The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Five problems a transfer ban causes Barcelona Posted: 02 Apr 2014 09:12 AM PDT Spanish giants Barcelona were hit by a one-year transfer ban from football's governing body FIFA on Wednesday for "serious" breaches of rules in acquiring under-age players. Here, AFP sports looks at what problems the Catalans could face should the sanction be upheld. Can't replace Valdes or Puyol This summer's transfer window was set to the be the most important in Barca's recent history as captain Carles Puyol and veteran goalkeeper Victor Valdes have indicated their intention to leave the club in June. Twenty-one-year-old German international keeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen was on the verge of completing his move from Borussia Monchengladbach to replace Valdes with another three signings planned to boost the depth of the squad ahead of next season. Barca are already short of options at centre-back and the inability to find a successor to Puyol will put enormous pressure on the club's vaunted La Masia academy. Another blow to the club's battered reputation Just a few years ago Barcelona enjoyed worldwide acclaim for their "more than a club" motto as they had UNICEF rather than a commercial sponsor on their shirts and produced one of the best teams the world has ever seen under Pep Guardiola, largely with players from La Masia. However, Guardiola's departure has coincided with a commercial sponsorship agreement with Qatar Airways and the controversial signing of Brazilian star Neymar which led to Sandro Rosell resigning as the club's president and Barca being charged with tax fraud. Camp Nou referendum up in the air The news comes at the worst possible time for Barca's embattled board, led by new president Josep Maria Bartomeu as their proposal for a 600 million euro (RM2.7 billion) refurbishment of the Camp Nou will go to a vote of the club's members on Saturday. It was expected that the referendum could allow the Barca support to voice their displeasure at the board who refused to call new presidential elections despite Rosell's resignation in January. Huge distraction at most important time of the season FIFA's bombshell fell barely 12 hours after Barca had drawn at home to Atletico Madrid in the first-leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday. Gerardo Martino's men also trail leaders Atletico by a point with seven games to go in La Liga and face Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final on April 16. The players and coaching staff must once again block out negative news off the field to concentrate on their fight for titles on three fronts. - Could rob La Masia of future talent Whilst the majority of those who graduate from Barca's academy come from the local Catalan region, Barca have never been adverse to acquiring talent from outwith Spain at a very young age. Most famously of all, four-time World Player of the Year Lionel Messi left his native Argentine to join Barca aged 13. FIFA's clampdown may scare off Barca's future attempts to discover a new Messi. – AFP, April 2, 2014. |
| Berlusconi family could sell 30% stake in AC Milan Posted: 02 Apr 2014 08:59 AM PDT The club's co-chief executive Barbara Berlusconi, a daughter of the media magnate, told a news conference on Wednesday Milan was seeking partners and she would travel to the Middle East and later to the United States as part of the process. Barbara Berlusconi said the family remained committed to AC Milan, seven times European champions, but new minority investors could help the club to fund the building of its own stadium to boost revenue. "We are looking at various solutions for the stadium which would allow us to make a leap forward and compete with the strongest clubs in Europe," she said. Milan currently share the Giuseppe Meazza stadium with local rivals Inter. The stadium, known as the San Siro, is owned by the local authorities and that limits how much both teams can earn from the venue. AC Milan was ranked 10th in the 2012-13 soccer Money League compiled by Deloitte, with revenue of 264 million euros (RM1.2 billion). Rivals Juventus, the Italian champions, have prospered on and off the pitch after moving into a new stadium. Rumours have been circulating for some time that the Berlusconis were seeking to attract new investors to help revive a team that is struggling in mid-table in Serie A. Italian soccer has been hit hard by hooliganism and match-fixing scandals and has not seen the kind of heavy foreign investment that clubs in England and France have enjoyed. However, there are signs that could be changing. Indonesian business tycoon Erick Thohir and partners bought a majority stake in Inter Milan last November in a deal that reportedly valued the club at about 350 million euros (RM1.5 billion). Fellow Italian club AS Roma is controlled by an American investment group. After buying AC Milan, Berlusconi quickly turned them into the top team in Italy and Europe, winning Serie A in 1988 and the European Cup, the forerunner to the Champions League, in the following two seasons. Milan's success helped Berlusconi build his profile and launch into politics in the 1990s with a party with the soccer-inspired name 'Forza Italia' (Go Italy). Milan have not won Serie A since 2011 and have seen some of their best players depart in recent seasons, showing how the balance of financial power in European soccer has swung away from Italy. – Reuters, April 2, 2014. |
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