Anyone been to the Nou Camp ?

[franki68]

dickymint said:

Was there in 1999 .......... nuff said really.

Shame you went in June


Snap ,unbelievable experience.

[exocet ape]

I don't think any atmosphere beats the Westfalstadion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VyjLwFxptU

A weekend in Germany is great for footie and beer. You can catch 2 or three games over the weekend in the Dortmund/Dusseldorf/Gladbach area as their are loads of teams in the top two divisions. Most have fan parks at the ground and travel is free from town to the ground with your ticket.

Edited by exocet ape on Sunday 25th August 00:45

[TwigtheWonderkid]

exocet ape said:

I don't think any atmosphere beats the Westfalstadion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VyjLwFxptU

Edited by exocet ape on Sunday 25th August 00:45

I've been fortunate enough to visit many hotbeds of European football, and this is THE place to go. Nou Camp, Bernabau, San Siro, nothing else comes close.

The video seems to have been shot some time before ko. Just wait til the game gets going.

[PandaEyes]

Went about 5 yrs ago whilst on a work trip with the missus. Played Valencia in the Copa del Rey and finished 1-1. Villa for Valencia and then a last minute equaliser by Xavi.

Atmosphere was pretty poor for the most part until they equalised but tickets were cheap and had really good seats. Bonus for us was that the hotel we were staying in was the one the players used pre match so saw a few of the players at the hotel.

[g3org3y]

A while back and we watched a Champions League game (Barca vs Rubin Kazan). Iirc, Rubn Kazan won 2-1!

Was a spur of the moment thing decided that morning. Was concerned we wouldn't get tickets but such a big stadium, they don't often fill to capacity. We bought them from an official outlet just off Las Ramblas.

[BlackST]

107 euro ticket seats.

[Woolly]

Went with a load of lads to the Spanish Grand Prix weekend (ages ago) and heard there was a Barecelona game on so asked the hotel reception if it was sold out. He checked and got us a load of tickets so we went. I think it was pretty much packed (v Athletico Madrid ISTR) and we were in the highest row possible, could hardly see a thing or make out who the players were. Bobby Robson was manager and Ronaldo (the goofy one) was playing and was the only one you could spot with his bald head. Uneventful game and 0-0 until the 90th minute when Ronaldo scored the winner and the place went mental. Great experience and good down Las Ramblas later with loads of good natured fans there.

Also found out Radiohead were playing in some smallish venue in Barcelona the next night and went to that too. Top weekend.

[TwigtheWonderkid]

Woolly said:

Also found out Radiohead were playing in some smallish venue in Barcelona the next night and went to that too.

Shame, the weekend was going so well too!

[mad4amanda]

spent a brilliant few days there in 2006 , saw a game against Villa real it reignited my interest in football. The atmosphere was incredible

[gringonuts]

I have tickets for the Supercup return leg tonight v Ath Madrid (currently 1-1). We're staying on the coast to the SW near Tarragona and plan on driving in, parking near Camp Nou and getting the metro into the city for a bite to eat before KO (11pm).
Does anyone know of a good secure place to park the car? I don't mind paying.

Thanks in advance of replies.
GN

[The jiffle king]

gringonuts said:

I have tickets for the Supercup return leg tonight v Ath Madrid (currently 1-1). We're staying on the coast to the SW near Tarragona and plan on driving in, parking near Camp Nou and getting the metro into the city for a bite to eat before KO (11pm).
Does anyone know of a good secure place to park the car? I don't mind paying.

Thanks in advance of replies.
GN

I would park in one of the many monitored car parks which are under the buildings in the Sants district. They are far enough away from the stadium, but they are manned and secure. Near the ground, there are a couple of car parks, but near diagonal, it´s busy to park. From Sants is just over a mile to walk to the ground

[gringonuts]

Thanks For the info JK.

I'd found the BSM car park in Les Corts but was concerned that it was TOO close to the stadium - Sants sound like a better plan.

I just have to get my 11yo daughter to walk a mile now. :-)
Cheers
GN

[The jiffle king]

gringonuts said:

Thanks For the info JK.

I'd found the BSM car park in Les Corts but was concerned that it was TOO close to the stadium - Sants sound like a better plan.

I just have to get my 11yo daughter to walk a mile now. :-)
Cheers
GN

I´m in Barcelona (working this week) and am not going to the game, but I would advise:
Wallet in front pocket.
If you use the metro, hands in pockets and watch out for people with coats over their arms... or bags
Learn the Barca chant.... It´s very easy, but it´s good to join in
Take a brolly if you are not going to be undercover, I reckon it will rain tonight like it did around 9pm last night for 15 minutes

Best place for food is Paco Meralgo (Tapas) but if you need to be more child friendly, anywhere near Las Ramblas will be passable, but not as authentic

[V8covin]

Hey jiffle king,you seem to be the person in the know.
What times's kick off usually for a mid week match ? They haven't even confirmed the day yet,either tuesday or wednesday.
I'm going to be relying on public transport to get back to Santa Susanna after the match.I believe there's a night bus ?
Do you know where I'd get this from ? Bus station ?
Cheers

[The jiffle king]

V8covin said:

Hey jiffle king,you seem to be the person in the know.
What times's kick off usually for a mid week match ? They haven't even confirmed the day yet,either tuesday or wednesday.
I'm going to be relying on public transport to get back to Santa Susanna after the match.I believe there's a night bus ?
Do you know where I'd get this from ? Bus station ?
Cheers

Ahh the old mid week matches that they can change the kick off times up to 4 days before the game starts.... Yes really! Usually 9pm, but sometimes 10pm and occasionally like tonight 11pm (due to TV deals)

The nigh buses I´m not an expert on, but I would guess from the bus station which is 1 block over from Arc de triomph and 1-2 blocks up from Citudella parc.

Is the mid-week match a Champions league game or a Copa del Rey? Champions league is usually more stable, but the Copa del Rey does change as do league games

(I lived in BCN until Sept last year and still work here once a month, so have a look at some of the threads in Holidays and travels as I´ve suggested where to eat/drink a number of times)

[V8covin]

The jiffle king said:

Ahh the old mid week matches that they can change the kick off times up to 4 days before the game starts.... Yes really! Usually 9pm, but sometimes 10pm and occasionally like tonight 11pm (due to TV deals)

The nigh buses I´m not an expert on, but I would guess from the bus station which is 1 block over from Arc de triomph and 1-2 blocks up from Citudella parc.

Is the mid-week match a Champions league game or a Copa del Rey? Champions league is usually more stable, but the Copa del Rey does change as do league games

(I lived in BCN until Sept last year and still work here once a month, so have a look at some of the threads in Holidays and travels as I´ve suggested where to eat/drink a number of times)

copa del rey v Real Sociedad.

We're doing a day in Barcelona looking at the sights then on to the match in the evening.

[nej606k]

Adam B said:

Was there in 2007 when the mighty Liverpool tore them apart 1-2 with golfing buddies Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise getting the goals

View from the away area not the best!

Me too. What a night. Two CL Finals in 3 years. Was checking the teamsheets for that match the other day to discover Messi was playing so he couldn't have done much that night.

[gringonuts]

The jiffle king said:

I´m in Barcelona (working this week) and am not going to the game, but I would advise:
Wallet in front pocket.
If you use the metro, hands in pockets and watch out for people with coats over their arms... or bags
Learn the Barca chant.... It´s very easy, but it´s good to join in
Take a brolly if you are not going to be undercover, I reckon it will rain tonight like it did around 9pm last night for 15 minutes

Best place for food is Paco Meralgo (Tapas) but if you need to be more child friendly, anywhere near Las Ramblas will be passable, but not as authentic

Thanks for the advice JK.

We left here at 3PM so I didn't get a chance to get back to you yesterday. We got back here at 3AM!
It was a fantastic experience tho' and we're glad to have done it despite the game not living up to expectations.

We parked in an underground B:SM car park on Av Joseph Taradellas just up from Sants Estacio metro and not too far from Les Corts. Not the cheapest at around €25 but well worth it for the peace of mind and convenience. We'd spent 3 nights in Barcelona at the back end of last week so, as Mrs Nuts had seen a fan on Las Ramblas that she wanted to buy, we headed into town and eventually ate at Les Quinze Nits. Not mind blowing food but very edible and amazing value given it's location in Placa Real. Then back on the metro to Les Corts to follow the throng to Camp Nou.
We bought the tickets on-line a month or so ago - €19 each so we could sit in "with the Gods" under the stars (lucky it didn't rain) - and even tho' the ground wasn't entirely full it was an exhilarating experience.

Barca were not at their best and, with a number of Argentinians in their side, Madrid were very physical. I know I was leaning towards Barcelona but the ref was an absolute joke - I think he was trying to even things up but it got the crowd going anyway. The price tag around Neymar's neck seems to be weighing heavily on him.... Very poor value on that showing. Barca only came to life when Iniesta came on - judging by the chanting the crowd obviously adore him and rightly so. I think it would have been a different result had he started instead of Fabregas. Atletico had the better of the chances altho' Barcelona had at least 70% of the meaningful possession so a 0-0 was probably about right. Having watched the previous feisty leg on TV i told my missus that there would likely be less than 22 players finish the match. That, and being a Hammer, and seeing Mascherano finally play in a Claret and Blue shirt, made my day.

Thanks again for all your help - Pistonheads is a fantastic resource for advice. Hopefully you haven't tired of working away 'cos Barcelona is a fascinating place and, in my eyes, you are indeed a lucky man sir.
Cheers
Gringonuts

[dickymint]

^^^ that missed Messi penalty cost me 20 quid

[gringonuts]

Oh dear i'm sorry about that! He'd done all the hard work. Courtois had gone the wrong way and all Messi had to do was roll it into the corner.:-(

My missus said that we'd seen history re-written until my boy piped up that he missed one against Chelsea a couple of seasons ago! :-)