Nasri’s revelation, Simeone’s move to Inter, Gabi’s dig at Ronaldo and more as we summarize the best stories from La Liga.
Former Barcelona manager claims Nasri should be playing for the Catalan giants
Sevilla’s on loan midfielder Samir Nasri is known for speaking his heart-out and it was the case when he appeared for an interview on L’Equipe. The Frenchman made several sensational revelations, revealing how former Barcelona manager and current Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola called him a ‘waste’. Pep told the former Arsenal playmaker that with the talent he has, he should be playing for Barcelona and not Manchester City.
Anyone who has seen the 29-year-old play would agree with Pep’s assessment that Nasri should have achieved much more at this stage of his career, considering the vast amount of talent he possesses. However, not all is lost for the midfielder as we have witnessed this season, with ‘Petit prince’ showcasing his true self under the tutorship of Jorge Sampaoli. If Nasri continues in the same vein, who knows maybe one day we will indeed see him turn up in Barcelona colours.
Also read: Valencia’s highly-rated defender a target for Barcelona.
Atletico Madrid midfielder takes a dig at Real Madrid’s Galacticos
With the Madrid derby set to take place at the weekend, Atletico Madrid midfielder Gabi has stoked the fire in the buildup to the keenly-awaited contest. Speaking on the occasion of a charity event, the Spanish midfielder made a statement which appeared to be a dig at Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.
On being asked to pick out the Real Madrid player he fears the most, the 33-year-old midfielder replied Luka Modric, stating the Croatian to be the Los Blancos’ best player. In a way, Gabi does make sense since Modric is indeed the one who makes Real Madrid tick, and could turn out to be the most decisive player on Saturday.
La Liga stars dominate ESPN’s list of best players and managers
ESPN recently revealed ‘FC100’, a comprehensive list of best 100 players and managers in the world as selected by the eminent panel consisting of the website’s writers and experts. Not surprisingly, a host of Liga Liga stars featured prominently in the list.
The players were divided into 9 categories depending upon their playing positions, with Lionel Messi being named as the best forward, while Luis Suarez being awarded the tag of best striker. Gerard Pique was placed at the top for the list of centre-backs while Luka Modric featured as the midfield supremo. Andres Iniesta finished just behind Kevin De Bruyne as the best attacking midfielder.
Former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola was the unanimous winner for the best manager with Diego Simeone finishing second. Luis Enrique made it to the fifth spot while rather surprisingly, the winner of 2016 Champions League, Zinedine Zidane didn’t feature in the list of top 10 managers.
The complete list can be found here – Goalkeepers | Right-Backs | Centre-Backs| Left-Backs | Central Midfielders | Attacking Midfielders | Wingers | Forwards | Strikers | Managers.
Atletico Madrid boss refuses to rule out managing former club as his next move
Back in September, Atletico manager Diego Simeone confirmed he had shortened his existing contract with the club by two years, with the deal now set to end in June 2018. The Argentine headcoach has heavily linked with a move away to Chelsea and Inter Milan in the summer, so the decision to cut-short his contract only gave more fuel to speculation that Simeone’s highly successful tenure at Madrid could very soon be coming to an end.
Diego Simeone had clarified the decision to reduce the tenure didn’t change anything, and he was willing to renew towards the end of the ongoing contract. Simeone had previously expressed his desire to return back to Inter one day, a club where he spent two years as a player, stating he dreams of coaching the Italian club.
Inter has been in a turmoil since their historic treble in 2010, having seen as many as nine managers in the last six years. Diego Simeone was recently asked by a Telelombardio journalist about his future plans and more specifically with regards to Inter, to which the Argentine just smiled and replied, “Inter? You never know.”