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As another answer has pointed out it depends on which Sauron you mean. But unlike Morgoth, who grows weaker the longer he disseminates his evil into the substance of Arda, Sauron has never had any great loss of power except when he deliberately poured the greater potion of his might and being into the Ring.Another thing to consider is that Marvel and the Tolkien legendarium are two different things. What seems to be commonplace displays of power in Marvel, such as Hulk punching a demigod or Doctor Strange crossing dimensions with ease, would be extremely poor form in Middle-earth. Allow me to explain.Magic, as Tolkien conceives it, is not an energy field or power to be manipulated without heedless thought beforehand. Even the Infinity Gems are just powerful artefacts with some modicum of sentient will behind them. What magic is in Tolkien’s thought is nothing more than the expression of the very creative act that brought Ea into being, an echo of the Music of the Ainur. Tolkien calls this subcreation. He further notes that Men have misconstrued it into calling it “magic[1]” when it is nothing of the sort, for even the Elves — sorcerous beings in their own right by Marvel’s standards — expressed confusion over this definition. It is recommended to read the link to fully understand if one is not willing to take my word for it.The kinds of power that Thor or Doctor Strange wield are just energy fields, unexplained laws of physics. They are of the natural world. They can affect the natural world but only because they are a part of it. Now when you go deeper into the Marvel comics you find all sorts of complexities behind it but at its core, “magic[2]” in the Marvel-verse is just unexplained technology or natural laws. It is recommended to read the link to fully understand where I am coming from.With this groundwork laid before us, can the Avengers take on the equivalent of a being formed directly from the thought of an ontological eternal Person that Tolkien has called time and again the Elvish conception of the Abrahamic God?No, they cannot.Feats that are considered mighty in the Marvel-verse are nothing more than Gandalf’s fireworks, flashy and impractical. They are just natural laws, interwoven into the fabric of reality, and anyone with enough time and experience (Thanos being a prime example) can become a godlike being in Marvel.Meanwhile the Ainur can affect and shape the natural world with powers that are not natural but are supernatural. They supercede physics. They defy logic. Unleash a being with the subcreative potential as Morgoth into Marvel and nothing in that world will be able to stop him.As pointed out, rather inexpertly, in the comments section of the answer I cited, context matters. You cannot pit the raw power of one universe against another and say it wins because of sheer quantity. That is not how it works. On the surface, Marvel seems to be powerful but only just. Looking deeper, its might is superficial.To answer the question directly. Let’s cycle through a few incarnations of Sauron:First Age — Sauron has access to his full might, and has the power of his master Morgoth and all of Angband backing him. The Avengers are drawn into the futile wars of the Elves and are bound by the Doom of Mandos. Mortal man cannot fight a Vala and win. Eventually one of the Avengers will lose sight of their purpose and try and claim a Silmaril, to their ultimate demise.Second Age — Sauron’s greatest strength has always been in his mastery of his voice and subtle manipulations. But the Avengers know this sort of trickery; after all, they have fought against such tricksters before, notably in the movie canon against Loki. Fair enough.The Avengers would naturally consider themselves allies of Numenor, for Numenor is the glory of Men. Thus Sauron knows they’ll try to stop them. He also knows, like in canon, he cannot hope to stand against Ar-Pharazon’s armies and fleets and so surrenders himself. This is the Avengers’ first mistake. The King of Numenor has grown proud by this point, his line has already been in rebellion against the Valar, and would not suffer to listen to the son of an extraterrestrial king who holds no authority in his realm. Sauron whispers his flatteries into Ar-Pharazon’s ears, and rouses Numenor against the Valar.If the Avengers are smart they will know to leave Numenor because they will be held in suspicion and may even killed for being Elf-friends. If they do not and have somehow survived up until the point even the Faithful are being sacrificed, it is not Sauron they will have to fight but their former allies. If Sauron, an Ainu of immense power and sway, surrendered to Numenor because of its might, then the Avengers are certainly doomed. They will die before they even kill him. If they do kill him they have only sealed Nemunor’s fate.Fast-forward to the Last Alliance. Remember, centuries pass in the Second Age. The Avengers are mostly mortal, with some exceptions. Thus they will not have known the lessons of fighting against Sauron. Thor might have a healthy respect for him, and Doctor Strange will do well to be wary of the Maia. They defeat Sauron and Isildur claims the Ring.Could they have the wisdom of Elrond to know how to destroy the Ring? Do they know that the twenty Rings of Power created by Sauron’s influence now disseminated to others are tied to its power and life? Do they know that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely? I doubt they could. The Last Alliance is made up of the might of Numenor’s remnant, the two Kingdoms of Middle-earth, and the remaining Elvish realm led by a now dead Gil-galad. The Avengers could not risk their Mannish allies killing them. Elrond could not do it, and he lived through the end of the First Age. So the Ring passes from history.Third Age — the Ring has been found and they’re all deliberating what to do about it. The Avengers, as before, have not fought Sauron in his prior incarnations because they are mortal. Here’s the major scope of this question, so I assume.Assuming the Avengers are smart enough to take the Ring and throw it into the fires of Mount Doom — let us suppose that Captain America is the one who decides it — they are immediately put in the same situation as the Fellowship. Keeping Sauron unawares from finding the Ring.As outlined before, Sauron is growing in strength. With the Ring undestroyed, Mount Doom’s fires pulse and Barad-dur is rebuilt. The Orc armies have grown mighty and strong, and Gondor’s strength wanes. The Nazgul are on the hunt, and they possess eldritch powers that are on par with anything Doctor Strange could throw at them, for they are no longer mortal but wraiths bound in another world entirely, unable to be slain.This leads us to the Eagle problem: why don’t they just fly it to Mordor and drop it in Mount Doom?Because Sauron is no fool. He’ll immediately see them flying straight toward him, the Nazgul will arrow straight for whomever is flying, Vision, Iron Man, Thor, or anyone with a ship, and the Orcs almost certainly have the industry to pluck something from the sky.Iron Man is blasted from the sky, assuming he survived the full mental might of Sauron pressuring him to give in and betray his comrades.Thor is struck down, if not by his own mind then by the Witch-King and the Nazgul. He is a demigod, and the Ring calls to him. If Gandalf, mighty Gandalf, feared to take the Ring because he knew it would act upon the good within him to make him into a terrible tyrant, then Thor is doomed from the start.Vision is blasted to pieces, melted to slag, because he is made of material substance and that substance will be inevitably tainted with Morgoth’s essence. The Mind Gem, which grants incredible psionic power to its wielder, is claimed by Sauron and is perhaps mounted onto a crown, in mockery of the Iron Crown of Angband.Captain America falls because his good nature will make him self-centered. No man of lesser blood and lineage can hope to withstand the Ring, like Boromir. He is a soldier, and he cares about the safety of his country and his people. The Ring will call to him and he will inevitably answer it, perhaps when he is the last man standing. He is no Hobbit.James Rhodes, the War Machine, will similarly be tempted. He is a man of the United States Military, and the temptation of such a power as the Ring would be too great to withstand. There will be no warehouse for the Ring. He too falls.Sam Wilson, the Falcon, will share the same.Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, would be deceived more easily than most by her very nature. Duplicity is her bread and wine, for before she was an Avenger, she was an assassin. She’ll quickly become Sauron’s thrall.Wanda, poor Wanda, the Ring will play upon her fears and desires and corrupt her utterly.Clint Barton, Hawkeye, displayed no resistance to the Mind Stone. He was also an assassin, from before the Avengers, and his love for Wanda and desire to protect her will end up playing into Sauron’s hands. The Maia is a master of manipulation. If Loki can do it, then it is Sauron’s literal bread and butter.Bruce, oh Bruce. Your Hulk side will try and dominate you more and more the longer the Ring remains with the team. Hulk is a brute and is easily manipulated. The Ring can work its way into Bruce through the Hulk.Doctor Strange, though not a member of the Avengers in the movie canon, will face the same quandary as Gandalf. Could he survive? He knows, by the nature of his abilities and knowledge, that this is a power he cannot hope to overcome by his own will alone. He’ll need help. He’ll be wise to seek out a Hobbit. That is if he is not blinded by arrogance and selfishness. He may be the Supreme Sorcerer, but at heart the old man lurks. The Ring will take advantage of it.Only Aragorn was able to challenge Sauron for the palantir of Orthanc and win, and only because:he was its rightful ownerthere was immense distance separating themhe had the bloodline of the Faithful running in his veinsAnd even then, by his own admission, the attempt left him drained and haggard. The Doom of Mandos rings true even in the Third Age: you cannot challenge a power greater than yourself and defeat it, for the attempt is doomed. Gandalf knew this and warned the Fellowship to flee from the Balrog. He was killed in fighting an equal Maia, and was only brought back by Eru’s direct intervention.So the Avengers join the Fellowship — or perhaps not. The Fellowship is more than just a stealth mission. It is a union of the Free Peoples of Middle-earth. It mended the hurt between the Dwarves and the Elves, it showed the world what a Hobbit is made of, and it glorified the potential of Men. Moreover, beyond the symbolism of Nine, the less there were in it the less chance there were of being discovered. Doctor Strange or Thor would be like Glorfindel, a beacon of power for Sauron to zero in on; Gandalf was immune only because of his Istari constraints until he fell. Any of the others would end up like Boromir, repenting in death of their folly.The Avengers then go to Gondor, to prepare for when Sauron inevitably sallies forth. They cannot fight him on their own or even together, without a power to challenge him. The Ring is that power, but alas they are no match for it, not with all of their strength or moral fiber, for it plays upon your deepest desires and seduces you into damnation and ruin.The Avengers aid the broken Fellowship at sundry times, when Pippin and Gandalf arrived to Minas Tirith, and when King Aragorn leads the host of Gondor to distract Sauron. Gollum destroys the Ring through the supreme irony of all, that good can come from evil, the Tower of Barad-dur is broken, and Sauron’s spirit is reduced to a shadow.The Avengers take leave of Middle-earth and return home, changed forever.Footnotes[1] Magic - Tolkien Gateway[2] Magic

Let’s see…. the United States of America has over 1,300,000+ forces and roughly 800,000 reserves. Here are some advantages the U.S has.Roughly as much landLarger population (and thusly manpower)Vastly superior technological prowessSuperior logisticsAir-superiorityNuclear weaponry and other Weapons of Mass DestructionNaval supremacyHowever, Sauron at his height had forces in the millions as he once held Númenor, alongside that a limitless supply of orcs, trolls, and other monsters. Meaning by default he would have a potentially larger force. The presence of Númenoreans would be daunting for anyone as it seems even the elves of Aman fled from them. It seems they would’ve been capable of doing significant damage to the country of Aman, meaning they have much more than just swords and spears. Nobody in the real-world has a response to the magical prowess of Sauron and his forces either.As for the average forces, Sauron would be defeat casually in those regards… but firstly, the fear which would induce the American soldiers since they’ve never seen anything like this would possibly even prompt a route. Ringwraiths would remain virtually immune to anything we have, even then, they’re immortal as long as Sauron remains.I think the biggest problem remains with Sauron himself more than anyone else. Of course, this is obvious, as he’s greater than the combined might of Númenor and greater than any of Melkor-Morgoth’s servants.So Sauron had recourse to guile. He submitted, and was carried off to Númenor as a prisoner-hostage. But he was of course a 'divine' person (in the terms of this mythology; a lesser member of the race of Valar) and thus far too powerful to be controlled in this way.Quote —“Among those of his servants that have names the greatest was that spirit whom the Eldar called Sauron, or Gorthaur the Cruel. In his beginning he was of the Maiar of Aulë, and he remained mighty in the lore of that people. In all the deeds of Melkor the Morgoth upon Arda, in his vast works and in the deceits of his cunning, Sauron had a part, and was only less evil than his master in that for long he served another and not himself. But in after years he rose like a shadow of Morgoth and a ghost of his malice, and walked behind him on the same ruinous path down into the Void.”As you all may know— Sauron is an Ainu, namely a Maia, which means he’s automatically immortal. Not only that but he’s of the Great Maiar, which are ‘nigh as powerful as the Valar’. Of course, this doesn’t account for the Great Valar like the Aratar and Melkor.Considering Sauron has resisted the powers of the Valar in some manner, it’s safe to say no nuke would subdue him.For nigh on two years after the Dagor Bragollach the Noldor still defended the western pass about the sources of Sirion, for the power of Ulmo was in that water, and Minas Tirith withstood the OrcsQuote —“Now the lightnings increased and slew men upon the hills, and in the fields, and in the streets of the city; and a fiery bolt smote the dome of the Temple and shore it asunder, and it was wreathed in flame. But the Temple itself was unshaken, and Sauron stood there upon the pinnacle and defied the lightning and was unharmed; and in that hour men called him a god and did all that he would.”He also recovered intervention by God, of course, if Eru wanted to he would destroy Sauron. Nevertheless, it’s incredibly impressive considering Eru’s plan was to destroy Númenor.I think you cannot immediately say the U.S defeats Númenor, their fleets are absolutely massive, and its armies are large and intimidating.While I stated the U.S Navy has supremacy, that’s only because of technology. Númenor is vastly larger. Apparently, their ships are massive as well. Like mobile towns.…. a mighty vessel like a castle with tall masts and great sails like clouds, bearing men and stores enough for a town. Then in the yards of Rómenna the saws and hammers were busy, while among many lesser craft a great ribbed hull took shape; at which men wondered. Turuphanto, the Wooden Whale, they called it, but that was not its name.As for their fleet size;the fleets of the Númenóreans darkened the sea upon the west of the land, and they were like an archipelago of a thousand isles; their masts were as a forest upon the mountains, and their sails like a brooding cloudThey were also technically blessed by the Valar themselves.Eönwë came among them and taught them; and they were given wisdom and power and life more enduring than any others of mortal race have possessed. … Thus the years passed, and while Middle-earth went backward and light and wisdom faded, the Dúnedain dwelt under the protection of the Valar and in the friendship of the Eldar, and they increased in stature both of mind and body.This quote might detail that Númenor is the greatest human civilization ever to exist, which would obviously mean they’re greater than the United States.At length Ar-Pharazôn listened to this counsel, for he felt the waning of his days and was besotted by the fear of Death. He prepared then the greatest armament that the world had seen, and when all was ready he sounded his trumpets and set sail; and he broke the Ban of the Valar, going up with war to wrest everlasting life from the Lords of the West.The greatest armament is exceptionally impressive since this also includes Morgoth and the Host of the Valar. The forces of Morgoth are absolutely enormous, so large in fact that even if you combined the forces of the Earth, it won’t even be comparable in size to Morgoth’s orc force.As for Sauron himself (again) he had a part in nigh-everything Melkor-Morgoth has done. This would include the creation of dragons, dark magic, and the corruption of Arda itself.In all the deeds of Melkor the Morgoth upon Arda, in his vast works and in the deceits of his cunning, Sauron had a part, and was only less evil than his master in that for long he served another and not himself.Of course, Sauron can just sink Washington D.C in a massive wave.‘Guards were set at the haven of Morionde in the east of the land, where the rocks are dark, watching at the king's command without ceasing for the ships' return. It was night, but there was a bright Moon. They descried ships far off, and they seemed to be sailing west at a speed greater than the storm, though there was little wind. Suddenly the sea became unquiet; it rose until it became like a mountain, and it rolled upon the land. The ships were lifted up, and cast far inland, and lay in the fields. Upon that ship which was cast highest and stood dry upon a hill there was a man, or one in man's shape, but greater than any even of the race of Numenor in stature.Or he can just trigger an eruption in Yellowstone. Much the same as what he did with Orodrúin (Mount Doom).“Therefore, after a time he made war upon the Exiles, before they should take root. Orodrúin burst once more into flame, and was named anew in Gondor Amon Amarth, Mount Doom”Assuming he was in character he would take control over the United States and can cause its own destruction through civil-war or disorientation. Nobody can resist or stop the temptation of Sauron so I doubt there is anything that can subdue his rule.Assuming he was unhinged and bloodlusted, he destroys the entire United States through natural disasters and his auras of horror as well as a combined effort of arms from Ringwraiths, Númenoreans, orcs, and more. Society itself would collapse from terror and we might just nuke ourselves.He’s greater in the dark-arts than all of the Balrogs combined— who brought annihilation to entire landscapes. Greater than the great Ancalagon whose fall destroyed the peaks of Thangorodrim, which are larger than Mount Everest.Sauron took on the entire Last Alliance and almost won, fought Gil-galad and Elendil whose arms “none can withstand”, overcame Finrod in a battle of song, held his own against an invincible hound and a half-Maia who put Morgoth to sleep, was as powerful in eliteness and effectiveness than Morgoth (when he had the Ring), defied Númenor’s destruction briefly before being overcome by a wave from God Himself.I think it’s safe to say Sauron wins this… he himself is too much of a threat to us. Many would follow him and his presence alone will either bring those with him in his all-mighty charisma or bring those to utter terror and downfall.You will serve him… or you will perish…The United States military wins for awhile before Sauron figures them out or comes directly in force. We cannot defeat such a foe, despite our vast technological advantages… Sauron’s divine power alongside many other traits that go against the U.S is as massive as our own nuclear weaponry.-Taelor Pickel

Credits to Kxevin@BFB, one of my favorite writers.DANI ALVES IS LIFE, EVEN AS LIFE MUST, SOMEDAY, ENDThe ball floated and skittered along the pitch, a playing surface that was deliberately dry and unkempt in the hope of harrying the unreasonable guests.In the moment that the ball slowed in a bit of cabbage patch la pausa, a streak came hurtling in to bend a boot round the ball just before it crossed the end line, lacing in a perfect cross to a striker who was accustomed to No. 6 performing the extraordinary, who made the run that few other attackers in the game would make.Goal!As the reports emerge of Dani Alves’ possible departure to Juventus, we should review what we know about the situation: nothing. Nothing at all. Why? Because the summer transfer window is people who don’t know anything, riling up people who know even less. “Juventus sources say,” “FC Barcelona sources deny.”Club sources have allegedly confirmed that Alves has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave on a free, if activated before a certain date. Allegedly. Allegedly, Adriano and Douglas were overheard saying to Alves, “See you next year.” Allegedly. Allegedly, Mascherano will be leaving for Juventus with Alves, as he feels unappreciated by anyone except his teammates and coaches. Allegedly.But here is what else we know: Dani Alves is life. As we roll through our existences, secure in precious little except that at some point in our futures existence will end, we hesitate, we pause, we don’t do things that we want to do, or halfass things we do that we said we would do, and not halfass. That isn’t living life, that’s playing at it. Dani Alves is the life that we want, the unreserved, full-bore zeal that makes everyone say, “Y’all!”A haircut reminiscent of a pile of dog poo? Sure. Velvet pants with a red fedora? Okay. A video that mimics his girlfriend (now wife) telling him after a difficult match that it’s just a game? You betcha. Financing hepatitis treatments, spider crawling along a bus ceiling, mimicry and always, always laughter.Dani Alves lives life as he plays football, like it’s all a game. We always speak of those people who who rocket along with an enviable joie de vivre, in almost awed tones. We wish we could do that, embody “Wheeee!” It’s not only admirable, but it allows us all to lay on wherever existence is going to end for us, without a shard of regret.Dani Alves never stops on the football pitch. He runs, he harries, he dives, he exaggerates, he makes great plays and stupid plays, he crosses balls to the fans in the cheap seats, then he puts one right on someone’s boot or noggin. Life is successes and glorious failures, but you can’t have one without the other. Dani Alves understands that, so he doesn’t give two shits when people declare him over, make jokes about his crosses going to the moon, boot-assisted rockets to nowhere. He doesn’t care because he’s too busy living life, skipping and capering about with a joy that is infectious.Marc-Andre Ter Stegen is dour, the only serious face when the world is cracking up. In a recent training session, at the goad of Dani Alves, Ter Stegen was … well … silly. Goofy face, oddball gesture. There was a movie, released in the 1970s, called “What’s So Bad About Feeling Good?” The premise was that there was this bird that had a disease, and the symptoms were that you would be infected with happiness. Alves is that bird, and it’s glorious.You don’t have to be a fan of him to understand what he does for the game, how he lives it, plays it and makes it a metaphor for life, successes and failures, mercurial moments strung together in sequences that make us laugh, shrug, cry and exult. He never stops on the pitch, and he never stops living life. Dani Alves is a beautiful human being, whatever anyone thinks about his footballing talents and the state of his career.Sid Lowe of the Guardian called him a footballing Sonic the Hedgehog, but really, we can extend that definition past football. Dani Alves is life, plain and simple. And the saddest thing about life is that it has to end.Alves has been gone before. A couple of years ago, he was “gone” to Paris St.-Germain, before calling an exultant presser to do nothing more than be Dani Alves. At the recent Camp Nou celebration, a player who always wears his heart on his sleeve went bare-armed. He talked about Xavi and what the No. 6 meant to him, he issued a valedictory for the Barça teams that he graced, he laughed and cried, and everyone thought it was lovely. The club’s official site labeled the video of his speech “a final message.”But nobody thought that it might mean farewell, because who wants life to end? Rumors are rumors, until they are fact. Alves might be pranking us all, might be laughing in that shark-faced, irrepressible way that makes the joke on you, but you don’t mind a bit. He might be bounding up and down the right side of the pitch for Barça next season, being life, the lively embodiment of doing everything to the fullest.What if he isn’t? What if the rumors are true, and he is gone to Juventus on the rumored three-year contract that would provide not only a big payday, but the security that he wasn’t going to get from the club with which he became part of history, of glory and triumph. That’s okay, because it has to be. No player should be where he doesn’t want to be, and players come and go, even capricious beings who bound through life like a Greek god of mirth.The world in which Alves lives has changed, even as his influence was outsized in the phenomenal closing run of Barça. The key goals in the Copa final came from the left. The attack has shifted to the left, with Neymar and Alba. Now that Messi has slid back, the magical back-and-forths of he and Alves are greatly diminished as Alves reverts to something more of a “normal” right back, rather than Harpo Marx to Messi’s Groucho, a two-headed fun machine.As he bounds up and back, it’s clear that the step is gone. The player that used to body up on attackers, possessed of the quickness that enabled him to control, outthink and dispossess, now plays off opponents, who are allowed to receive passes. Alves evaluates and makes plays, or not. His game has changed along with the demands of his position. Alves is glorious, but the question is, for those churlish enough to ask it, is he still essential?Football moves on, players move on. Sergi Roberto will probably become the right back. He won’t be Alves in the sense that he won’t be life. The team will lose something important to its nature, that being that laughs and reminds everyone that it’s a game, that he and his teammates are millionaires scampering about on a golf course, clad in shorts and doing something they would do for free.The joy of Alves is such that even as his quality is still inarguable, the game moving on means that the joyless external forces that rip at life, rip at Barça’s life. This summer, the team will have to dump some salaries. Some of us speculated previously that Alves and Mascherano would be on that short list, bodies made expendable by the maturation process of a team. If Alves was life, Mascherano was soul, the grit that abrades opponent opportunity, that comes steaming in when Alba is caught up the pitch and Pique is out of position, hoofing a ball away or making a last-ditch tackle.Mascherano is fire. But like Alves, he is a potential victim of a team growing up. Pique has assumed a leadership role on the defense, and in many ways Jefecito can move on, knowing that his defense is in good hands. Maybe. Rumors are that he is off to Juventus, that personal terms have been agreed and now the clubs must haggle out the appropriate weight of a pound of flesh.So many say that Mascherano isn’t a CB, and it’s true. He’s no more a CB than Carles Puyol was. He’s a wannabe superhero, like Puyol, with a cape and flashy nickname such as The Bullet. He puts out fires, comes to the rescue time and time again, greeted by silence until he errs, when we are reminded once again by his many detractors that he isn’t a CB. He isn’t a CB just as Alves isn’t an RB.Both are players whose roles adapted to be part of a team that adapted football. High lines, charging forward, centerbacks lacing in passes from just outside the opposition box, right backs that fly about like wingers. The perception of Alves and Mascherano by too many is the consequence of thinking about football in the droll traditional way, of bending perception of an unconventional team to suit preconceived notions.“Thiago Silva would have been in better position.” Maybe. But probably not, because Silva is a CB. Mascherano is a Barça CB. There is a difference, and it is a significant one.Yet, those two players, Alves and Mascherano, life and fire, might be expendable because after winning a treble and then a double, the team has to start thinking about the future, about retooling in a way that allows the success to continue, without a pair of players who are 31 and 33 years old. Football, like time, moves on, and it takes — talent, pace, quickness, ability to respond physically to a tactical mind that is still sharp. Plays made easily become last-ditch challenges or cards. Second by second, we are no longer what we were. Life doesn’t slip away in big chunks, it slips away in wasted seconds, in hesitation, wishes and retrospect.Barça has a pair of players, both the subject of rumor, who are not at all interested in hesitation, wishes and retrospect. One tore his anus making a play, the other runs as fast in the 90th minute as he does in the first. Both are irreplaceable but must, eventually, be replaced, because football is indeed life. And in ways that are often unspeakably sad, life must go on.THE IMPOSSIBLE BALANCEWhat do you hang onto, and why? Favorite pieces of clothing? Shoes? Love letters or cards?Our brains are constantly shuttling information, helping us file away or forget things to make room for new bits of data. We don’t forget because we want to, we forget because we have to. This makes our brain a lot like a big football club, which must constantly serve many tasks. It has to win, build for the future,support its youth and respect its veterans. In other words, a big club has to do the impossible.The Barça sporting director, Robert Fernandez, had a presser at which he confirmed many things: Alves is leaving, Bartra is leaving, Adriano can leave, but the club hasn’t received any concrete calls, Mascherano is staying, Neymar will renew and stay, Sandro is leaving, he and Luis Enrique know where the team needs reinforcement and what they would like to do, Carles Alena will spend his summer with the first team. It was a fascinating laundry list that included all of the things necessary for a big club, the constant churn of bodies and tasks.In that list is getting rid of the past, ensuring the future and tending to youth. Alves is, naturally, the biggest focus so it’s worth starting there with something that isn’t all that pleasant to say, which is that the evolution of Barça has made him surplus to requirements. This is true even as Robert said that the club didn’t want Alves to leave, which is certainly true in a philosophical sense. But …Alves has a big salary, and the club won’t be sorry to see that go. Alves also has a big mouth, and as charming as we find it, the club won’t be sorry to see that go, either. The game and how it is played at Barça has also shifted. The left side of attack is now where the action is, with Alba and Neymar as well as a frolicking Iniesta. And now that Messi is becoming more of a player who lives up to the heritage of his number, those dazzling forward forays between Alves and Messi have, of necessity, changed.As Alves became as much auxiliary midfielder as right back, the interesting question was always going to be whether that necessary shift would also make him an extra, now that the needs for the right side have changed. In a world where Sergi Roberto can be almost as effective for a third of the price, some hard questions need be asked. Alves wanted security, the club didn’t want to give it to him because of the needs that it has. And if you are going to retool a bit, the time after a treble followed by a double is perfect.Circumstances have made Alves no longer essential from a sporting aspect, a cold-hearted analysis that doesn’t suit a world of romance where supporters fall in love every season as accountants make furious calculations because for them, athletes are just entries on a balance sheet. Alves was and is, vividly, engagingly human. He plays with kids at trophy celebrations, hangs with Masia players, he’s the capricious side of everyone and an everlasting delight. He’s also an athlete and a businessman who has to make decisions that are right for his future, just like the club that he used to play for.None of this takes into account the biggest question, which is how we want to remember our great players. Xavi went out draped with streamers and confetti after a treble celebration, still with plenty of magic in his legs. Alves went out, mic in hand, saying Barça is the best club ever, backed by the sound and fury of a double celebration. Do we want that, or a guy who no longer has that step, who supporters are clamoring for the departure of as he is a shadow of his wonderful, vibrant self. The best memories leave us wanting more. Clubs don’t care about that, but if they have to let a veteran go, it ideally is one year before he falls apart. This makes him easy to move, easy to point to and say “Whew!” when the inevitable happens.Complicating those decisions is that Barça has, right now, a once-in-a-lifetime generation of talent that the club doesn’t want to waste. This messes with another aspect of the list of big-club tasks, bringing along youth players, which is something that requires time, patience and a willingness to soak up youthful errors. A club that is rebuilding or sitting mid-table can give Munir the playing time he needs to develop his prodigious talents. Barça, where every goal is potentially season-defining, doesn’t have that luxury.Not wanting to waste the dwindling time of legends in the making also leads to something that many snarl is “short-termism,” but is in fact a judgment call. You only get one Iniesta, only one Messi. So you sign a Turan instead of bringing along a youth midfielder because you have no time to waste. But you also look at youth players in the summer, when nothing is at stake, to file away impressions for the future. Some go on loan, never to return, others are sold with buybacks. It’s all part of what goes on, and what must go on.Youth players also sometimes mature into an athlete who doesn’t quite meet standards. Marc Bartra is moving on because he has more questions than answers, and the club is, at the moment, tired of asking them. So he will be sold with a buyback, which helps supporters who love him, or overrate him because of the academy roots, feel better. It also helps soothe the feelings of the player, even as everyone knows that he won’t be returning to Barça. Understanding when a player isn’t cutting it and turning him loose is another part of the business that is the game we love.It’s all part of the planning, even when that planning sometimes fails. Valdes goes, Ter Stegen comes, Bravo is the bridge. Xavi leaves, Iniesta is there. Alves leaves, club is ready with Sergi Roberto and Vidal. Puyol left, and there was Mascherano. Players come and go, plans are made, succession strategies put into place.Supporters want a club to win, respect and revere veterans, bring along youth in the exact right way, win, do good business buying and selling and have every transfer be exactly right. Supporters are, most of the time, as unrealistic as unicorns that poop gold bricks. Youth players might not be good enough because of the stratospheric quality of the Barça XI. But you also buy a Turan instead of taking a risk on promoting a Samper or Kaptoum because the sure thing provides greater value for the existing, aging talent that you have. Kaptoum or Samper will take two years to mature into full brilliance. In that time, Iniesta will be 34, Messi 31. Too late, so let’s get this done now. Youth can wait and, in that circumstance, should wait. The club makes them understand, then plugs its ears as supporters scream about youth being ignored. Context and perspective are important.Youth players moving into a senior side have to be good enough. Is there a B player who could even crack Barça’s first-team roster as a sub right now? Maybe Samper. That’s it. So now what? Turan and the seeming short-termism that is, for many, acknowledgement that the team’s core is aging, and fast. There aren’t that many treble windows left so every one needs to be taken advantage of. This requires judicious rebuilding. You can take a risk with a Sergi Roberto and Aleix Vidal right-side combo to replace Alves because of the necessities of that new task, even as supporters will judge new players by the standard of a past player and find the new player wanting. That’s human nature. “The guy who did that job did it this way. That defines the job.”But of course, Barça has young players in the first-team roster that also require care and feeding. If Ter Stegen is going to be the No. 1 keeper next season, Javier Mascherano will be a welcome sight, with his veteran nous and calm stability, the two things a fledgling keeper will most need. He and Pique will also be around to help the new right side of defense, whether it’s fixing a mistake, correcting and reminding or just being calm and stable. If Denis Suarez and Rafinha will grow into something magical, the veteran cutting edge of a player such as Arda Turan is important, as well as the mentoring of captain Iniesta.A deeper look makes us wonder if Robert’s delight at Mascherano staying says something about the club’s desire or ability to splash big for a CB this summer. Why spend 50m for a CB when you have Mascherano, who will almost certainly start if he is fit. So the club takes a risk or two, replaces Mathieu and Vermaelen with a young CB and a quality veteran, and moves on. The sporting director won’t care a whit about the 19-year-old hipster CB favorite that some supporters are screaming that the club didn’t sign, because there are other necessities that are more important.Alves is leaving on a free, which is a nice gesture by the club, but also crucial. Alves’ salary means that if a club has to also pay a transfer fee for him, a deal becomes a lot more difficult. That’s another part of the financial balance necessary for a big club to do what it needs to do. The timing for the move is also perfect.The summer will, for FC Barcelona, be fascinating. We always knew that some players were going to be moving on this summer. Both Alves and Mascherano were on many lists, even as the latter was always more likely to stay. Alves brings something magical, a crazy intangible, but so does Mascherano. In the cold-hearted calculus that big clubs perform, the equations worked out right for one and not the other. And that’s okay, because it has to be.DANI ALVES: A ONCE IN A LIFETIME FOOTBALLERI was never really a fan of being attached to a footballer to the extent of being upset when he leaves. I always thought it involved some sort of overreaction when a fan did that. Don’t get me wrong, I was upset when Xavi left but we were all completely aware of it happening so I got over it immediately. The way the 2015/2016 season went, many fans including myself simply let the idea of Dani Alves leaving slide. We were warned in 2015 yet we decided to forget all about it. I believe the reason behind this is that any fan who has been following Barcelona throughout this past decade realizes that Dani is not just a fantastic player and not just one of the best to ever play in that position. Dani Alves is much more than that. Dani Alves is happiness and you just can’t let go of happiness.“That’s the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up”. –Walt DisneyDani Alves is the Walt Disney of the football world. Dani spent a career reminding people of why they did what they did when they were young. Walt once said: “Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is optional”. Dani never really grew up and he never really planned to. He was hated for it by his rivals. As for the fans, we adored him for it. Dani indirectly reminded you of everything you did for fun when you were young and showed you that you can be successful while also never letting go of the pure happiness you had as a kid.Dani enters the field match after match in stadiums all around Europe on the biggest stages with the same happiness and excitement he had when he was twelve. Dani made sure he had fun and came back as a winner. If he failed in the latter, he knew it was only a matter of time before he turned it around and the fans always believed he will. Even those who doubted him knew very well that Dani indicates success some way or another and that it’s just a matter of time before they see him dancing.Dani loved the club and found honest pleasure in its success. He did not slightly care about what others thought of him or the club. He always believed he was good enough for any situation and that the team he played for was without a doubt the greatest team in the world. He went out time and time again to remind people of how big the club is. He gladly rubbed success in the faces of his doubters or rivals. He had an attitude that would predictably be completely despised by his rivals and his fans loved him for that.In times when fans lost hope in the team, Dani went out to remind everyone of who they support and got them back to their senses. Dani signaled hope. He made it clear to everyone that he will return to succeed and he will continue having fun regardless of what people think.Dani arrived to the club signaling the beginning of the Dani Alves era. It was an era in which the right flank was a massive force for Barcelona. Honestly, it was the most effective right flank any team in the world had on average in that specific period. There are players in his position who had extremely successful seasons but no one managed to stay as consistent and as influential as Dani Alves. Some way or another, a massive performance by Dani Alves always indicated that Barcelona is going to be okay.It is important to point out that Dani’s linkup with Lionel Messi is possibly the most effective linkup the world has seen in recent years. It was a linkup that was crucial for Barcelona’s success and I personally believe it was the most important of them all. You could spend days describing their relationship on the field throughout these past 8 years from a tactical perspective but I will try to sum it up in once sentence: When Lionel Messi retires and decides to write a book telling his story to future generations each page of the book will include Dani Alves some way or another.Dani is part of the generation that brought Barcelona the most success throughout its history. To be more accurate, Dani is the heart and soul of that generation. He stood there signaling hope when even the most gifted players in the world felt like it was all over for them. He is as talented as a player in his position could possibly get. Dani has seen it all. Dani has done it all.Alves leaves the club at the age of 33 but he will always be remembered as the man with the heart of a kid who never really gave up regardless of the circumstances. He’ll be remembered as the most decorated defender the world has seen. He’ll be remembered as a fantastic man who was one of the very few people in the world to truly understand what it’s like to support FC Barcelona.BARÇA, DANI ALVES AND THE DIGNITY OF WORKThis is a guest post by Conor P. Williams, longtime culer and savvy wordsmith. Hope you all enjoy it.I spend my professional life in the world of education. And all the other hours are dedicated to parenting (even the ones I spend in front of beIN SPORTS). Both of these worlds are dominated by a common commitment to what’s known as “the growth mindset.” That is, there are no Good Kids — just good choices. There is no praising a kid’s intelligence — just praise for her hard work. That, we’ve learned, isthe healthy, effective way to think and talk about success.It’s a principle that’s more important as a lesson for parents, teachers, and kids than as an actual truth (even though it is true). Because we have some control over our work ethic. We can choose to persist, even if we’re stuck with our size, our peripheral vision, our eyesight, etc. This gets wrangled into arguments about “grit” and persistence and etc, and those can get a little rough, but the basic idea is clear enough: effort beats ability.Which brings me — thanks for your patience — to Barça, and the sunset of the Dani Alves era. During the last decade of heavenly success, it’s been almost de rigeur to marvel at the blaugrana, at their essential, ephemeral cocktail of magic. They’re the team that only scores golazos, the team that makes the “sublime” and “magisterial” routine. They’ve been so good, so radical, so different, that media and fans alike are prone to chalking the glory up to natural (or rather, unnatural) talent.Which is certainly true, as far as it goes. For years, Barça has been a team of freakish talents built into a system that’s (with a few tweaks and personnel shifts) designed to maximize their output. In this account, they’re mutants in a tiki-taka exoskeleton. They’re pass merchants who are clever and graceful beyond comprehensible human levels. They are built around the world’s — history’s — best player, a guy whose brilliance is as “irrational” as it is reliable. Messi is miraculous ability incarnate, a small, awkward person who has somehow been unstoppable for years. Think on it a moment: nearly every time it bursts forth, Messi’s excellence looks effortless. Effort-less.Let me put this another way. Barça has been so good that they have partaken in the divine. They have been not just “more than a club” — they have been more than human. Their players appear to be just born for this. They have dominated with a craftsmanship and brilliant that calls forth comparisons to the supernatural. They are not just sweaty men on a pitch. They are demi-gods that play the game with an almost dilettantish/wanton level of enjoyment.But this view of things is also false, as far as it goes. For FC Barcelona is also a team that, as Sid Lowe and others have noticed, is built on a foundation of steel. Barça have been good for many years. But the teams that have been truly great have been those that have simply, gladly outworked their opponents. This is hard to notice in the face of glittering one-touch passes through a parked bus.This fact, I think, helps explain why Alves never gets the love he deserves from culers. He can pass, he’s quick, he can create … but his defining virtue isrelentlessness. Alves always presses. He always runs. He always works his tail off.Call it the Barcelona Tenacity Caucus. Edgar Davids helped found the modern chapter. Yaya Touré and Eric Abidal both joined. Pedro and Alexis Sánchez both joined as soon as they could. Suarez’s application is pending. And Don Carles Puyol forged the bylaws in iron. He incarnated the Will to Win. He played the game to the last full measure of exertion, the guy whose constitutive reason for existing was to [Expletive] Stop The [Expletive] Other Guys Right [Expletive] Here and [Expletive] Now.This half of the Barça equation matters. Lowe noticed something about these recent teams, especially as they transitioned into and out of the Guardiola years. When they are great, it’s not because they have passed the tough teams into submission. They always out-pass the other guys, because (again) they have a half-dozen sorcerer men with sparkle shoes and 340° peripheral vision. Take out the hard men, the powerful and indomitable men, and FCB start to look like Arsenal, trying to pass their way into the net until they lose the tie to bad weather and a few fluky counterattacks.The key isn’t to hold the ball. No, when Barça are great, it’s because they refuse to let the other team have it for more than a few moments. Because they swarm the other team as soon as they lose possession. Which is why the grit brigade matters so much. Why the team went from acoustic to electric when Captain Carles suited up. Why Javier Mascherano is perhaps their most essential player today.This is why Dani Alves mattered so much — why his departure could be an epochal signpost. Alves is a first-ballot Hall of Fame member of Barça’s lunch-bucket crew. This is an unlovely crowd. These are men who do not sparkle. They burn, and sometimes they blaze.I think that this is more or less why he never quite tattooed himself into many culers’ hearts. The Messi-fueled, Xavi-sustained quicksilver ethos is — obviously — congenial to supporters. Culers get a moral superiority born of connections tothose favored by Providence. (Note: It also grants them a unique myopia regarding failure, for the divinely chosen are not meant to lose…and certainly not to Real Sociedad, or to Athletic Bilbao, or, as the blindness gets worse, even toAtlético Madrid. For immortal sporting gods, a month containing two losses constitutes an earth-shaking, existential crisis.)But there’s something deeper happening here. The key players in the miracles theory, those little touch-passing wizards in their mystical city farmhouses, are less accessible than the workhorses. Because the grinders, the Puyols, are recognizable. There is nothing fathomable about men who keep working—hard—when others stop. We might never have Xavi’s vision, but we could be those gritty men, were we willing. It’s easier to worship the idols than to recognize our better selves in their examples. Lo, I swear to you, you will never play as well as Messi — ever — but you could be Dani Alves, were you devoted enough to the wind sprints.And yet, this is still shorting Dani Alves’ importance to a brilliant club’s most remarkable era.His departure represents a crumbling of a bridge at the Camp Nou. He linked the glitter to the sandpaper. He was at once glitz and grind, glamour and grudge. Here is the man, here is what he was for the fans inPedralbes, here is who he still is: Alves is a remarkably good passer who is not Xavi (although). He is a rocketing force down the line who is neither as smooth nor quite as clever as Iniesta. He is always fully spent. He has good games and bad games, but he never has halfway games.These are some of my own thoughts.Dani Alves is simply irreplaceable. He is the greatest right back in the history of our club and rightfully so. Many fans may criticize him and they are partially right. But Alves has always been unorthodox in so many things. People say many times that we would have not conceded had we had a 'regular' right back, but if not for Alves we would never have achieved the same level of success. It is tough to say goodbye to a legend but life goes on and life will find a way to go on. At least he leaves us no shortage of fond memories.Obrigado Dani !Thanks for A2A.PS - Sorry for such a long answer but all articles are worth reading for their high level and the amount of time and energy spent in making them.