Ronaldinho could’ve been sent off hundreds of times in his career for unsporting behavior. Blessed with otherworldly control and technique, the Brazilian would frequently contort the rules of the game for his own benefit. It wasn’t fair, nobody else could or can do it now, but he got away with it because he was a god. As we all know, life has two great questions: 1.) Is there a heaven? 2.) How did Ronaldinho get this good?
When you limit your playing career to Manchester United, Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, Milan and Paris Saint-Germain (and represent the English national team for 14 years), you're inevitably going to play alongside some of the world's best players. What's more, if you're a really great passer of the ball, which David Beckham was, you're going to provide a few classy assists for that talent.
There’s still another round of matches to play in Serie A. Sure, Juventus have won the title. Sure, they printed some pretty cringe-worthy ‘LE6END’ merchandise and plastered it everywhere. Sure, Napoli and Roma seem set in their Champions League spots. Sure, every position in the league is seemingly sorted, bar Crotone and Empoli bickering about who gets to be the third worst team. Sure, the league is pretty much done and dusted. But we still have one round of fixtures left.
Mario Balotelli hasn’t appeared as often as he would’ve liked for Nice this season due to three red cards and a smattering of various injuries, but when he has played he’s been unplayable.
Super Mario made it 14 goals in only 18 Ligue 1 starts as Nice stomped Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday, effectively handing the league title to Monaco.
After a sensational season with Nice last season, Hatem Ben Arfa earned his dream move to Paris Saint-Germain. That dream has since turned into a nightmare for the French dribbling wizard. His many brief cameos as a substitute in league play this season have resulted in none of the magic that typified his year with Nice.
Wednesday’s historic match between Barcelona and PSG has already entered footballing lore alongside Germany’s 7-1 destruction of Brazil and Portugal’s improbable victory over France. These are matches that, in today’s day and age, will always provide us with a good laugh and meme. PSG’s capitulation is now part of the comical DNA of the game.