When Soccer Careers Implode: Ronaldinho
Soccer May 14th. 2008, 5:30pm
The quest for a witty, aggressive intern continues. Today, we have for you Tyler Duffy, a grad student in journalism. He chose to write about the demise of Ronaldinho, the two-time FIFA Player of the Year (2004-2005). We’ve actually been able to narrow some of the requirements of an intern – you’re going to have to generate one post a day. If you don’t think you can swing that – and we’re not talking about a navel-gazing opinion piece, but something news-based, or at least zeitgeisty, please notify us of this via email and take yourself out of the running.
Rumors place Ronaldinho’s career in doubt after a tabloid-titillating secret medical assessment at a Barcelona clinic allegedly described his physical condition as “ominous.” The Brazil and Barcelona star is currently rehabbing a torn leg muscle suffered on April 3. This medical assessment allegedly scared away Italian giants A.C. Milan who had negotiated a four-year contract worth over $10 million per season, pending a transfer agreement with Barcelona.
The Spanish press, never ones to avoid errant speculation, attribute his trouble to steroid use, citing “a powerful nocturnal anabolic formula” intended to aid his recovery.
A consensus best player in the world just two years ago, the 28-year-old now resembles a post-stabbing Dorian Gray. His non-existent training regimen and his nights that make Ronaldo’s look tame have finally caught up with him, leaving the striker a fat, oft-injured, shell of his former self.
His girth’s main rival has been his ego, which has infested the Camp Nou clubhouse like an inflamed polyp, alienating Barcelona players, staff and anyone within a considerable radius, ruining any ties he once had. Matched with his poor performance on the pitch – only eight goals in 17 league appearances – his situation has become untenable.
Ray Hudson’s “buck-toothed beauty” may well be “skipping through the tulips” for another team next season, but not if Barcelona sticks to the $62 million asking price.
42 Responses to “When Soccer Careers Implode: Ronaldinho”
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May 14th, 2008 at 5:33 PM
soccer post probably equals not getting the gig. but good post and good luck deputy Duffy.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:34 PM
holy crap finally someone realizes he has been on the downswing.
to be fair its been three years, two years ago the player of the year and ballon d’Or winner was cannavaro.
its hilarious that after a mediocre season milan want to ring changes and the way to do that is try to bring in past their prime players like him and sheva. sooooo dumb
May 14th, 2008 at 5:38 PM
Too many similes, metaphors, platitudes and forced toilet humor.
Sorry. I don’t want to be cruel, but that’s how I feel.
However, the information is accurate and the points are worth making. Just in a different style. And, if he is going to class up the joint and bring more soccer news to the site, then I approve.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:39 PM
orrrr people could just go to unprofessional foul
May 14th, 2008 at 5:41 PM
8 goals in 17 league games is sub par? Than what does that make David Beckham?
May 14th, 2008 at 5:44 PM
Jesus, TBL. Why not have him write a post on women’s softball for a tryout? At least that way we could make fun of his subject and have something to stare at.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:45 PM
for him yes, and one goal in eight european games is terrible for him
he had a bad season
shit henry scored 17 goals this season for barca and almost every critic has labeled the season a failure and he himself admits he was bad. barca has so much talent that those guys should be dominating and they arent
May 14th, 2008 at 5:47 PM
also, i think at least three of his eight goals were penalties, and i know two others were against betis and another against bilbao, so thats five right there that dont really count
May 14th, 2008 at 5:48 PM
Beckham was never primarily a goal scorer. Ronaldinho has a roving position, so he isn’t a classic forward. But, however you define him, his purpose is to score goals.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:48 PM
wow that math was awful
May 14th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
I’d welcome more soccer posts. Although I don’t think this was the best effort and not all that relevant considering other things going on in soccer currently.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:56 PM
@tyduffy, purpose is scoring goals – The most number of goals he has scored in the league for Barca was 21, last year. That was in 35 league games. His goals per game this year wasn’t that far off that number. I don’t disagree with you that he is not the same player, but I don’t think you are using the best argument for judging it.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:59 PM
goohst – I agree that there are far more important developments afoot in the soccer world. I would love to write about Arsenal’s transfer policy, the aftermath of the relegation battle, how Premier League money is affecting the game in Europe and many other fine topics. But, I think that might be too esoteric.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:01 PM
Steroids? Looks more like he has a thing for Horse Tranquilzers. This isn’t really news though; well known facts include Ronaldino not being a hard worker anymore and not caring about the game anymore cause he has already peaked at 28, World Cup, Champions League, La Liga titles? 2 Fifa POTY awards. What else does he have to accomplish besides bedding way hotter women than any of us, LOOKING LIKE THAT?!?! Fuck it, he don’t care no more. Besides, Fernando Torres, Kaka, Ronaldo, Messi and a few elite others had passed him by a year or two ago.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:03 PM
fact is he is the center piece of a team that has woefully underperformed in europe and spain the past two seasons. (he cant be blamed for the pathetic display against united obviously)
he scored five goals from open play this season in the league, thats terrible for him
May 14th, 2008 at 6:06 PM
I wouldnt say Barca has necessarily underperformed. Second in La Liga this year and champions league semis. Plus they have Lionel Messi, the best young player in the world, and maybe as good as Ronaldo.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:08 PM
considering theyre ten points out of second place i would
you dont fire your manager if youre not underperforming
May 14th, 2008 at 6:11 PM
also they played celtic and shalke in the rounds they won, not exactly a road similar to liverpool, for a comparison of how impressive it is getting to the semis
May 14th, 2008 at 6:15 PM
This season was a disappointment for Barca. It’s a Yankees or Red Sox type situation where not winning the title is considered a failure. They were never competitive domestically. They dropped points against weaker teams. They rarely looked coherent.
They did get to the Champions’ League semis, but they also had an easy draw against Celtic and Schalke to get there.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:15 PM
Celtic isn’t exactly an awful team. Just cause they play in Scotland. And if Chelsea wins the Champions league are you going to say it’s not impressive cause they played the likes of Fenerbache?
May 14th, 2008 at 6:17 PM
… no, because they will have beaten two of the best teams in the world in the final two rounds
barca played two of the easiest opponents in the knockout stages, im not saying its no feet to get to the semis, but its not exactly something to hang your hat on either when you shit the bed in the league and fell flat when you finally went up against a class opponent
May 14th, 2008 at 6:20 PM
I don’t really think Liverpool necessarily belongs in that group anymore. In the Champions League they ahve some success, but to me I think its more of a Big 3 than an Big 4 anymore. How many world-class guys does Liverpool really have? 3?
May 14th, 2008 at 6:21 PM
Not everything in soccer is scoring goals… It’s unbelievable that people seems to use stats as a crutch to every point they make. After this i have to say that is clear to everyone who indeed watched Ronaldinho played this season, he was in terrible condition.
He was the catalyst of the offensive play of FC Barcelona and this season you see that offense struggle mightly even with Ronaldinho in the pitch. He was not the typical “number 10″ and it’s not a coincidence that Deco performance was also sub-par this season. Of course, the reason to that is the fact that Ronaldinho drinking and staying late on bars and strip clubs…
May 14th, 2008 at 6:22 PM
Celtic are a fine team. They just can’t win away in Europe. So, if given the choice it is easier to face them than say Man U in a knockout stage.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:22 PM
um how many times did arsenal beat liverpool this season? one less than the number of times liverpool beat arsenal
how many world class guys does arsenal have? cesc, adebayor maybe, sagna …. glass van persie? theo? no way.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:26 PM
I thought torn leg muscles were generally mortal wounds for horses?
May 14th, 2008 at 6:27 PM
and lets see
gerrard, torres obviously
mascherano has been the best defensive midfielder in the world this year
carragher could step in at centre back for pretty much any team in the world, and right back for most
reina is the best young keeper in the world and keeps getting better
id put agger in there as well as soon as he gets back from his broken foot
plus their youth and reserves are freaking loaded with talent, theyve been picking the best prospects from spain like crazy.
and arsenal just lost one of their best midfielders and looks to be losing another
May 14th, 2008 at 6:35 PM
Torres and Mascherano would start for anybody in the world.
Carragher is a very good player, but I don’t think he is quite elite. If everyone was in top form and healthy, I think you would take Terry, Carvalho, Vidic, Ferdinand, Toure and Woodgate ahead of him.
Gerrard is a tremendous individual talent. But, he’s not a very smart player. His brilliance is mitigated by his tactical negligence, his inane runs to nowhere and his forty-yard passes to no one. He needs to be on the right or up behind the striker where his erratic play isn’t crippling tactically.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:37 PM
alright this guy is a fucking idiot dont give him the job, he insulted gerrard. if you can have him drawn and quartered thats all the better
May 14th, 2008 at 6:42 PM
Boring. Not really into this post.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:43 PM
though i will admit he is a better option on the right than anyone they have. its no coincedence that his best season and liverpools most prolific points season was when he was on the right. if barry comes in i could see him moving out right with barry and alonso/lucas in the middle, babel out left and masche behind.
but if you EVER say anything bad about him again, ill take your thumbs
May 14th, 2008 at 6:43 PM
I’m excited that there are this many soccer fans on TBL. What are there 5 of us?
May 14th, 2008 at 6:44 PM
The epitome of Gerrard was the second leg against Arsenal. He had an abysmal match, turning the ball over to Arsenal nearly every time it was in his possession. Then he scores on a penalty late and all of a sudden he is man-of-the-match. He’s a great player, but he’s not an efficient one. He’s like a basketball player who scores 25 points, makes highlight reel plays, but shoots 7 for 25.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:47 PM
honestly i think its a result of him trying to hard to take the team on his back, the epitome of that being the merseyside derby at shitison park where rafa took him off. still this was one of his best seasons, the chemistry between him and torres is through the roof.
the problem with soccer blogs is you get some real crazies. youll either get someone who is a fan of a middle of the road team that wins one trophy every eight or nine years and talks an absurd amount of shit (spurs fans this year) or the die hard english people who allegedly founded the language but speak in an incomprehensible line of slang and internet speak.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:48 PM
wow two posts in a row using the word ‘epitome’
classy!
May 14th, 2008 at 6:51 PM
oh yeah, if anyone is interested in a nice goal compilation, nate at ohyoubeauty had put together a compilation of the best liverpool goals of the season here
May 14th, 2008 at 7:11 PM
Darren Bent is higher paid than anyone in Serie A except Kaka. That says all you need to know about Spurs.
May 14th, 2008 at 7:17 PM
mascherano has been the best defensive midfielder in the world this year
Mattheu Flamini would like a word with you.
Losing Flam hurts, but Hleb is a piece of shit, something like 7 goals in his AFC career, not the output you expect from a guy with his skill set.
Gerrard is great, but like 100% of all English players the hype far outweighs substance. Torres is a stud though, Arsene missed there.
May 14th, 2008 at 7:19 PM
Chelsea had to play at Fenerbache, thats far worse than any match Barca played except at the theater of dreams.
May 14th, 2008 at 7:40 PM
meh, agree to disagree on who is better between the two. but if gatusso stays in milan i think that might hinder his career a little for a few seasons, hes not going to displace him. but who knows whats going to happen with that squad.
agree on the english hype in general, if voronin were english hed fetch ten million pounds this summer.
May 14th, 2008 at 11:00 PM
TBL – Anyone who can reference Oscar Wilde in a post and make is work needs to be hired.
May 15th, 2008 at 8:31 AM
Dino has one injury plagued year and you write him off and toss dirt on his grave? I guess great players cant get injured and have an off yr. Your prospective intern write for the Brit tabloids??