
Read Pep Guardiola: Another Way of Winning: The Biography Online
Authors: Guillem Balague
2011–12 Season: Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup, World Club Championship, Copa del Rey
Guardiola’s last season at the helm of Barcelona was full of incidents. President Sandro Rosell and Pep himself talked of it having been a ‘very strange
season’ suggesting dubious referee decisions. The team was handicapped by the serious injuries to David Villa, Abidal and Fontàs. Even so, Barça won the Spanish and European
Super Cups, their second World Club Championship, and the Copa del Rey, and they made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League. Highlights included Messi’s third Ballon d’Or
together with the greatest Pichichi ever with 50 Liga goals and 73 in all competitions, as well as the Golden Boot and a fifth Zamora Trophy for Víctor Valdés.
Total games played:
70 (Pre-season 6, Gamper 1, Spanish Super Cup 2, European Super Cup 1, World Club Championship 2, Liga 38,
Copa 9, Champions League 12)
Total games won:
49 (Pre-season 2, Gamper 1, Spanish Super Cup 1, European Super Cup 1, World Club Championship 2, Liga 28, Copa
6, Champions League 8)
Total games drawn:
15 (Pre-season 2, Gamper 0, Spanish Super Cup 1, European Super Cup 0, World Club Championship 0, Liga 7, Copa
2, Champions League 3)
Total games lost:
6 (Pre-season 2, Gamper 0, Spanish Super Cup 0, European Super Cup 0, World Club Championship 0, Liga 3, Copa
0, Champions League 1)
Total goals scored:
202 (Pre-season 8, Gamper 5, Spanish Super Cup 5, European Super Cup 2, World Club Championship 8, Liga 114,
Copa 25, Champions League 35)
Total goals conceded:
57 (Pre-season 8, Gamper 0, Spanish Super Cup 4, European Super Cup 0, World Club Championship 0, Liga 29,
Copa 6, Champions League 10)
Titles:
4 (Liga, Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup, Copa del Rey)
Individual awards:
Zamora Trophy, Víctor Valdés; Ballon d’Or, Pichichi and Golden Boot, Leo Messi
2008–12
Total games played:
255
Total games won:
194
Total games drawn:
52
Total games lost:
24
Total goals scored:
723
Total goals conceded:
212
Titles:
14 (3 Liga, 2 Champions League, 2 Copa del Rey, 3 Spanish Super Cup, 2 European Super Cup, 2 World Club
Championships)
Individual awards:
3 Ballon d’Or (Messi), 1 FIFA World Player (Messi), 2 Pichichis (Messi), 2 Golden Boot (Messi), 4 Zamora
Trophies (Víctor Valdés)
This book comes on the back of conversations held in the last four years with Pep Guardiola, Johan Cruyff, Joan Laporta, Sandro Rosell, Andoni Zubizarreta, Xavi
Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, Víctor Valdés, Javier Mascherano, Lionel Messi, David Villa, Cesc Fàbregas, Pedro, Carles Puyol, Gerard Piqué, Manel Estiarte,
Emili Ricart, Oscar García, Michael Laudrup, Joan Patsy, Txiki Beguiristain, Albert Ferrer, José Mourinho, and Louis Van Gaal, among others, who are or have been at FC Barcelona.
I have to thank Pep Guardiola for his time but also for having sent an email to Sir Alex Ferguson, which then became a trip to Manchester to talk to him. Apologies to Màrius for taking
time from your dad.
If it wasn’t for the trust of my agent David Luxton and Alan Sampson at Orion, this would have never seen the light of day. Sorry for the delay again! Thanks to Lucinda McNeile for her
patience, too.
During the years, I have chatted about Pep (and much more) with good football friends that I want to send a paper hug from here: Vicente del Bosque, Rafa Benítez, Mauricio Pochettino,
Ramón Planes, Pep Segura, Pako Ayestarán, Paco Herrera, José Manuel Ochotorena, Arrigo Sacchi, Brendan Rodgers, Fabio Capello, Graham Hunter, Juan Ignacio Martínez, Unai
Emery, André Villas-Boas, Gary Neville, Wayne Rooney, Michael Robinson, Alfredo Relaño, Santi Giménez, Michel Salgado, Marcos López, Joan Domenech, David Torras, Johanna
Gará, Paul Jewell, David Trueba, Sique Rodríguez, Johan Cruyff, Alex Castells, Juan Carlos Garrido, Borja Valero, Mikel Arteta …
The extraordinary hard work of Lee Watson and Elizabeth Duffy in editing this book is clearly reflected in it. Isabel Díaz was always
at hand for help, so thank you!
Brent Wilks looked after everybody while we rushed to get it all finished. And Jacquie Feeley injected enough confidence and energy into everybody to get to the end. Thanks to Kevin for looking
after her while she sorted out so many worlds. William Glasswell offered new eyes to the project and now he is a mad football fan.
There are some good friends who deserve much more than a word, but at least a word they will get for sure. Luis Miguel García who always opens my eyes, Gabriele Marcotti and our
arguments, Raphael Honigstein and Carlos Bianchi, Sergio Alegre who will always wear a six with Barcelona and an eight with the national team, Mark Wright who is not always right, Chus Llorente and
vodka Chopin, Gustavo Balagué and
culé
, Yolanda Balagué and new-born
culé
, Chris Parle and shopping, Stevie Rowe who heard so many Pep stories, Scott
Minto who hasn’t got bored of them yet, Mark Payne who doesn’t believe all of them, Damian O’Brian and DVDS, the Revista de la Liga team for their love and passion about Spanish
football, Andy Melvin, Barney Francis and Vic Wakeling for allowing me to blossom in Sky Sports, Peter Bennett and a window on the proper world, Edu Abascal for looking after
AS
while I
finished this, Eduardo Rubio the coach, Gerard Nus and his lessons, Encarna Martínez and Sonia Moreno, who shared wines and stories, and I owe a beer or two to Sam Delaney and Jason
Cundy.
Thank you, also, to Miguel Ruiz, whose fantastic photographs add a new dimension to the book.
And final thanks to my parents, who will always read every book I write in English even though they don’t speak the language.
Abbiati, Christian,
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Abidal, Eric,
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health problems,
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v Manchester United,
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AC Milan,
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approach to Guardiola,
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Adriano,
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Agnelli, Umberto,
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AIDS,
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Ajax,
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Alcantara, Thiago,
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Alexanko, José Ramón,
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Alexis (Alexis Sánchez),
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Alfonso,
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Altimira, Aureli,
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Alvés, Dani,
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Clásicos,
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v Manchester United,
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marital problems,
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Alvés, Diego,
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Amor, Guillermo,
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Ancelotti, Carlo,
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Anderson,
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Andes Tragedy,
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Anelka, Nicolas,
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Argentinian football,
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Arsenal FC,
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Fàbregas transfer,
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London Colney ground,
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Arteta, Mikel,
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AS Roma,
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Assulin, Gai,
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Athletic de Bilbao,
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Atlético de Madrid,
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Audi cars,
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Baggio, Roberto,
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Bakero, José Mari,
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Ballon d’Or,
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Barcelona Olympic Games,
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Barclay, Patrick,
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Barjuan, Sergi,
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Bartomeu, Josep Maria,
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Bassat, Lluis,
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Batistuta, Gabriel,
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Beckham, David,
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Beguiristain, Txiki,
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and Chelsea approach to Guardiola,
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and Fàbregas transfer,
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and Guardiola’s appointment,
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and Guardiola’s first matches,
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and Ronaldhino departure,
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Beijing Olympic Games,
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Belletti, Juliano,
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Benítez, Rafa,
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Berlusconi, Silvio,
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Besa, Ramón,
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Bielsa, Marcelo,
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Blackpool FC,
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Bogarde, Winston,
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Bojan (Bojan Krki
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),
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Borrell, Rodolf,
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Bozsik, József,
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Brau, Juanjo,
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Brescia,
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Bridges of Madison County, The
,
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Buckingham, Vic,
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Budapest Honved,
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Buenaventura, Loren,
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Buffon, Gianluigi,
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Bullard, Jimmy,
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Busquets, Carles,
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and Guardiola’s departure,
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and Guardiola’s first matches,
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v Manchester United,
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Messi’s appreication of,
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Cáceres, Martín,
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Cagigao, Francis,
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Cahill, Gary,
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Camacho, José Antonio,
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Caniggia, Claudio,
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Cannavaro, Fabio,
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Capello, Fabio,
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Casillas, Iker,
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Catalan character,
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Catalan identity,
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Catalan language,
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Catalan media,
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Č
ech, Petr,
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Celades, Albert,
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Celtic FC,
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Champions League final (2009),
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Champions League final (2011),
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Chelsea FC,
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approach to Guardiola,
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v Barcelona (2009),
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v Barcelona (2012),
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under Mourinho,
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Chicharito (Javier Hernández Balcázar),
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Chico (José Manuel Flores),
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Chygrynskiy, Dmytro,
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Chivu, Cristian,
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Clásicos (2009),
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Clásicos (2011–12),
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Club Gimnàstic de Manresa,
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Córdoba, Iván,
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Croatia,
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Crosas, Marc,
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Cruyff, Johan,
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Barcelona coach,
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and Barcelona elections,
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and Barcelona philosophy,
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calls up Guardiola,
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coaching style,
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distanced from Guardiola,
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and Guardiola’s appointment,
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and Guardiola’s departure,
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and Guardiola’s tenure,
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influence on Guardiola,
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meeting with Guardiola,
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returns medal,
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and Total Football,
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Cruyff, Jordi,
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Cuenca,
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Cultural Leonesa,
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da Silva, Fábio,
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da Silva, Rafael,
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de la Peña, Ivan,
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Deco,
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departure,
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del Bosque, Vicente,
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Deportivo La Coruña,
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Deschamps, Didier,
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Di María, Angel,
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di Matteo, Roberto,
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Di Stéfano, Alfredo,
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diet, players’,
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Djorkaeff, Youri,
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Doradas de Sinaloa,
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Drenthe, Royston,
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Drogba, Didier,
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Dyer, Nathan,
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Dynamo Bucharest,
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Einstein, Albert,
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El Mundo Deportivo
,
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El País
,
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El Periódico
,
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el Bulli restaurant,
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Emenalo, Michael,
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Emerson,
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Enrique, Luis,
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Espanyol,
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Estiarte, Manel,
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and Champions League finals,
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and Clásicos,
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and doping accusations,
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and Guardiola’s methods,
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and team talks,
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Estudiantes de la Plata,
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Eto’o, Samuel,
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departure,
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goals scored,
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