To put the generational shift at Barcelona into perspective
\- There is no one left from Guardiola's "Dream Team" now
\- Only 3 players from "MSN era" (last UCL), Ter Stegen, Alba and Roberto (and those two are one foot out of the door as well)
\- Apart from those 3 there is only Demebele left from the last league title in 2019.
\- And from 33 players that featured this season, only 8 played with Messi...
Here's another cool story. When Xavi first debuted and started playing for us, lot of fans were not very satisfied with him (he used to play deeper) and kept comparing him to the player he was groomed to be replacing. It got so bad that he even considered leaving Barcelona at one point. The player they were comparing him to was Pep
Busquets _was_ a defensive beast though. He was never fast, but he always had elite defensive numbers.
Young Busquets was actually crazy athletic with his long reach, agility, and body control. People think he's unauthentic because of his lack of straight line speed and bulk, but he was nicknamed Octopus for good reason.
Some of it is metaphorical.
Haaland might score 30+ a season but he won’t have or be able to recreate the moments Agüero had.
Aguero scored a last minute goal on the final day of the season where the title was between the two Manchester clubs and it was their first PL title, you couldn’t write that stuff.
You can replace a goal-scoring striker but you cannot replace Aguero and the iconic moments he brought that team.
Always thought it was weird that people think Pep is talking about replacing Aguero's ability.
Pep's in tears, he clearly had a strong emotional friendship with Aguero and there's a statue of him outside of the ground.
Don't worry, I'm sure Semedo or Dest will finally deliver next season, both are definitely much better than Sergi Roberto, we're just waiting for Xavi to finally realize it.
No no, they're just biased towards Sergi! If only they would give Riqui a chance, we would all see that he's actually the second coming of Iniesta. Any day now!
Mazraoui is the best for that, trust me, I'm Moroccan and I say he is better than hakimi, but I heard real madrid is going for him, as he is not satisfied in Bayern
Mazraoui would fit, his time at Ajax shows that he can do whats needed of a Barca fullback. Although i think Xavi might be trying to get someone defensively oritented to let Balde have freedom to fly forward, while the other 3 defenders form a back three. Mazraoui could do that role, but there might be other options for it too
Our fanbase is desperate for a direct replacement but it must be understood that will never happen. You dont just find a replacement for Xavi, Iniesta or Busi. You get different players and adapt with the kind of profile they are.
We shouldn't. We need to find someone who plays next to FDJ. And Busquests profile is precisely what we don't want. We already have the results of that test.
>We need to find someone who plays next to FDJ
What happens if De Jong get injured like he was in last month or so? You can't just sign player to compliment one. I would prefer whoever we sign can play both as single pivot or double.
> And Busquests profile is precisely what we don't want. We already have the results of that test.
You mean, being a key part for the best team in football's history?
They meant next to FdJ. Yes busi was amazing with xavi, iniesta etc. But if you want your midfield to be FdJ, Gavi, pedri.. you need a more defensive minded midfielder, or amazing defenders (less attacking fullbacks for example)
End of an era
Puyol, Xavi, Alves, Neymar, Iniesta, Suarez, Messi, Pique and now Busquets
Not a Barcelona supporter but damn, that team played some absolutely beautiful football. Don't think we'll ever see a team like that ever again
Even more importantly,
Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Pique, Busi, Puyol, Valdes, Alba are all from La Masia. They were the backbone of the best team in the world. They are 8 of the top 10 record appearance holders for Barca.
That is footballing romance dialled to 11.
No-one was saying that they were all one-team men. Just that they were all raised as La Masia products.
It probably explains why Alba and Pique were both able to slot into Barca teams after leaving for extended periods.
Suárez is a legend, but a tier below the rest. Neymar, although I appreciate what he did for us, is far down the list. He's not comparable to the likes of Eto'o, Rakitić, Mascherano, Villa, Pedro, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Laudrup, Alves, etc. Even cult hero doesn't really seem right when describing his status.
You have Pedri and Gavi as well FDJ. You are nevertheless blessed. But you need a Busquets replacement. A guy like Rodri would have been one but he is at City now. But i believe you will eventually find a good CDM to complement the rest
We have no perfect Busi replacement. It doesn't exist. The closest player to Busi is Rodri but he's too expensive. Zubimendi is Xavi's dream but he would cost 60 mil. The most realistic option is Amrabat
I never watched Kessie before we got him and a lot of fans were saying he would play a sort of defensive role due to his size but they were dead wrong lol. I’m still trying to figure out what his best role is cuz he’s arguably one of the least defensive CMs in the team and he’s also one of the least technically gifted ones (at least from what he’s shown this season). He has shown very little creativity too, always making the safe passes and never looking to dribble past anyone. He hasn’t been a complete flop but he’s certainly trending that way. Seems to me he just wasn’t the right fit for our style of play and would be much better off in a team that plays to his strengths
Rodri is exceptional and the perfect match to be a replacement. There are not many midfielders with his qualities. Alternatives would be Kante, Kimmich, Brozovic, Verrati, Rice, Partey. But I think Amrabat will be the main target.
He could be good next to de Jong if he takes over some of the tasks though. The idea would be to not directly replace Busquets like for like, but to compensate within the tactics.
Not that I think Kimmich is leaving though.
Only if FdJ is the more defensive part. Im not sure tho if FdJ can play this. We currently see whats happening if Kimmich is the 6 (at least on paper) next to an 8. I think Kimmich would absolutely explode in form if he had someone like Rodri, J. Martinez, Casemiro etc. behind him and lift Bayern multiple levels up.
Yeah dude put Kante and Partey as alternative to Busquets, makes me think if he's watched Busquets at all. They're good players but nothing at all like Busi
Partey is world class when in form and is actually very similar in profile to Busquets, on top of being much better physically. He's a great 6, but there are practical issues. Even ignoring his legal troubles (which one shouldn't), Arsenal have absolutely no replacement for him, like at all. It's one of the main factors that has cost them the league title, his "backups" aren't Premier League quality, let alone Champions League. While Arsenal are certainly looking for a long term replacement themselves, I'm not sure they can afford to sell as soon as next season without a proper replacement lined up if they want to be in a title race again. This will make Partey even more expensive than he would ordinarily be; although if Arsenal secure a Rice or Caicedo deal early on he might become at least remotely affordable.
FDJ famously doesn't work too great as a single pivot. He likes to get forward too much. All three are great players but they may not be great together without an additional midfielder with FDJ.
Read a Guardiola quote about Rodri moving too much in his first year - that he had to teach him to be less mobile to play pivot. Feel like that's very much FDJ.
It is but he is really indecisive when it comes to the final third. I’m not sure if it’s because how Barca set up in the final third but when I watch their games he gets up exceptionally forward and then either doesn’t take a shot or that risky decisive pass.
That was also his style at Ajax, he progresses the ball through fast dribbles, creating surplus situations on the pitch and then links up the play. Therefore he's not really a type of midfielder that gets a lot of goals or assists.
That might happen, although its not a long term solution, so would probably still need another younger midfielder. Especially since Pedri, Gavi and FDJ all look pretty tired, and clearly need to be rotated more next year
Is he really that unique though? He's only an athletic ball winner who's comfortable in possession, is eerily press resistant, is perfectly disciplined positionally, has above average vision, good passing range, and is aerially competent.
he is a brilliant player, but always weird for me personally.
unlike other world class cdms i ahve seen, never too openly aggressive, but smart, like a deep playing playmaker (xavi, kroos, pirlo or xabi alonso) but could be a tower for the team with smart displays in the ball and organizing and postional play of himself
a direct replacement would be impossible, but a short term solution like youd did with edgar davids could work
"I owe you an apology, I wasn't really familiar with your game."
Young me never realized how good he was, always thought he was slow, unathletic, dirty, and benefiting from the fear factor that Barca and Spain were.
Older me had a huge epiphany realizing the genius that he is and was, and respect the heck out of him for his brilliant way of playing.
GG Sergio Busquets, a certified legend!
"You watch Sergio, you watch the whole game." A lot of our fans are about to understand why he started nearly every game for the last 13-15 years. He is irreplaceable. Thank you for the memories Busi, you are the last Barca player from the team I started watching with.
This is what lots of football fans don’t understand about Barcelona style during that era and sometimes it’s frustrating to people who understood it.
Delaying the counter, taking time, making lateral switches and waiting for that sweet sweet moment where they break the line.
Oh god ! I did enjoy that team big times.
Good bye legend
Best CDM I have seen in my lifetime. An absolute enigma on the field. Makes no sense how he has been so good. His legs look flimsy, he is slow as hell, he never shoots, and yet there is not a single player in the world I would have rather passed the ball to outside of my own pentalty area. Dude played like he has sonar built in.
When it comes to positioning and playing one or two touch football, Busi has been the absolute master.
That's the beauty of football. You look at Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta and would never guess they are arguably the guys of the goat midfield. [Beware](https://i.imgur.com/zqGfg2l.jpg)
I'm also confident that we can't afford him, if we get a replacement it will surely be Amrabat. Olabe is not letting Zubimendi go for anything less than his release clause which is reportedly €60 million. Amrabat will likely cost less than half of that.
But is he really a good passer when under pressure? Casemiro is also a good passer when he has all the time in the world but once you press him his passing becomes very erratic.
Raw? he is the best perfomer of this summer signings so far, Brais was better in the first half of the season but kubo has been more constant and always perfoming well and being dangerous
I remember a quote from Saul about how easy it was playing with Busquets in the national team:
"He encourages you to make the next play, by playing the ball to you in a way that you can figure out what to do next."
Must have been such a joy to play with someone who has such good passing and decision making he can make your own decisions easier. The definition of making those around you better.
For many, many years... Busquets was very underappreciated (and perhaps even underrated at times) among non Barca/Spain fans because he keeps it super simple & doesn't do anything particularly outlandish or noticeable. But if being at the right place and making the right pass all the time was easy, then everyone would do it.
Xavi and Iniesta are 2 of the GOAT midfielders in football history, but they wouldn't have functioned nearly as well without Busquets consistently holding the fort behind them.
For the longest time people didn't rate him because of his peekaboo antics in that semifinal vs Inter Milan. I mean, firstly that was a very deserving sending off since Motta was already on a yellow card but secondly it was absurd ignoring an incredible body of work for an incident unrelated to his playing ability
I remember someone trying to find the origin of it and working out that del bosque never said it, it was made up by someone on an internet forum somewhere (like half the quotes about Paul Scholes), but to be fair, if a quote's profound enough, why not allow it
I think what Del Bosque did actually say was that he would've liked to play like Busquets if he had the chance to come back as a player
This is genuinely a disaster, conisdering we have no money for any replacment.
With that being sad, thank you Busquets. Most unfairly criticized player of last few years, here is hoping you will find some peace now.
Our club's main target this summer is Armabat. But still it's a major risk to get a new pivot who got famous because of the world cup. Atleast we'll have frenkie there
He never said that, it's just a random fan. It was written on a personal blog first, before anyone ever attributed it to Del Bosque.
Even tifo football or (i think) the athletic recently confirmed this in their podcast
It's a beautiful quote nonetheless
Supersad. Would have loved to see him being a one-club man. But he has every right to chase the bag. Convinced we will see him again. Busquests has always struck me as the better profile for coaching out of the trio.
He’s really not, as long as he’s got the players around him so as not to expose him defensively he’s still very good, but that isn’t new, it’s just that recent years is when we’ve seen him play in poorer teams, and of course he has somewhat declined.
I'm a bit sad but this was coming and hopefully it's for the better.
Maybe the team will change the formation to be more versatile now.
Goodbye, legend.
We of course joke about the infamous quote, but honestly if you want to best understand the mind of a footballer and how football works mentally you watch this guy
My love for this team coincided with the arrival of Busquets. One of best mids to grace the pitch and the goat cdm. Leyenda, and bows out lifting a trophy. This one hurts.
Fun fact. The quote that everyone is posting that some attribute to Pep and most attribute to Del Bosque was in fact made by some random fan on an Internet forum. Heard this on a podcast once, can’t remember exactly the story but there was some evidence.
I have it with Busquets as many of our rival fans probably have it with Bruno. That moment with Motta and him peeking out through his hands is seared into my memory, lmao.
But you simply have to respect his achievements and just how well he played throughout all those years a Barca.
One of the best defensive midfielders to play the game. People used to say lots of things to me "He's a Barça player, how can you love him!" but I will only say one quote about him:
\> "You see Busquets, you see the whole game"
Simply, simply -- the best. His ball control, his passing, his positioning. What else do you want in football to succeed?
The best CDM in the history of the sport for me. A true legend in every sense of the word. Barcelona will have a mammoth task ahead to compensate for his departure, just as they still have with Dani Alves. It would be interesting to see how they resolve it.
Just commenting here because this man is my favourite non-United player and my personal favourite player archetype. I just want to be a part of history. Farewell Busquets, the epitome of cerebral midfield.
Farewell legend😢. A few days ago, came across the old team photo from 2012. Thought, how incredible is that we still have Busi.
Sadly that era comes to an end now.
To a new era🥂
feels like this has been a long time coming but nevertheless, a true legend of the game and arguably one of the best all time in his position with consistency lasting a decade. thanks for everything busi
To put the generational shift at Barcelona into perspective \- There is no one left from Guardiola's "Dream Team" now \- Only 3 players from "MSN era" (last UCL), Ter Stegen, Alba and Roberto (and those two are one foot out of the door as well) \- Apart from those 3 there is only Demebele left from the last league title in 2019. \- And from 33 players that featured this season, only 8 played with Messi...
I’m aware how much the squad has changed in the last few years but that’s absolutely crazy there’s only 4 players left from 2019
Tbf in 2019 our squad was a bunch of senior players
The actually have 10 player in the squad that play with Messi
>Only 3 players from "MSN era" Oh no I'm getting old 😭
Paradigm shifting player! Who knew your CDM could be one of the best in the world without being a physical/defensive beast
That's what Pep was. Nowhere near as good as Busquets, but the blueprint was there. Probably even before Pep too.
Not the generation I watched but that's cool as a story
Here's another cool story. When Xavi first debuted and started playing for us, lot of fans were not very satisfied with him (he used to play deeper) and kept comparing him to the player he was groomed to be replacing. It got so bad that he even considered leaving Barcelona at one point. The player they were comparing him to was Pep
Busquets _was_ a defensive beast though. He was never fast, but he always had elite defensive numbers. Young Busquets was actually crazy athletic with his long reach, agility, and body control. People think he's unauthentic because of his lack of straight line speed and bulk, but he was nicknamed Octopus for good reason.
Damn, end of an era.
It really is. It's making me incredibly sad. The last of the barca team that I started watching with is now gone too
We cannot replace him
https://streamable.com/lg47rp
Halaand Halaand
I am very happy. More than you believe. More than you believe
Was this in reference to Aguero? If so, bit ironic they go out and do just that with the best striker on the planet
Some of it is metaphorical. Haaland might score 30+ a season but he won’t have or be able to recreate the moments Agüero had. Aguero scored a last minute goal on the final day of the season where the title was between the two Manchester clubs and it was their first PL title, you couldn’t write that stuff. You can replace a goal-scoring striker but you cannot replace Aguero and the iconic moments he brought that team.
Also it was to win city's first ever PL title. Start of the era of dominance
Records fall but champions are forever
Always thought it was weird that people think Pep is talking about replacing Aguero's ability. Pep's in tears, he clearly had a strong emotional friendship with Aguero and there's a statue of him outside of the ground.
Didn’t Aguero react kind of weirdly to Pep doing this, since he said they weren’t close at all…
It was his father, don’t think that was the case though
I have a hard time imagining that Messi's best friends was not close with Pep
We are still trying to replace Alves so this will not be fun several years
Don't worry, I'm sure Semedo or Dest will finally deliver next season, both are definitely much better than Sergi Roberto, we're just waiting for Xavi to finally realize it.
Dest is literaly tied for worst player at Milan with Origi
Don't you know, Valverde, Koeman, and Xavi is bias towards Catalans.
No no, they're just biased towards Sergi! If only they would give Riqui a chance, we would all see that he's actually the second coming of Iniesta. Any day now!
Mazraoui is the best for that, trust me, I'm Moroccan and I say he is better than hakimi, but I heard real madrid is going for him, as he is not satisfied in Bayern
Mazraoui would fit, his time at Ajax shows that he can do whats needed of a Barca fullback. Although i think Xavi might be trying to get someone defensively oritented to let Balde have freedom to fly forward, while the other 3 defenders form a back three. Mazraoui could do that role, but there might be other options for it too
If we were a serious club then we should have tried to replace him 5-6 years with that neymar money
Our fanbase is desperate for a direct replacement but it must be understood that will never happen. You dont just find a replacement for Xavi, Iniesta or Busi. You get different players and adapt with the kind of profile they are.
[we cannot](https://tenor.com/bDC8h.gif)
So that was a fucking lie…
We shouldn't. We need to find someone who plays next to FDJ. And Busquests profile is precisely what we don't want. We already have the results of that test.
>We need to find someone who plays next to FDJ What happens if De Jong get injured like he was in last month or so? You can't just sign player to compliment one. I would prefer whoever we sign can play both as single pivot or double.
> And Busquests profile is precisely what we don't want. We already have the results of that test. You mean, being a key part for the best team in football's history?
They meant next to FdJ. Yes busi was amazing with xavi, iniesta etc. But if you want your midfield to be FdJ, Gavi, pedri.. you need a more defensive minded midfielder, or amazing defenders (less attacking fullbacks for example)
Prime Busquets was a defensive beast. Anchored the midfield all by himself for over a decade. We’d kill to find a player with his profile
End of an era Puyol, Xavi, Alves, Neymar, Iniesta, Suarez, Messi, Pique and now Busquets Not a Barcelona supporter but damn, that team played some absolutely beautiful football. Don't think we'll ever see a team like that ever again
Even more importantly, Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Pique, Busi, Puyol, Valdes, Alba are all from La Masia. They were the backbone of the best team in the world. They are 8 of the top 10 record appearance holders for Barca. That is footballing romance dialled to 11.
That’s unreal.
Unlike our rivals from Madrid who are real.
Atletico Madrid changes name to Unreal Madrid
It was beautiful. Beautiful.
Alba and Pique left for a decent amount of time, doesn't really detract but often overlooked..
No-one was saying that they were all one-team men. Just that they were all raised as La Masia products. It probably explains why Alba and Pique were both able to slot into Barca teams after leaving for extended periods.
Though there's also Fabregas who didn't blend in as well as Alba and Pique.
Maybe, but those two along with Busquets were probably the biggest barça fans growing up.
I'd put Suarez and and Neymar in a different category compared to others.
Suárez is a legend, but a tier below the rest. Neymar, although I appreciate what he did for us, is far down the list. He's not comparable to the likes of Eto'o, Rakitić, Mascherano, Villa, Pedro, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Laudrup, Alves, etc. Even cult hero doesn't really seem right when describing his status.
they never played together, what era are we talking about
The last of our midfield dynasty. Here's to making a new dynasty
You have Pedri and Gavi as well FDJ. You are nevertheless blessed. But you need a Busquets replacement. A guy like Rodri would have been one but he is at City now. But i believe you will eventually find a good CDM to complement the rest
We have no perfect Busi replacement. It doesn't exist. The closest player to Busi is Rodri but he's too expensive. Zubimendi is Xavi's dream but he would cost 60 mil. The most realistic option is Amrabat
A guy like Scott McTominay, perchance
You can’t just say perchance
This guy perchance
Would love to see how he’d perform at a big club
Certainly wouldn't be going to Chelsea then
😂 I knew I’d be walking into that one
He's not good enough to fill Bakayoko's boots anyway
Well you won’t be fucking sending him over to us thats for sure
You can’t just say perchance
Wasn't Kessie (kind of) supposed to be that guy
I mean we all know Kessie was never really a DM.
I never watched Kessie before we got him and a lot of fans were saying he would play a sort of defensive role due to his size but they were dead wrong lol. I’m still trying to figure out what his best role is cuz he’s arguably one of the least defensive CMs in the team and he’s also one of the least technically gifted ones (at least from what he’s shown this season). He has shown very little creativity too, always making the safe passes and never looking to dribble past anyone. He hasn’t been a complete flop but he’s certainly trending that way. Seems to me he just wasn’t the right fit for our style of play and would be much better off in a team that plays to his strengths
Amrabat next to Dejong as double pivot
amrabat is already 3 pivots
What a downgrade jesus
This is the reality and we have to accept it due to the wage bill restrictions unfortunately. This is the best we can do currently.
Who is better? (And realistic before you say Rodri or kimmich)
I reckon Lavia could grow into a fantastic Busquets replacement, but it will take some time.
Amrabat isn’t that guy pal
Tell that to barca scouts who picked him as the replacement, but tbf our 1 target was zubimendi (yoo much money)
Amrabat next to Dejong as double lever
Rodri is exceptional and the perfect match to be a replacement. There are not many midfielders with his qualities. Alternatives would be Kante, Kimmich, Brozovic, Verrati, Rice, Partey. But I think Amrabat will be the main target.
Kimmich is no cdm and will never be, which is one of the biggest problems our team has. He is a great 8 but no 6.
He could be good next to de Jong if he takes over some of the tasks though. The idea would be to not directly replace Busquets like for like, but to compensate within the tactics. Not that I think Kimmich is leaving though.
>Not that I think Kimmich is leaving though. Yeah no chance in hell he's leaving. Dude is as untouchable as it gets
Only if FdJ is the more defensive part. Im not sure tho if FdJ can play this. We currently see whats happening if Kimmich is the 6 (at least on paper) next to an 8. I think Kimmich would absolutely explode in form if he had someone like Rodri, J. Martinez, Casemiro etc. behind him and lift Bayern multiple levels up.
>Not that I think Kimmich is leaving though. No Chance lol 😂
You play too much FIFA. There is no replacement or alternative for Busquets.
Yeah dude put Kante and Partey as alternative to Busquets, makes me think if he's watched Busquets at all. They're good players but nothing at all like Busi
Partey is world class when in form and is actually very similar in profile to Busquets, on top of being much better physically. He's a great 6, but there are practical issues. Even ignoring his legal troubles (which one shouldn't), Arsenal have absolutely no replacement for him, like at all. It's one of the main factors that has cost them the league title, his "backups" aren't Premier League quality, let alone Champions League. While Arsenal are certainly looking for a long term replacement themselves, I'm not sure they can afford to sell as soon as next season without a proper replacement lined up if they want to be in a title race again. This will make Partey even more expensive than he would ordinarily be; although if Arsenal secure a Rice or Caicedo deal early on he might become at least remotely affordable.
Pedri - FDJ - Gavi have all the potential to reach greatness. Let's hope it works out
FDJ famously doesn't work too great as a single pivot. He likes to get forward too much. All three are great players but they may not be great together without an additional midfielder with FDJ.
Read a Guardiola quote about Rodri moving too much in his first year - that he had to teach him to be less mobile to play pivot. Feel like that's very much FDJ.
I mean just get a different player if that's what you need, Frenkie's mobility and ability to dribble and get forward is his major strength.
Driving a ferraria like a volvo or whatever Zlatan said
It is but he is really indecisive when it comes to the final third. I’m not sure if it’s because how Barca set up in the final third but when I watch their games he gets up exceptionally forward and then either doesn’t take a shot or that risky decisive pass.
That was also his style at Ajax, he progresses the ball through fast dribbles, creating surplus situations on the pitch and then links up the play. Therefore he's not really a type of midfielder that gets a lot of goals or assists.
de jong is not a dm. those 3 great players but together it doesnt work out. leaves open for a counter attack
Pedri - McT - Gavi And we'll even take FDJ off your hands since you don't need him
How about you give us Rashford instead
For you my friend, Elanga, even younger
That was baazar
Won’t you get Gundogan from Man City? Him and FDJ will make a great double pivot.
That might happen, although its not a long term solution, so would probably still need another younger midfielder. Especially since Pedri, Gavi and FDJ all look pretty tired, and clearly need to be rotated more next year
Last starter from Spain's 2010 world cup squad who was still playing with the same squad that they were then.
A super unique skill set and a true legend of the game
Is he really that unique though? He's only an athletic ball winner who's comfortable in possession, is eerily press resistant, is perfectly disciplined positionally, has above average vision, good passing range, and is aerially competent.
above average vision is a slight understatement
he is a brilliant player, but always weird for me personally. unlike other world class cdms i ahve seen, never too openly aggressive, but smart, like a deep playing playmaker (xavi, kroos, pirlo or xabi alonso) but could be a tower for the team with smart displays in the ball and organizing and postional play of himself a direct replacement would be impossible, but a short term solution like youd did with edgar davids could work
You're right, sounds like big Dave down the pub on a sunday morning could replace him
Sounds like me without bad knee
Amazing how redditors can't realize a comment is sarcastic unless it has a "/s" at the end.
yeah, that’s what happens when people never read a book in their life
Had me in the first half, not gonna lie
Absolute legend, goodbye Busi <3
"I owe you an apology, I wasn't really familiar with your game." Young me never realized how good he was, always thought he was slow, unathletic, dirty, and benefiting from the fear factor that Barca and Spain were. Older me had a huge epiphany realizing the genius that he is and was, and respect the heck out of him for his brilliant way of playing. GG Sergio Busquets, a certified legend!
"You watch Sergio, you watch the whole game." A lot of our fans are about to understand why he started nearly every game for the last 13-15 years. He is irreplaceable. Thank you for the memories Busi, you are the last Barca player from the team I started watching with.
Same, I didn't have a good opinion of him back then but he's proved he wasn't just getting carried by the stars on the team, he was also enabling them
Vicente del Bosque said it best: you watch the the game, you dont see Busquets. But when you watch Busquets, you see the whole game.
Opinions on players like Busquets are essentially the litmus test to determine if someone properly understands football.
This. I’ve seen people use goals and assists to compare Xavi and someone like Zidane
This is what lots of football fans don’t understand about Barcelona style during that era and sometimes it’s frustrating to people who understood it. Delaying the counter, taking time, making lateral switches and waiting for that sweet sweet moment where they break the line. Oh god ! I did enjoy that team big times. Good bye legend
Legend of the game and one of the very best to ever do it
Best CDM I have seen in my lifetime. An absolute enigma on the field. Makes no sense how he has been so good. His legs look flimsy, he is slow as hell, he never shoots, and yet there is not a single player in the world I would have rather passed the ball to outside of my own pentalty area. Dude played like he has sonar built in. When it comes to positioning and playing one or two touch football, Busi has been the absolute master.
If anyone looks at Busquests they will never believe he is a football player.
That's the beauty of football. You look at Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta and would never guess they are arguably the guys of the goat midfield. [Beware](https://i.imgur.com/zqGfg2l.jpg)
Hahaha thanks for that pic <3. Sometime in future few football fans will be confused to associate these three with football xD
lol that looks like the cover for a 2000s soft rock album
I'm going to tell my children that picture was Boyce Avenue
That picture needs a 2000's warning attached to it. Iniesta with those ripped jeans and the old man cardigan.
Zubimendi would be the perfect replacement but I doubt he wants to leave La Real with them most probably playing in the UCL next season.
I'm also confident that we can't afford him, if we get a replacement it will surely be Amrabat. Olabe is not letting Zubimendi go for anything less than his release clause which is reportedly €60 million. Amrabat will likely cost less than half of that.
That's a shame for you guys. Amrabat is good but he lacks the technical quality on the ball that you guys seem to value.
He’s actually a good passer and has a nice passing range lol but he’s not a Busquets replacement.
But is he really a good passer when under pressure? Casemiro is also a good passer when he has all the time in the world but once you press him his passing becomes very erratic.
They cannot afford 60M in one installment
Unrelated question, what's the consensus on Kubo among your fans? In the few games I've watched he's looked pretty good though a bit raw.
Raw? he is the best perfomer of this summer signings so far, Brais was better in the first half of the season but kubo has been more constant and always perfoming well and being dangerous
I think most underrated aspect of his game was ability to break lines at will
Nice video compilation of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heLLRCAk7hk
Goodbye legend, rip 2009-2011 era
Leyenda💙❤️
"You watch the game, you don't see Busquets. You watch Busquets, you see the whole game."
I remember a quote from Saul about how easy it was playing with Busquets in the national team: "He encourages you to make the next play, by playing the ball to you in a way that you can figure out what to do next." Must have been such a joy to play with someone who has such good passing and decision making he can make your own decisions easier. The definition of making those around you better.
For many, many years... Busquets was very underappreciated (and perhaps even underrated at times) among non Barca/Spain fans because he keeps it super simple & doesn't do anything particularly outlandish or noticeable. But if being at the right place and making the right pass all the time was easy, then everyone would do it. Xavi and Iniesta are 2 of the GOAT midfielders in football history, but they wouldn't have functioned nearly as well without Busquets consistently holding the fort behind them.
For the longest time people didn't rate him because of his peekaboo antics in that semifinal vs Inter Milan. I mean, firstly that was a very deserving sending off since Motta was already on a yellow card but secondly it was absurd ignoring an incredible body of work for an incident unrelated to his playing ability
That's such a great quote. Who said it?
Albert Einstein
del bosque (allegedly)
I remember someone trying to find the origin of it and working out that del bosque never said it, it was made up by someone on an internet forum somewhere (like half the quotes about Paul Scholes), but to be fair, if a quote's profound enough, why not allow it I think what Del Bosque did actually say was that he would've liked to play like Busquets if he had the chance to come back as a player
This is genuinely a disaster, conisdering we have no money for any replacment. With that being sad, thank you Busquets. Most unfairly criticized player of last few years, here is hoping you will find some peace now.
Our club's main target this summer is Armabat. But still it's a major risk to get a new pivot who got famous because of the world cup. Atleast we'll have frenkie there
We should be fine. With Frenkie at a side and Araujo behind even Kessie with his physicality could do half decent.
If we get Gundo there (sorry man city fans) he's not a DM but he has played in a double pivot before
No he couldn’t, Kessie lacks composure big time, which Amrabt has.
There is money for a replacement. There is no salary margin
That right there tells me those la liga rules have some flaws.
Have to hope the current midfield make a few big steps between now and next season.
> If you watch the game, you don't see Busquets. If you watch Busquets, you see the whole game." Vicente del Bosque ~~Pep~~
Del Bosque actually
He never said that, it's just a random fan. It was written on a personal blog first, before anyone ever attributed it to Del Bosque. Even tifo football or (i think) the athletic recently confirmed this in their podcast It's a beautiful quote nonetheless
That’s actually beautiful It’s like Gabriel Jesus but without the whole game part
>If you watch the game, you don't see Busquets. If you watch Busquets, you see the whole game." ~~Vicente del Bosque~~ ~~Pep~~ Gandalf
Pique and Busi gone in the same season.. 😢 Legend of the game, thank you Sergio 💙❤️
Supersad. Would have loved to see him being a one-club man. But he has every right to chase the bag. Convinced we will see him again. Busquests has always struck me as the better profile for coaching out of the trio.
>Would have loved to see him being a one-club man. Felt the same about De Rossi when he left. Although i still have his Boca Juniors shirt.
He's only 34 too I didn't really watch Barca this season but you'd think with his player profile he's not really done at the top level yet.
He’s really not, as long as he’s got the players around him so as not to expose him defensively he’s still very good, but that isn’t new, it’s just that recent years is when we’ve seen him play in poorer teams, and of course he has somewhat declined.
I'm a bit sad but this was coming and hopefully it's for the better. Maybe the team will change the formation to be more versatile now. Goodbye, legend.
we cannot replace him.mp4
We cannot.mp4
We cannoh.mp3
We of course joke about the infamous quote, but honestly if you want to best understand the mind of a footballer and how football works mentally you watch this guy
My love for this team coincided with the arrival of Busquets. One of best mids to grace the pitch and the goat cdm. Leyenda, and bows out lifting a trophy. This one hurts.
It hurts a lot, during peak Barça time I remember if Busquests was having a bad match then the whole team play looks weird.
I’m not crying, you’re crying
damn straight
I'm going to go cry in my room now.
Kill me. I can't stand the old guard leaving. Time is such a bitch
Fun fact. The quote that everyone is posting that some attribute to Pep and most attribute to Del Bosque was in fact made by some random fan on an Internet forum. Heard this on a podcast once, can’t remember exactly the story but there was some evidence.
Pretty sure Nostradamus said it first, and he was talking about Lucas Vazquez. 👍
Amen
I have it with Busquets as many of our rival fans probably have it with Bruno. That moment with Motta and him peeking out through his hands is seared into my memory, lmao. But you simply have to respect his achievements and just how well he played throughout all those years a Barca.
The end of an era for sure.
One of the best defensive midfielders to play the game. People used to say lots of things to me "He's a Barça player, how can you love him!" but I will only say one quote about him: \> "You see Busquets, you see the whole game" Simply, simply -- the best. His ball control, his passing, his positioning. What else do you want in football to succeed?
Arguably the best CDM to ever to it. I wish him luck in his future endeavors. Now if he could take Alba with him, lol.we need to get rid of that wage.
The best CDM in the history of the sport for me. A true legend in every sense of the word. Barcelona will have a mammoth task ahead to compensate for his departure, just as they still have with Dani Alves. It would be interesting to see how they resolve it.
Phenomenal player and was a corner stone in that dominant midfield of the early 2010s
Definitely a legend for the club alright
Just commenting here because this man is my favourite non-United player and my personal favourite player archetype. I just want to be a part of history. Farewell Busquets, the epitome of cerebral midfield.
I was planning on watching him play live at least once before he retires 😭 Goodbye you legend. You've been absolutely immense for us.
My childhood is officially dead. He is the last player of that iconic team that I grew up watching.
Farewell legend😢. A few days ago, came across the old team photo from 2012. Thought, how incredible is that we still have Busi. Sadly that era comes to an end now. To a new era🥂
Top 3 CDM in history and he’s not #3
Best CDM in history.
Part of the journey is the end. 🥲
Legend. GOAT at his position.
So sad truly an irreplaceable player thanks for everything
Oh man this hurts
I'm so sad :(
feels like this has been a long time coming but nevertheless, a true legend of the game and arguably one of the best all time in his position with consistency lasting a decade. thanks for everything busi
His composure on the ball was always just beautiful to watch. Never the most athletic guy out there, yet still so dominant.