Barça: The inside story of the world's greatest football club
- Downloads：1664
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-09-02 06:19:10
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Simon Kuper
- ISBN：1780724748
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Sami Quadri
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I so enjoyed reading Barca - Simon Kuper's new book， the inside story of the world’s greatest football club。 He explores how FC Barcelona became one of the most successful clubs in the world – and how that envied position now hangs in the balance。 Great read for football fans。 I so enjoyed reading Barca - Simon Kuper's new book， the inside story of the world’s greatest football club。 He explores how FC Barcelona became one of the most successful clubs in the world – and how that envied position now hangs in the balance。 Great read for football fans。 。。。more
Stuart Shiffman
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An extraordinary book by perhaps the best soccer （football） writer in the world。 While reading this one I ordered two more of his soccer works。 This story of Barcelona’s history as a world power in soccer and then their demise is a great sports and business book。 Even if you know very little about the game this is a superb book about running an organization and how to do it as well as what to avoid。 One of my top books of the year。
Francis Wight
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Brilliant book - better than any other football book I’ve read。 A fascinating charting of the Cruyff and Pep eras， La Masia and the gift and curse provided by having the best player of all time for two decades。 Incredibly damning of the Bartomeu era and in many cases Messi as an individual too。
Bookreporter。com Biography & Memoir
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The relationship between the game Americans identify as soccer and the world knows as football is complex。 While it struggles to gain popularity and acceptance in the United States， there are indications of rising interest through both player participation and fan attendance。 The U。S。 Women’s National Team has received a tremendous amount of support due in large part to an incredible run of victories and championships。 Recent years have found major networks broadcasting the Premier League， showc The relationship between the game Americans identify as soccer and the world knows as football is complex。 While it struggles to gain popularity and acceptance in the United States， there are indications of rising interest through both player participation and fan attendance。 The U。S。 Women’s National Team has received a tremendous amount of support due in large part to an incredible run of victories and championships。 Recent years have found major networks broadcasting the Premier League， showcasing English teams and star players。 This summer， ESPN aired Euro 2020， which was won by Italy over England in a game decided by penalty kicks。 It set a record as the most watched European Football Championship match ever in the U。S。While American sports teams have their own dynasties and loyal fans， a strong argument can be made that the FC Barcelona soccer club from Spain’s Catalonia region is the most famous sports franchise in the world。 I had the pleasure of visiting their stadium， Camp Nou， several years ago。 I walked through their museum and saw for myself the rich history of the team， their legendary coaches and managers， and their greatest player， Lionel Messi。Simon Kuper was granted access to FC Barcelona’s staff and offices， and has provided a deep study of the organization。 But even this examination finds itself behind the curve of sweeping events。 It was published within days of Messi leaving the team after 21 years because of their complicated financial situation。Readers should not be dissuaded from the book because they think it is only for soccer fans。 Kuper is an accomplished writer who places the sport in a world context， and the insights presented here have application far beyond soccer。 Whether you enjoy sports or are interested in how winning organizations achieve their success， you will find a treasure trove of fascinating material in THE BARCELONA COMPLEX。In many ways， the Argentinian-born Messi represents the uniqueness of the world of soccer。 He came to Barcelona at age 13 and made his professional debut at 17。 There he was recognized as the greatest player in the world， winning individual awards and leading his team to championships in the Spanish LaLiga and UEFA Champions League。 He also found time to play for Argentina in world events and led his country to the Olympic gold medal in 2008。 Among the highest paid athletes in the world， Messi is known for his philanthropic endeavors。 He has established a personal foundation and actively works with UNICEF in support of their worldwide activities。FC Barcelona is a unique organization in part because of its structure， as the citizens of Barcelona are the team’s true owners。 Their motto is “More than a club，” which means that they are part of the political and social structure of the autonomous Catalonian community。 Barcelona has gone from a regional club to a world powerhouse with sustained excellence and innovative strategies both on and off the field。Kuper traces Barcelona’s success to its Dutch coach， Johan Cruyff， who employed an attacking strategy， known as “total football，” when others relied on far more conservative tactics。 They also didn’t believe in stereotyping athletes based on their physical appearance， which allowed them to recruit and develop the undersized Messi。THE BARCELONA COMPLEX is a wonderful book about sports and team building。 Even if you think that soccer is a boring game， you will enjoy this exhaustive and detailed sports classic。Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman 。。。more
Ed
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GoodI enjoyed this book for me it was a book of three parts ， the ist about Cruyff Guardiola and Messi was great 。 The second part about what Barca players eat not so much ， the last part about the problems at Barca was very interesting，all in all a good book about a great club 。
Jay Bensal
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Overall， I enjoyed this book - lots of good tidbits， and some ones I was less excited about too。 Kuper paints a picture of an uncertain Barca future towards the end - wish he'd gone more into that。 I feel like Messi deserves credit for Barca's rise， but also its potential demise too。What's clear is Barca 2008-2013 may never happen again。 I have a newfound appreciation for the highlights and all the great goals we say from back then。 Overall， I enjoyed this book - lots of good tidbits， and some ones I was less excited about too。 Kuper paints a picture of an uncertain Barca future towards the end - wish he'd gone more into that。 I feel like Messi deserves credit for Barca's rise， but also its potential demise too。What's clear is Barca 2008-2013 may never happen again。 I have a newfound appreciation for the highlights and all the great goals we say from back then。 。。。more
Kavinay
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Cruyff > Guardiola >Messi。 Despite Kuper's attempt to build up Barcelona as more than a club before it's recent fall， it's a bit rose-tinted and misses the context of how every other big club also transformed with the influx of mega TV and IP revenue streams since the 80's。 It's actually not even just football， but most professional sports that have seen the rise of player power and boardroom's enslaved to marketing-driven agendas。 Sure Barcelona's essence might be unique in the terms of Cruyff- Cruyff > Guardiola >Messi。 Despite Kuper's attempt to build up Barcelona as more than a club before it's recent fall， it's a bit rose-tinted and misses the context of how every other big club also transformed with the influx of mega TV and IP revenue streams since the 80's。 It's actually not even just football， but most professional sports that have seen the rise of player power and boardroom's enslaved to marketing-driven agendas。 Sure Barcelona's essence might be unique in the terms of Cruyff-ian legacy the Kuper extolls， but it was always just a club even if that 2008 - 2009 side played the greatest football we'll ever see。 。。。more
Najmus Sakib
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Half star。What an absolute piece of garbage！
Andrew
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Simon Kuper is one of if not the best sports journalist。 Barca should be read by every football fan for not only its tactical insight but also the transience of both success and failure in support。 Too often we believe that clubs have a divine right to success， that what exists today will exist forever。 Barca raises questions not only around Barca but every club。 Essential reading。
Fritzov
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Far from a Barcelona fan but this book is well researched and great storytelling。 Just to bad it was timed to be released just after Messi actually did leave Barcelona。
Bjørn Veseth
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