On January 9th at midnight Beijing time, the curtain will rise on the 2024-25 Spanish Super Cup, with Barcelona taking the lead in the semi-finals against Athletic Bilbao, followed by reigning champions Real Madrid the next day in their semi-final match against Mallorca. Barcelona and Real Madrid, the "two giants of the West Super", are naturally the favorites to win the title, but who will come out on top? If it were the Barcelona team from two months ago, they would certainly be worth betting on. At that time, Flick's team first defeated their nemesis Bayern Munich 4-1 at home in the Champions League, then swept their arch-rival Real Madrid 4-0 away in La Liga, becoming the talk of the town. However, if it's the current Barcelona, they can even lose at home in La Liga to a relegation-threatened team, so making it to the final of the West Super Cup is questionable. Real Madrid's squad strength is still above Barcelona's, but their performance is also inconsistent, compounded by long-term injuries and personnel shortages. If the opponent in the final of the West Super Cup is Barcelona, the outcome is really unpredictable. Before Flick took over, Barcelona had lost four consecutive official matches to Real Madrid. In last season's West Super Cup final, Barcelona under Xavi suffered a crushing 1:4 defeat to Real Madrid. If they meet in the final, it will be a revenge match for both sides. Barcelona wants to avenge their crushing defeat in last season's West Super Cup final, while Real Madrid wants to avenge their…

Barcelona has been going through a tough time recently, suffering three consecutive home defeats and plummeting down to third place in the league table, with their title hopes taking a sharp turn for the worse. This has left Barcelona in urgent need of rebuilding, and they are not wasting any time in making significant moves. First, there are reports that they have reached a preliminary agreement with a Premier League striker who scored an impressive 40 goals in a single season, and this powerful forward is set to join the Camp Nou. Following this, the calls for the return of former Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi are growing louder, with Barcelona showing determination to bring him back, and head coach Hansi Flick expressing his admiration for Messi. Looking at Barcelona's current squad, it appears to be quite impressive on paper, but there are underlying issues. Injuries have plagued the team, with many key players getting injured one after another, leading to more absences from matches and disrupting the team's tactical arrangements, resulting in inconsistent performances. The offensive end is particularly problematic, with over-reliance on young star Ansu Fati becoming increasingly evident. If he is not in top form or suffers an injury, coupled with Rafinha's continued slump, the team's attacking power quickly diminishes. Even a top scorer like Robert Lewandowski, with his excellent shooting skills, finds himself in a difficult position due to lack of support. In this challenging situation, Barcelona has taken decisive action by focusing on Marcus Rashford, the Premier League forward who can create 40 goals in…

This season's La Liga has been incredibly exciting, something that everyone should have noticed. As the matches progress to this critical point, what is the current situation? You see, in each La Liga season, there are only a few teams with the real strength to challenge for the title. Today, let's take a look at the latest standings of the league. On the latest La Liga standings, the title race has become clear, with one team emerging as a big winner while the other two seem to be accompanying and conceding points. (Points data as of December 24th) On the leaderboard, Atletico Madrid tops with 41 points, followed closely by Real Madrid with 40 points, Barcelona with 38 points, and Athletic Bilbao with 36 points. These four teams have laid the foundation for the title race this season, and the overall situation has thus been determined. To put it bluntly, the champion will come from among these teams. In fact, several seasons have been like this, with the title contenders always being these few teams, as their lineups determine the current state. Let's talk about Barcelona. At the beginning of this season, Barcelona was fierce, dominating both in terms of points and goal difference. However, recently, Barcelona's form has been poor, with an increasing number of losses, some of which were quite baffling. Looking at Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, their positions have changed, with Atletico Madrid emerging as a big winner. It's not hard to predict that this situation will continue until the end of the season, with the…

With the opening of the Chinese Super League's winter transfer window drawing near, there have been numerous rumors about player transfers among various teams, including the traditional powerhouse of the Chinese Super League - Beijing Guoan. Since the departure of Mamichevich and Desosa, Guoan's midfield has been lacking a versatile defensive midfielder. Last season's addition to Guoan, Guga, although playing as a defensive midfielder, is actually a No. 6 player who primarily serves as a link on the field and is not a true "beast" type player. Therefore, the focus of Guoan's recruitment during the winter transfer window is a good foreign defensive midfielder. Recently, there were rumors that Carvalho, the current Portuguese international playing for La Liga team Real Betis, was expected to join Guoan. However, this 32-year-old Portuguese midfielder suffered a major Achilles tendon rupture last season and almost didn't play any games, making him an unlikely choice for Guoan. According to the latest news, Guoan's top choice for a new defensive midfielder is former Brazilian international Rafinha. The 31-year-old Rafinha comes from the youth training system of La Liga giants Barcelona and joined the first team in 2011. This Brazilian midfielder possesses excellent dribbling and breakthrough abilities, performs well defensively, and has a high football IQ. From the 2011 to 2020 seasons, he was a key rotational player in Barcelona's midfield, representing the team in 56 rounds of La Liga matches, scoring 8 goals, with an overall commendable performance. Afterwards, he was successively loaned to Celta de Vigo in La Liga and Inter Milan in Serie A.…

Today is a crucial day for Olmo's registration in La Liga! It has been reported that if Barcelona fails to successfully register Olmo, the player will be free to leave. Moreover, several Premier League teams have expressed interest in the player, including Manchester City, Manchester United, and Arsenal. The player's agent has also been spotted in Manchester. In addition to Olmo's registration issues, Barcelona forward Victor is also facing difficulties in being registered. In terms of transfers, Leverkusen central defender Jonathan Tah is about to make a decision. Barcelona hopes the player will decide in January whether to accept the club's invitation to join in the summer, with Barcelona offering a contract until 2030. Given the abundance of options at the center-back position, Barcelona will not renew Christensen's contract. He will enter the transfer market at the end of the season, as Premier League clubs are interested in him. Barcelona's stance on Araujo's renewal issue is very clear: Araujo's situation is the same as De Jong's. If they do not renew their contracts before the end of the season, they will be pushed into the transfer market. It is reported that Barcelona captain Araujo now prefers to renew his contract and stay with the team, especially after experiencing injuries. As for De Jong's situation, it remains undecided. Especially since De Jong has not played in the last two matches, it seems that he has lost Flick's trust. Barcelona's goal is to raise more than 30 million euros this summer through indirect transfers: 8 million euros from selling Todibo for 40…

17:10 - Real Madrid has confirmed that there will be no new signings during the winter transfer window, and the club's recruitment efforts will take place during next summer's window. 17:00 - Dani Olmo's agent has been spotted in Manchester, with interest expressed by Manchester United, Manchester City, and Arsenal. If Barcelona fails to register Olmo during the winter window, he can leave as a free agent according to his contract. 16:55 - Frenkie de Jong's agent has inquired about the league situation with several Saudi Arabian teams. If De Jong does not renew his contract with Barcelona before next summer's window, the club will sell him. Deco has reached an agreement with Jonathan Tah's agent on contract terms, signing until 2030, with the player set to complete a free transfer on July 1st. 16:28 - Fabrizio Romano reveals that there have been no substantive negotiations between Manchester United and Victor Osimhen, with the only possible transfer being United directly activating the release clause. Additionally, United must meet Osimhen's salary demand of 11 million euros per year, making the transfer very challenging. Marcus Rashford is more likely to leave next summer, with no signs of United seeking to loan him out at present. 16:06 - Fenerbahçe is set to hold a meeting with José Mourinho to discuss the team's current performance and future recruitment plans. 15:50 - Leroy Sané is prioritizing a move to Barcelona and is not considering a return to the Premier League. He has also received attention from Serie A clubs. Alphonso Davies' agent is in contact…

The European top five leagues have seen some unexpected matches, especially the double losses of Manchester City and Barcelona, which really surprised many people. The state of Manchester City this season has made people worry for them, and the same goes for Barcelona, which was once firmly at the top but now has become a backdrop for others. The successive defeats of these two superpowers make people feel that anything can happen in today's world. Who would have thought? Okay, let's not rush to complain. Today, we will talk about the two major surprises of Manchester City and Barcelona, and then discuss the three uncontested facts in the football world right now. Are you ready? Let's start with these two laughable matches. Manchester City's three consecutive defeats, the disappointment of the Premier League defending champion Last night's performance by Manchester City, oh my, really makes people want to say: are you playing football or giving points to your opponents? As the defending Premier League champion, Manchester City lost 1-2 away to Aston Villa, welcoming their third consecutive defeat. Throughout the game, you almost couldn't see the Blue Moon that once dominated the Premier League. The scene seemed a bit disoriented at times. Haaland, Foden, Silva, these famous players stood on the field one by one, as if they were waiting for the opponent to create opportunities for them, rather than showing their own power in return. Honestly, the current situation of Manchester City really feels like it is gilded on the outside but decayed within. The consecutive defeats of Manchester…

Introduction: The departure of Oscar has brought new variables to the Chinese Super League landscape, while Beijing Guoan has been quietly accumulating strength. A former Barcelona coaching team is about to take their positions, much like an experienced navigator boarding a ship, ready to lead the team through the waves. Lin Liangming is akin to a sharp blade on the domestic front line, shining with the afterglow of Real Madrid and already showing his potential. Naturalized player Serginho, rumored to be joining, is like a star waiting to shine, with his glorious record in the AFC Champions League as proof of his abilities. Two foreign player slots carry the hope of winning the championship, presenting both opportunity and challenge. Guoan is like a chess player making careful moves in the transfer market; will they win the title in the new season? With the departure of Shanghai Port's Oscar, players like Guga and Fabio from Beijing Guoan have seen their values rise into the top 10 in the Chinese Super League, especially with the addition of the rumored AFC MVP. As of December 26th, it seems that Beijing Guoan's lineup has become more formidable than other teams. They have a coaching team with a former Barcelona background. According to online reports, Setien and his three assistants will arrive in Beijing on January 3rd next year and officially lead the team in the second phase of winter training in Haikou on January 6th. At that time, the new coach and the foreign coaching staff will join the team. This coaching team includes…