Lionel Messi: The secret to my success is playing like I was a kid... I just love the game

Barcelona's Lionel Messi has revealed that sticking to the same mentality he had as a kid is key to his success as a footballer.

The injury-stricken star is currently sidelined with a knee ligament damage and still faces a few more weeks out.

But when asked questions by adidas Football, Messi spoke about loving the game and keeping the same enthusiasm he had as a child. 

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Lionel Messi spoke to adidas Football about his love of playing professional football

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The Barcelona star is currently out injured for seven to eight weeks with knee ligament damage

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Villa swoop for Barca's Traore

Aston Villa have completed the signing of Adama Traore from Barcelona for a fee that could rise to €12million.

Adama Traore has made the move from Catalan giants Barcelona to Aston Villa, agreeing terms on a five-year deal.

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I was right to leave Liverpool - Suarez

After a "dream" first season at Barcelona, Luis Suarez says his decision to leave Liverpool has been justified.

Luis Suarez says winning the treble in his first season at Barcelona justified his decision to leave Liverpool.
Suarez made the switch to Camp Nou from Anfield last year, and was rewarded with silverware as Barca swept the board last term.

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Man Utd on the horizon: Humble hero Pedro will be missed by Barcelona

The winger is set to complete a move to Manchester United but he will always be remembered at Camp Nou for popping up with vital goals in big games for the club 

It was his breakthrough year. Promoted to the first team on a permanent basis by Pep Guardiola in 2009-10, Pedro made his mark immediately and etched his name into Barcelona folklore as he became the first player to net in all six competitions in the same season.

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'Van Gaal is DESTROYING Manchester United'

Hristo Stoichkov has urged Barcelona winger Pedro against linking up with the "bad person" he says nearly ruined the Catalan club

Hristo Stoichkov has blasted Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal in an attempt to convince Pedro to remain at Barcelona, claiming that the "mediocre" Dutch coach is now "destroying" the Premier League club in the same way he "destroyed" the Catalan outfit.

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How Sevilla began the decline of Ronaldinho, Rijkaard & Barca in 2006

The Catalans face the Andalusians in an identical Uefa Super Cup clash nine years on - but Luis Enrique's men will want to forget the last time they met in the European showpieceIt seems so long ago now. Barely three months after winning the Champions League for the first time (their 1992 crown had been the last in the old European Cup format), Barcelona were well beaten by Sevilla in the 2006 Uefa Super Cup - a defeat that marked the beginning of the end for Frank Rijkaard's impressive team.

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Neymar struck down by mumps illness

The Barcelona star has been ruled out of the Uefa Super Cup and Spanish Supercopa ties against Sevilla and Athletic Bilbao respectively

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Manchester United wont’ meet Pedro clause

The Red Devils only prepared to offer £17million

Manchester United are not prepared to activate Pedro’s release clause, according to reports.
The FC Barcelona winger has a £22million clause in his contract which if activated, gives him the right to hold talks with the team who have made the bid.
However, United are not prepared to pay that for the Spaniard and will only go as high as £17m, giving title-rivals, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool a chance to sneak in ahead of them.

The Premier League quartet have all been interested in Pedro at one stage throughout the summer, but it looked like United had won the race after selling Angel Di Maria to Paris Saint-Germain.

United Refusal

But fresh reports this morning are claiming that The Red Devils are refusing to activate the release clause, despite being told any bids of a lower value will be rejected.
Luis Enrique still wants to keep Pedro at the Nou Camp, and has told interested parties that they’d have to match the clause in his contract, which once stood at £107m.
United chief Ed Woodward is reportedly travelling to Spain in order to meet with Barca officials, but due to the winger being 28-years-old, they fear that he has no resale value, which is why they want to offer just £17m.
Barcelona technical secretary Robert Fernandez is also reluctant to see the winger go and has once again reiterated the importance of the release clause.

Release Clause

“[Pedro] has a release clause of €30m, and we are waiting for someone to make the offer,” Fernandez said. “His performance level is fantastic and the coach and we like him.
“We do not want him to go, but we know this is a risky situation, and we have to wait.”

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Xavi: Fan violence may be unstoppable

A 43-year-old man lost his life in tragic clashes allegedly involving four sets of rival ultras before Atletico Madrid's meeting with Deportivo at the Vicente Calderon

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'The ball doesn't want to go in!' - Suarez stumped by Liga goal drought

The €86 million summer signing failed to find the net in Sunday's 1-0 at Valencia, meaning he has now gone five Primera Division games without a goal

Barcelona striker Luis Suarez has admitted his frustration at finding himself unable to end his Liga goal drought, lamenting that "the ball doesn't want to go in" for him.

The Uruguay international netted for the first time in a Blaugrana shirt in Tuesday's Champions League win at APOEL but he has yet to open his Primera Division account since making his debut against Real Madrid on October 25.

Suarez had two major chances to score in Sunday's 1-0 victory at Valencia, which came courtesy of Sergio Busquets' last-gasp strike, but he was denied by a brilliant first-half save from Diego Alves before then being incorrectly flagged offside after tapping home with 20 minutes to go.

"It’s an odd situation," the former Liverpool striker told reporters after the game. "The ball doesn’t want to go in but I’m always working on it.

"The goalkeeper saved the first one, but the second made me angry because I could see that I wasn’t offside.

"I took a step back to make sure I was in the right position, in line, and that’s why I was angry. It was a fair goal."

Despite his disappointment, Suarez insists that he is capable of forming a prolific attacking triumvirate with fellow forwards Lionel Messi and Neymar.

"My relationship with Messi and Neymar on the pitch is improving all the time," the 27-year-old declared. "But there are other players in the squad who can also do their bit to help the team."

Indeed, Suarez was delighted that Sergio Busquets had decided a game in Barca's favour that could easily have gone either way.

"In games like these, you know you’re up against a tough opponent, and so you enjoy winning more and it strengthens the team," the ex-Ajax man enthused.

"Of course it could have been a very different situation. We could have taken a couple of chances and won the match, but then again, so could they."

Barca's dramatic win at Mestalla sees them draw back to within two points of Liga leaders Real Madrid ahead of Wednesday's Copa del Rey clash with Huesca.

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Barcelona Transfer News: Lionel Messi Sale Reportedly Planned by Board

Spanish radio station Cope has reported the Barcelona board plans to sell Lionel Messi before the club's presidential election in 2016 (h/t 101 Great Goals).

Interesting storylines are presented by the aforementioned source. The most pressing of all is that Messi is reportedly unhappy at having his commitment to the Blaugrana questioned, while he is also "envious" of the way Real Madrid treat Cristiano Ronaldo.
Messi recently provided potential suitors with an unlikely smidgen of hope when he said that things are "complicated" in football. Though he also stated that would love to remain with Barcelona for the rest of his career, he admitted that he knows a prolonged tenure isn't guaranteed. Messi's comments were reported by Ole (via Ben Jefferson of the Express):

Football takes many turns...While I always said that I would always stay there, sometimes not everything happens the way you want. I've said it many times: if I had my way I would stay forever. But as I just said, it's not always given that you get everything you like. 

David Ramos/Getty Images

Will Lionel Messi finish his career at Barcelona?

Jorge Messi, the player's father and agent, admitted "people like to read between lines and exaggerate," reported by La Vanguardia (h/t Chisanga Malata of the Daily Star). Even so, he left the option for his son's departure open: "Leo is happy, but it’s clear that if the club receives an offers tomorrow and says 'we want to sell you', well then we’d have to study it."
Understandably, such comments and reports will have many Barcelona fans questioning exactly what is going on. Moises Llorens of AS suggests Leo's decision to light the "fuse" before his father wades in amounts to "history" repeating itself. As such, Llorens reports that the Barca board has decided "only a public request from the player stating that he wants to leave the club would open the door."
It is always difficult to assess Messi's future. He is so synonymous with Barcelona that many supporters will get angry at the mere thought of the player leaving. The Argentinian could fund an entire new line-up if he is sold, but still, it would be a team without the player who is arguably the most important in Barca's history.

Denis Doyle/Getty Images

Centre-back Marc Barta recently admitted that he "can't imagine a Barca without Messi," per Didac Piferrer of Marca. The mini maestro's association with the Camp Nou club is so strong that many will feel the same.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti believes Messi's comments are normal. "Cristiano [Ronaldo] said the same three or four years ago," noted the Italian, reported by Marca. "Every player goes through the same thing during his career, although things can change very quickly."
Perhaps Messi is laying the groundwork for an improved contract, or maybe he genuinely is considering a spell away from Catalonia. He would certainly be wise to leave his options open and may be frustrated by the club's decision to spend big on Neymar and Luis Suarez.

David Ramos/Getty Images

Former president Sandro Rosell was at the heart of the former deal, a man Messi reportedly didn't see eye to eye with, so the player may hold some animosity toward the powers that be (despite Rosell's departure). He appears to be someone who needs to be loved and appreciated wholeheartedly to produce his best form.
Messi continues to post excellent numbers this season; he has scored 11 and assisted nine goals in 15 matches across La Liga and the Champions League thus far, per WhoScored.com.
He trails behind Ronaldo, but Madrid are currently at the peak of their powers while Barca progress along the transitional road. Messi himself continues to have an impact, underlining his importance to Luis Enrique's side and, indeed, the club moving forward.

David Ramos/Getty Images

While Cope's report appears premature—it is extremely troublesome to suggest Messi's sale would be preempted so early—his extended presence in Barcelona certainly doesn't seem as guaranteed as it once did. There are perhaps only three realistic suitors, however—Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Chelsea—all of whom would risk breaking UEFA's Financial Fair Play rules by bringing him in.
It seems more likely that if Messi is to exit, he would head home to Argentina. Newell's Old Boys are waiting and could offer the iconic footballer an excellent opportunity to see out his final years away from the hubbub of Europe.
This conclusion would certainly rile Barca fans less than if Messi were sold to one of the club's Champions League rivals.

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5 Reasons Why Lionel Messi Could Leave Barcelona

Could Lionel Messi actually leave Barcelona?
If the economics of football have taught us anything, it's that every player is always for sale, no matter his profile or past accomplishments.
Of course, some transactions are grander than others, and no doubt the transfer of Messi would be the biggest piece of business in the history of the sport.
He's already hinting that it could happen.
According to Marca, the 27-year-old admitted in a Tuesday interview that "sometimes everything doesn't quite go as planned."
He added: "I'm taking things day-by-day at the moment, doing my best to put together a solid season and help Barcelona do well so we can win all the titles that we want to win, that we're trying to win, and that's the reality. Then we'll see. There's a lot of movement in football."
Messi is under contract until 2019, which means any move away from Camp Nou would have to be triggered by a lucrative bid for his services.
But would he sign off on a switch if it came right down to it?
Following are five reasons why he just might.

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Arsenal face competition from PSG to sign Barcelona midfielder Pedro

According to French Media outlet Le 10 Sport, Arsenal are set to pursue their interest in Barcelona midfielder Pedro in the upcoming January transfer window. However, the Gunners, who were almost on the verge of signing the player in the summer will face competition from Paris St Germain.

The report claims that the 27 year old could leave the Camp Nou in the winter as he has grown frustrated with the lack of regular game time on the pitch. Last season Pedro was playing second fiddle to Alexis Sanchez and this term too he has fallen down the pecking order after Luis Suarez’s arrival at the club. The Gunners are currently leading the queue to sign the player but PSG will fight till the end to acquire his services.
The Parisians failed to move for a majority of their transfer targets in the summer thanks to Financial Fair Play regulations after having already signed David Luiz from Chelsea. But the French Champions will now pursue their interest in Pedro and are set to challenge the North London club for acquiring the services of the winger.
Earlier we had reported in the past summer that Liverpool and Manchester United are also interested in Pedro.But reports have died down over the past month as it now looks likely that both the Premier League giants will not battle each other for the current Barcelona star.

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