The Weekly Recap: Week 1

...and then there was 2011! If you ask me there has been much fuzz about nothing. We closed the curtains on 2010 and welcomed 2011, albeit with massive fireworks and a lot of booze ;)

Note: If you are a concerned parent – I was just kidding, now was I?

Judging by the Blaugrana’s imperious form of recent weeks it was fairly reasonable to except a firework on the pitch as well. After all, the Pep squad trashed Real Madrid and every other Real team for that matter (get it? Real team). In any case, the game was bound to mark an historic landmark – Xavi’s 549 games for FC Barcelona. With the game against Levante, Xavi equaled Migueli’s appearance record.

We may have not been treated to a full-blown trashing but I’d take a 2-1 victory any day of the week. The important thing was to gain a victory after the Christmas break; how Barca achieved this feat is secondary. Even if it’s just for a short while, Barca is leading the table with 5 points ahead of Madrid. The psychological advantage is with the Blaugrana. If Real Madrid slip up against their opponent it would increase the pressure on Mou’s men, and we all know how they perform under pressure, Sergio Ramos anyone?

FC Barcelona vs Levante 2-1 | 2/1/2011 Liga BBVA

Going from one sore loser to certified winners, the Blaugrana players Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi were all featured in the L’Equipe team of 2010 while David Villa was crowned USSA’s male athlete of the year!

One criminally overlooked player received his proper dues and was featured in our new "Getting to know" section, Victor Valdés. If you ask me he is one of the best short-stoppers in the world, and has been for the better part of this decade.

Last but not least in a little more over a week a Barca player will be awarded the inaugural FIFA World Player of the Year accolade. I guess Xmas has been delayed in Barca country.

Taking all into account 2010 has been indeed a record-breaking year. We (Barca Blaugranes) started out not really having a clue of how to approach this project to run a fairly popular Barca blog right now. Of course there’s a whole lot room for improvement but we’ll get there. At the very least we have a benchmark now.

Let’s celebrate and enjoy 2011.

Yours truly,

Sebastian