Category Archives: Misc
A Clasico worth savouring
Not for the first time politics rather that football drew out my earlier blog on last night’s El Clasico. But on the night I did share the following further thoughts with my followers on twitter. I counted only two Spanish flags- good to see Bermabeu stadium depoliticise nationalist issue with both teams paying respect to Adolfo Suarez hugely enjoyable thriller at the Bernabeu between two great teams pity Barca won with disputed penalties. this was a high octane match deserving of a clear win This was a match …
El Clasico-behind the hype
A Spanish colleague writing in El Pais suggested earlier in the week that tomorrow’s El Clasico could be an era defining match, with Real Madrid players determined to give FC Barcelona such a thrashing as to leave no doubt that supremacy has shifted back to the men in white as in the pre-Laporta era. It’s the kind of hype, not entirely unbiased , that one expects from the Madrid and Barcelona media in the run up to an El Clasico but a prediction which nonetheless is worth considering. On …
Paco de Lucia: The Death of a Musical Wizard
World music is in mourning following the unexpected death , aged 66, on a Mexican beach, of Paco de Lucia, one of the greatest guitarists of modern times, a truly musical wizard. Born Francisco Sanchez Gomez, to a Portuguese mother and an Andalucian father, de Lucia (a name he adopted professionally) spent his childhood in a poor neighbourhood of Algeciras where his talent for playing guitar better than his father flourished amidst the sounds, and legends of the gypsies. Paco –who was not of pure gypsy blood but carried …
Neymar’s night at the Nou Camp
Celtic dismally failed to live up to their brave heart image last night, but their gutless performance at the Nou Camp should not detract from the fact that this was a FC Barcelona victory worthy of note. Above all, this will be remembered as the match in which Neymar showed what he is capable of as a playmaker, on and off the ball, assisting, delivering, and scoring goals-his Champion’s League drought transformed into a flowing hat rick. And to have Neymar showing his true talent, and visibly enjoying himself, …
Nigella- I am on your side
It’s a tried and tested argument that high profile personalities should know that having their private lives splashed across the front-pages is an inevitable part of their existence, and thus should have no reason to be surprised when this happens. In the age of the internet and 24 hours news nothing really can be kept secret, so it’s best to make sure that you have nothing to hide that could be used against you. Reputation can be protected only on the basis of integrity and honesty. Now Nigella Lawson …
Barca: When the baby gets thrown out with the bathwater
Johan Cruyff may have been forgiven for permitting himself a chuckle, while watching Barca lose to Ajax in Amsterdam on Tuesday night- but I suspect he was as saddened by the visitors as he was encouraged by the courage and dedication of some of the home team. Not known for his modesty, Johan has felt estranged from FC Barcelona for some time, abdicating the role of honorary VIP rather than endorse with his presence in the Nou Camp the presidency of Sandro Rosell. Behind the clash of egos has …
Barca: Is there a method in the madness?
Blame me for being a romantic cule , but what I always thought set us Barca fans apart from ordinary mortals was that they followed a team that not only won games and trophies but did so in a way that was exemplary in terms of solidarity, creativity, and general human conduct- it is what makes FC Barcelona mes que un club. Of late, I am struggling to retain this sense of association. Not only does the politics of the club seemed characterised by egos – witness the totemic …
The Pope speaks a new language for our age
Pope Francis on saturday night underlined the importance he attaches to grassroots renewal of he Catholic Church by appealing to his young followers to become key players of a fresh and meaningful project of evangelisation. “We are building a church and you must become protagonists of history,” he told a gathering of Wold Youth Day that had grown to overthree million on Rio’s Copacabana beach by today, sunday, the final day. In a scene which has been repeated through the week, the Pope looked relaxad as he engaged with …
The razzmatazz around Pope Francis in Rio
On Friday night there was a rare hush among the crowds-broken only by occasional applause- as Pope Francis spoke from the heart and directly to over one and half million mainly young pilgrims who had packed Rio’s Copacabana beach. Christ’s Crucifiction was not defeat but a victory of good over evil, of hope over despair, the certainty of God’s love for the sinner, and the prospect of redemption, he prayed. Whatever our personal suffering, we know we are not alone, for Jesus is with us, in communion, offering us …
