Winston’s Woeful Era Is Over.

The era of Jameis Winston is over in Tampa. Once hailed as the savior of the Buccaneers franchise, he is now off to be a backup with a divisional rival, the New Orleans Saints. Watching quarterbacks depart this team after being drafted as the quarterback of the future is something that we have grown accustomed to in Tampa. So, after five seasons, we say farewell to the inconsistent but enthralling Jameis Winston.

Since 1976, the Bucs have drafted Doug Williams, Vinny Testaverde, Trent Dilfer, and Josh Freeman in the first round of the NFL Draft, and Steve Young was the overall first pick during 1984 NFL Supplemental Draft of USFL and CFL players. Winston joined that exclusive group of quarterbacks five years ago and expectations were high after helping guide Florida State to their third national title. Hopes were high that Winston could make the team competitive and successful as it was during Doug William’s era. But alas, Winston joined the likes of Vinny Testaverde, Trent Dilfer, Josh Freeman and Steve Young in not being the long-term solution thanks to his numerous turnovers and his costly poor decision making that resulted in zero playoff appearances and just one winning season.

Winston leaves the Bucs as their all-time passing leader with 121 Touchdowns and 19,737 passing yards that included throwing for over 5,000 yards with 30 Touchdowns and 30 interceptions in his final season. Without a doubt, Jameis Winston is a great talent, but he has also shown that he is not a great player. Perhaps joining the Saints will help him improve as a quarterback with the likes of Sean Payton and Drew Brees mentoring him, but he is no longer our concern in Tampa Bay.

Perhaps Winston’s career would have turned out differently if he had been drafted by another team coached by someone such as Andy Reid or by a successful team that wouldn’t expect Winston to carry the burden all on his own. Former NBA player Jalen Rose discussed in his autobiography the role of luck and fate regarding a professional athlete’s chances in the NBA. In his own words, Rose stated that “Get put in the right situation, with the right coaching and support around you, and it can do unspoken wonders for your career.”

Jalen Rose’s statement is true in any sport. Steve Young was a disaster with the Bucs but became an NFL great after joining the 49’ers under the tutelage of the genius Bill Walsh. Would Tom Brady have been as successful if he was drafted by the Chicago Bears instead of the Patriots or would Michael Jordan be the great one had he not had Phil Jackson as his coach or was drafted by the Clippers instead of the Bulls? Joe Montana was a third-round pick and had Bill Walsh as his coach and the rest is history.

Winston’s departure is rather unfortunate because Bucs fans are tired of disappointments and embracing yet another new project. Fortunately, the arrival of Tom Brady immediately made Bucs fans overjoyed and thinking ahead to a positive future, once the COVID-19 pandemic issues have been resolved of course. As for Winston, time will tell if he improves as a quarterback following his stint with the Saints or will he forever be classified as a great talent that could never become a great player.

My Favorite Football Podcasts.

A few months ago, I moved to a new city which meant my drive to work became a 45-minute journey. During the drive back home at night, I decided to give podcasts about football (soccer) a try. The first podcast I listened to was “The Gab & Juls podcast”. I was hooked and since the, I would listen to 5 to 6 different podcasts during those five days driving back home from the office. These podcasts, all in English, were from folks who cover the game for ESPN, Sky, La Liga and even for themselves independently. These podcasts range from over half an hour to an hour,  which allowed me to start another one before I got home. Overall, these podcasts have been entertaining, educational and at times hilarious, and I would suggest give the following podcasts a listen.

The Gab & Juls Podcast

I have been a huge admirer of Gabriele Marcotti’s writing ever since he started writing for ESPNFC his Marcotti’s Musings every Monday discussing the recent results and news in the football world. If you enjoy reading Marcotti's Monday Musings, then you'll enjoy The Gab & Juls Podcast. The expanded audio version of Marcotti's Musings consists of Gab and his French podcast partner, reporter Julien Laurens, who can be seen regularly on ESPNFC, discuss those topics with more details.  This podcast also has special guests such as SidLowe and Graham Hunter to discuss La Liga and Mark Ogden to discuss  the Premier League and Manchester United.

For Barça fans like myself, it was a joy listening to Jules, who is also an ardent supporter of Messi, share our anguish about Barça's performances under Valverde and rip him to pieces. Gab though is usually spot on with his insight and is also hilarious whenever he calls out players or managers when they so fully deserve it while brilliantly sneaks in a put-down when you least expect it. It is a fantastic podcast that usually ends with Gab peaking my interest with professional wresting trivia and Jules delivering intriguing useless trivia. Since football is currently on hiatus, these two are trying to keep us entertained with their podcast by selecting starting lineups consisting of players starting with the same letter in their last name. It is by far my favorite podcast to listen to every Monday.

The Spanish Football Podcast

Another superb Podcast is  “The Spanish Football Podcast” featuring the one and only, Sid Lowe and Phil Kitromilides and Alex Kirkland. Sid is one of the best English journalists covering La Liga for The Guardian, while Alex is the Madrid correspondent for ESPNFC and Phil works for La Liga TV. This is one of the best podcasts that covers Spanish football, with updates about Real Oviedo in the second division and it's usually half an hour long. A great source for those who want to know more about what’s going on in La Liga since our reliable source, Revista de La Liga, went off the television airwaves a couples of years ago.

What makes this fun podcast so unique is that it was recorded inside a car before the COVID-19 pandemic forced everyone to record the podcast from their respective homes. There is also a special Q&A podcast for VIP paying members. This is a must listen to for Barça fans, even though we all know about Phil’s past with Real Madrid media, it’s still highly recommended.

El Tel & Jon’s La Liga Weekly

Since I am a Barça fan, I need my fix of La Liga news and insights from those who watch my Blaugrana. The “El Tel & Jon’s La LigaWeekly” podcast features Terry Gibson, one of the regulars from the days of Revista de La Liga, and Jon Driscoll. Terry, also commonly known as Gibbo, is a former player and assistant coach and scout who used to commentate on La Liga games and was a regular on Revista. He is now working for La Liga TV and Jon’s voice is a familiar one for those who watched La Liga on Sky Sports.

It is quite refreshing to hear two guys from England speak fondly of La Liga. It's worth listening to it just for Jon’s hilarious introduction to each show. However, what makes this podcast exceptional is that it allows us to hear insight from a former footballer’s insights, Gibbo, regarding the performance of the players and teams. This podcast also does a Q&A from questions sent on social media from their listeners, so you won't be ignored. 

Bombazo

The next podcast that I quite enjoy is “Bombazo” that discusses Spanish football with a Scandinavian twist. This podcast is hosted by Lee Roden, who has a history of covering Barça and La Liga and does so currently with Talk Sport, and a name well known to most Cules, Alexandra Jonson. Alexandra’s presence on twitter is well known dating back to her days on Total Barça and is currently working for La Liga TV co-host.

Yes, I know. Another La Liga podcast, Ibes? Absolutely. What makes this podcast unique is its theme about focusing on Scandinavians players currently playing in Spain. Listening to this podcast was very helpful in getting acquainted about Martin Braithwaite before he joined Barça from Leganes. Furthermore, they also managed to interview Alexander Isak after his great performance against Real Madrid which saw Los Blancos get eliminated from Copa del Rey. They not only discuss La Liga and Alexandra’s trips to different parts of Spain, but they also have special episodes such as the one about Michael Laudrup being the greatest Scandinavian ever to grace La Liga. Hopefully, Scandinavians and non-Scandinavians will give this podcast a try and enjoy it as much as I do.

The Football Oranje Podcast

Besides Barça, my other passion is the Netherlands national team; the Oranje. The Football Oranje Podcast is hosted by Mike Bell, editor and founder of Football Oranje website (which I occasionally write for), and Dutch Football writer Michael Statham. Both discuss the Eredivisie and the Dutch National Team which helps fellow fans as myself stay up to date on recent developments.

The podcast episodes tend to be between 35-40 minutes long. They also have special interviews and will have a Q&A segment based on questions their listeners ask on social media. Absolutely a must listen to if you an Oranje fan such as myself.

The Serie Awesome Podcast

The last superb Podcast is another one from ESPNFC, "The SerieAwesome Podcast". This podcast also features my favorite sports writer, GabrielleMarcotti and also the superb sports writers  Mina Rzouki and Nicky Bandini. All three do a great job in discussing Italian football with their biases/team loyalty with some banter. This wonderful collection of personalities with Mina, the Juventus supporter, and Gab, the anti-Juve persona, clashing at times with the soft spoken Nicky, the Inter fan, playing the peace maker. If you are a fan of Serie A and the on-goings with Italian football, then this podcast is for you.

The almost hour long podcast is a recap of the latest results in Serie A and it was enjoyable tuning in every week to hear about Atalanta’s magical run in the Champions League and Lazio’s magnificent run in Serie A as they challenged Inter and Juventus for the Scudetto. Right before they went on hiatus, the podcast discussed the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy and how the Italian league was poorly handling it until all football action came to a halt.

Stay safe and if you want to find new ways to stay entertained at home, then give these podcasts a chance.

Barça continues to be a Circus.

Although the circus no longer comes to town, Barça have a done a great job in making sure the circus is still alive and well for the entire football world. The month of February saw the Barça board and the team perform quite a few circus acts. Consequentially, that caused mixed emotions from the Blaugrana fans and followers consisting of eye-rolls, anger and bitter disappointment.

It all started in early February when Barça’s sporting director, Eric Abidal said in an interview that the Barça players were not satisfied nor worked hard under previous manager Ernesto Valverde. That drew an immediate rebuke from his former teammate, Lionel Messi who dared him to back up that statement and name names. Whenever Messi responds to comments made by the board, you know it’s bad, and it once again showed the poor management by this club.

When that storm quietly died down, the equivalent of a hurricane hitting a volcano happened when the Cadena Ser radio network reported that the Blaugrana paid a social media company  €1 million to attack those who are against the board such as future presidential candidate Victor Font, former Barça players Carles Puyol and Xavi, former Barça player and manager Pep Guardiola, and even some Barça players such as Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique. The club immediately denied the story but as of March 3, 2020, president Josep Maria Bartomeu has yet to face the media and give us some real answers. Perhaps that €1 million could have been put into good use elsewhere, like bringing back former Masia player Takefusa Kubo and not letting Real Madrid outbid us for the Japanese Messi.

In between those two circus acts, we were informed that winger Ousmane Dembele’s return from injury was a quick act because he suffered another injury and was ruled out for six months after undergoing successful surgery on a hamstring injury. With the team short on players, what does the Barça board do? They sell two forwards, first teamer Carles Perez and Barça B player Abel Ruiz, and also loan out center back Jean-Clair Todibo. Perhaps this was their magic act of less is more.
But Barça did have a trick up their sleeve and managed to sign Danish international Martin Braithwaite from Leganes after paying his €20 million buy-out clause. So why did the club spend €20 million on a player who can only play league games when they could have saved €20 million and relied on Carles Perez and probably Abel Ruiz if he ever had a call up with the first team? The juggling act of the club when it comes to roster decisions continue to baffle many.

On February 22, 2020, Barça fans were afforded the chance to see Braithwaite in action for the first time against Eibar. However, it was the fans who were the spectacle of the Camp Nou, and not the team, when prior to kick-off, man fans waved white handkerchiefs and chanted "Bartomeu, resign!" for about seven minutes before the game finally kicked off. The message from the spectators to the ringmaster was heard and seen by the world. Barça though won 5-0 with Messi providing a great performance by scoring 4 goals while Braithwaite came on as a substitute and played a key role in setting up the final two goals which gave the fans short term amnesia as the club were back in first place in the league table.

Whatever jubilation the Blaugrana faithful were feeling was evaporated when Barça played Napoli to a 1-1 draw last Tuesday. The match saw Busquets get booked which meant he would miss the second leg. With the team already short a midfielder for the return leg, Arturo Vidal decided to be a clown by getting a late red card. After the game, the usually quiet Busquets hinted at how poorly assembled this team with his comment “We are a little short at the moment.”


This past weekend, Barça were to perform the impalement art by being knife throwers at the reeling and spinning Real Madrid. Instead, Barça failed to deliver and took a pie to the face by losing to Real Madrid 2-0 and relinquishing the league lead back to their arch rivals. We have been watching this circus act since 2010 when Sandro Rosell became the Barça president before stepping down over the Neymar transfer saga before Bartomeu succeeded in becoming his successor in 2015. Since then, it’s been more of bring in the clowns as the club wastes away Messi’s talents. In a few months, we will see if Bartomeu and this board will step down in the summer for early elections. If they don't, they may be successful in making us watch this circus become a carnival.

Reflections on NFL's 100th Anniversary All-Time Team

The NFL Completed its 100^th anniversary with another memorable season full of excitement that did not disappoint. I have been fortunate to be a fan of the NFL for the last 30 years since following the league back in 1990 as a kid. As they did in 1995 when the league celebrated its 75^th anniversary, the NFL released their greatest 100 roster in NFL history, with the main difference being head coaches were part of the 100. I was glad to see a couple of my favorite players from the Buccaneers make the selection, but the list also seemed incomplete and too loyal to the old guard.

Since I was living in the Tampa Bay area, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers became my team. Sadly, they were a poorly run and awfully coached team back then, and unfortunately, that is still the case based on these past few seasons. Thus, I developed a soft spot for the San Francisco 49ers when the likes of Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Roger Craig, and Ronnie Lott played for them since the Buccaneers’ season would be over after 6-7 games. Watching that 49’ers team play the West Coast offense with their tough defense helped me fall in love with the game.

During those 30 years, I have followed the league in different continents and can’t imagine my Sundays without it. For 100 years, the NFL has entertained its fans and the future looks bright for this league. The NFL celebrated its 100^th anniversary with the 100th Anniversary All-Time Team through a series presented on the NFL network. The players and head coaches were voted on by a panel consisting of media members, former players and league personnel. The series was enjoyable and I agreed with most of the selections, disagreed with a couple, and didn’t care for some of the players from the old guard.

Have no fear, I won’t be going over all 100 men selected. I first want to celebrate the fact that my Bucs, the punchline of the league for most of the last 40 years in NFL history, had two full-time Bucs on this list and one short-term Bucs player. I was elated when Lee Roy Selmon, the first ever Bucs legend, and Derrick Brooks, my all-time favorite Bucs player, made it on the list. The other player was former Vikings legend, Randall McDaniel who played for the Bucs for one season before he retired.

Selmon and Brooks were greats of the game during their eras and will now be part of NFL history as part of this team and future anniversary teams. They are now immortal and it would have been great if Brooks’ teammates of Warren Sapp, John Lynch and Ronde Barber could have been a part of this group. Nonetheless, a good argument can be made for all three making it on the NFL’s 125th Anniversary All-Time Team, if the NFL does one in 2045, when the team expands from 100 to 125.

I thought Warren Sapp was an obvious choice to make it to the 100th Anniversary All-Time Team based on the fact that he was a member of both the NFL's All-Decade team of the 90s and 2000s. Yet, John Randle, who was a phenomenal player, got the nod over Sapp. Perhaps Sapp lost some votes because of his personality during and after his playing concluded. Nevertheless, he should be on the next All-Time Team.

Another surprise omission had to be not seeing Terry Bradshaw as one of the quarterbacks on the 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. Without a doubt, many wanted to see which quarterbacks were going to make the list. On the 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, only four were selected while ten quarterbacks were going to be selected for this team. Bradshaw was the first quarterback to win four Super Bowls in the Super Bowl era, yet he was not deemed good enough to make it on the list. However, Roger Staubach made it on the list, even though he lost in two Super Bowls against Bradshaw. This was an odd choice seeing as they played in the league at the same time and Bradshaw’s stats were slightly better than Staubach’s. Hopefully Bradshaw won’t be overlooked in the next team.

Overall, I agreed with most of the selections made for the 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. NFL kept the players they chose for the 75thAnniversary All-Time Team and just added 25 more players and head coaches. My only complaint about the team was the inclusion of players from the early years of the league such as Sammy Baugh, Elroy Hirsch, Dan Fortmann, Cal Hubbard, and Bill Hewitt. I understand the league wants to show respect to those who were pioneers in their positions in the old days of the NFL, but were they better than those who played their position in the last twenty years? Perhaps the NFL should have had an honorable mention to those who impacted the game such as Bo Jackson and those beforementioned players.

100 years of the NFL are now in the books. The 100th Anniversary All-Time Team was certainly interesting and we will have twenty-five more years of entertaining football before we debate who will be on the 125th Anniversary All-Time Team. Until then, we should enjoy the NFL one play at a time.

Barça begins the Quique Setién era.

Well, it finally happened. FC Barcelona fired Ernesto Valverde on Monday and brough in Quique Setién as the club’s newest manager. Things had to change and Barça finally decided to become proactive by being reactive and firing Valverde following their loss to Atletico Madrid in the revamped Spanish Super Cup. Valverde’s era was bittersweet with some success but the disappointments will haunt him forever. Quique Setién now is the man to lead the charge and it won’t be easy.

We really were spoilt under the presidency of Joan Laporta. During his reign, the Blaugrana only had two managers, Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola. Since then, the Blaugrana have had five different managers. Elections are not that far away so we shall see if Quique Setién will still be the manager by then. For the time being, he has a tough task of rejuvenating a team that has slept walk this season.

Time will tell if Quique Setién was the right hire or not. Valverde came highly rated by many and in the end, many were glad to see him leave. He is already facing one difficult task of finding out what is the best formation and lineup for this team. The absence of Luis Suárez, out with an injury, and Carles Aleñá, out on loan, leaves him somewhat shorthanded. The first area of concern is whether the board will support Quique Setién or work against him. Will they bring him the players he wants or will they sign players they want without his input or approval?

With Suárez out, it’s time for Griezmann to shine but will others also step up? The team has regressed defensively and Setién will not only have to address that issue, but also improve their mental confidence which has become an issue when things don’t go their way. Hopefully Setién will also entrust La Masia and give more minutes to Barça B players such as Riqui Puig with the first team. It’s foolish to expect a quick turn around under Setién but it does feel good to feel optimistic about Barca again.

Valverde’s Reign of Error is Over.

Barça finally decided that it was time for a change. After witnessing the same uninspiring dull football, the Barça board decided to pull the trigger and give Ernesto Valverde the boot. Although Valverde will go down in the Blaugrana history books as a successful manager, his era will mostly be remembered for all the wrong reasons.

Valverde managed Barça to two league crowns, one Copa del Rey title and one Spanish Super Cup in two and a half seasons. The last time Barça fired a manager during the season was during Louis van Gaal’s second stint with the club in 2002-2003 season which lasted only a few months. Coincidentally, both Valverde and van Gaal share common similarities.

Louis van Gaal also won two league crowns, one Copa del Rey title and one Spanish Super Cup in his first stint with Barça. Unlike Valverde, he was able to coach his entire third season with the Blaugrana. However, both had disappointing results in the Champions League. While Valverde’s teams imploded in the knockout stages, van Gaal’s teams never managed to advance from the group stages in his first two seasons although they managed to get embarrassed in the Semi-Finals of the 1999-2000 season.

Valverde’s time will not be looked back kindly even with all that success he accomplished. His lack of improving players and lack of playing Barça youth players along with the dull direct football he subjected the Blaugrana faithful to endure will be hard for us to forget or forgive. However, he will forever be haunted by those European exits are what nightmares are made of. Bottling those 3 goal aggregate leads where he completely got outcoached will always mark this era as Valverde’s reign of error.

Barca's Team Of The Decade.

Barça kicked off this decade by becoming the first club to ever win the sextuple. Barça had a historic successful decade which saw the Blaugrana capture seven league titles, five Copa del Rey titles, two more UEFA Champions Leagues titles, two FIFA Club World Cups, and five Spanish Super Cups. With 2019 about to come to an end, the time has come to look back at the players that have represented the club during this decade and pick the best eleven.

Marc-André ter Stegen

Barça had a tough time finding their new starting goalkeeper when they let go of Zubizarreta in the mid-90s. Víctor Valdés though would be the one to carry the mantle and become Barça’s most successful goalkeeper ever. However, both he and backup and José Manuel Pinto left the club in 2014 and Barça signed Marc-André ter Stegen for €12 million in 2014 from Borussia Mönchengladbach, and also signed Chilean international Claudio Bravo from Real Sociedad.

Both Ter Stegen and Valdés helped Barça win a Champions League title during this decade. From the 2009-2010 season, Valdés also helped Barça win three league titles, three Spanish Super Cups along with one UEFA Super Cup and one FIFA Club World Cup before leaving the club in 2014. Ter Stegen’s arrival as the heir to Valdés, saw him be part of the treble side where he started in both Champions League and Copa del Rey Finals while Bravo was the league starter. He would start the UEFA Super Cup but would have to wait until the 2016-2017 season to become the overall number one goalkeeper after Bravo’s departure and would help the club capture two league titles.

Valdés would win three Zamora trophies, awarded to the goalkeeper with the lowest “goals-to-games” ratio, at the start of the decade, while Ter Stegen has yet to win one. Yet, that is more of a testament of the quality of defenders that played in front of Valdés at the time, compared to the quality of defenders available for Ter Stegen since his arrival. However, the one difference is that Ter Stegen is less likely to committing errors, unlike Valdés who was known to bungle things up on occasion. This was a tough decision to make but my choice would be Ter Stegen.

Dani Alves

Dani Alves’ inclusion was a no brainer. As one of the few players to win two trebles, he is simply the greatest right-back of this century and perhaps in football history. The club has failed to replace him since his departure in 2016, with Sergi Roberto and Semedo nowhere near his talent and contribution. From the 2009-2010 season, Dani Alves helped Barça win five league titles, two UEFA Champions League titles, three Copa del Rey titles, three Spanish Super Cups along with two UEFA Super Cups and two FIFA Club World Cups.

Gerard Piqué

Another easy decision to make was selecting Gerard Piqué. He has been magnificent for Barça since his arrival in 2008. He is also one of the few players to win two trebles. He and Puyol were one of the great center backs partnerships in club and football history. Pique has managed to continue to excel with other center backs such as Javier Mascherano, Jérémy Mathieu, Samuel Umtiti and Clément Lenglet.

Since the 2009-2010 season, Piqué helped Barça win seven league titles, two UEFA Champions League titles, five Copa del Rey titles, five Spanish Super Cups along with one UEFA Super Cup and two FIFA Club World Cups. Only time will tell if he will become the club’s next president.

Javier Mascherano

Carles Puyol is the greatest defender to ever play for and captain Barça. However, the other best center back of this decade has been Javier Mascherano. Puyol retired in 2014 and his final years at the club saw him battle injuries and feature less, which allowed the midfielder to fill in his place and partner Piqué in the heart of the defense, especially the 2011 Champions League Final. Since his arrival to the club in 2010, Mascherano helped Barça win five league titles, two UEFA Champions League titles, five Copa del Rey titles, three Spanish Super Cups along with two UEFA Super Cups and two FIFA Club World Cups. Mascherano would share playing time with the new signing Samuel Umtiti in 2016 before leaving the club he served so impeccably in 2018.

Jordi Alba

With respect to Adriano and Lucas Digne, this decade only saw Eric Abidal and Jordi Alba feature as genuine starting left backs for Barça. Unfortunately, Abidal’s health issues relating to his liver cut his career with the Blaugrana shorter than expected. He did start for the Blaugrana in the 2011 Champions League Final. Jordi Alba’s arrival in the summer of 2012 meant that he would be the starting left back and Abidal left the club in the summer of 2013. Since his arrival, Alba helped the club capture a treble as he became an essential part of the offense under the likes of Luis Enrique and Ernesto Valverde. Jordi helped Barça win five league titles, one UEFA Champions League title, four Copa del Rey titles, three Spanish Super Cups along with one FIFA Club World Cup. Although I consider Abidal a better left back than Alba, Alba was this decade’s best Barça left back.

Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta

It’s impossible to discuss Barça’s team of the decade without mentioning the holy trinity of Barça’s greatest midfield. Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta played a key part in making Barça, and also Spain, become one of the best teams in the World. Xavi and Iniesta bossed the midfield and helped create chances for the front three while Busquets handled the duties of a defensive midfielder in his own unique way of combining of intelligence and elegance in a position more known for physicality and brutality. Together, they helped Barcelona be major force the first five years of this decade. Busquets is the only player who still remains at the club following Xavi’s departure in 2015 and Iniesta’s departure in 2018. Ivan Rakitic was be the closest midfielder to crack the team of the decade and only time will tell if Arthur will be on the next Team of the Decade.

Luis Suárez

This decade saw Luis Suárez and David Villa lead the charge up front and score goals while helping the Blaugrana succeed domestically and in the Champions League. Both played and scored in a Champions League Final. However, David Villa’s time at the club was cut short by injuries and saw him score 48 goals in all competitions in three seasons. Meanwhile, Luis Suárez has scored 190 goals in all competitions since his arrival in 2014, while also winning the Pichichi and Golden Boot in 2016. Whoever succeeds him next decade will have big shoes to step into.

Neymar

As much as it hurts me to omit Pedro from this list, Neymar edges him for this spot. Both were parts of a famous attacking trio; MVP and MSN. Pedro scored in the 2011 Champions League Final, scored twice in the 2012 Copa del Rey Final, along with a memorable Chilena goal to seal the league title during the second treble season of 2014-2015, and his final goal for the Blaugrana was the game winner in the 2015 UEFA Super Cup. Pedro also scored five Clasico goals in five different games against Real Madrid. Pedro left the club having scored 99 goals in 321 games in all competitions.

Neymar left the club in an acrimonious way that left many Blaugrana fans unhappy. Before his departure, Neymar scored 105 goals with 59 assists in 186 games in all competitions. During his four years at the club, Neymar scored in the 2015 Champions League Final, scored in three straight Copa del Rey Finals, and one goal in the 2013 Spanish Super Cup that was the deciding goal to clinch the trophy, and he also scored three Clasico goals. Furthermore, during his time at Barça, MSN won the club’s second ever treble and scored 364 goals in 450 games. Neymar may not be beloved for how he left the club but his time at the club was unforgettable and worthy of being a member of the Team of the Decade. Who knows, he may be on the next Team of the Decade if rumors are true that Barça will be bringing him back this summer.

Lionel Messi

The club’s greatest player of this decade, this century, and in its entire history. He is one of the greatest ever to play the game. Five Golden Balls and Five Golden Shoes in this decade alone is a remarkable achievement. A valid argument can be made that he became the game plan/system for the managers after the departure of Pep Guardiola. Seven league titles since 2009-2010, two Champions League titles, five Copa del Rey titles, two FIFA Club World Cups and two UEFA Super Cups along with five Spanish Super Cups. He became the league’s all-time goal scorer and scored over 100 goas in the Champions League during this decade. It’s a pity that poor coaching has cost him more Champions League titles and here’s hoping we can enjoy Messi in the next decade as well.