Can Barça’s title defense endure summer of self sabotage?

Is Barcelona the only club in the world where you could explain to a neutral observer the level of chaotic and acrimonious threat from which they suffer and always predict that they are the favorites to win two or three domestic trophies this season?

Probably … yes.

Thus, despite the advantages of the Spanish champions of the signature of Marcus Rashford, Joan García and Rony Bardghji, it is worth lifting the Blaugrana carpets and examine the problems that are determined below.

Do you remember Nico Williams’ fiasco?

The midfielder of Barcelona was marked by the Spanish winger who withdrew from a transfer, which the club thought and dusted, because his agent, and not unreasonably, required a guarantee that the 24 -year -old would be recorded as Barça player by a specific date.

The entourage of Williams had witnessed the board of directors of President Joan, Joan Laporta, in the recording of Dani Olmo last season, then when Blaugrana could not respond to their requests for security and peace of mind, the player rather renewed his contract with Athletic Club.

The key problem here, as is a year ago, is that Barcelona accountants confidently claim that they have reached a clean health check concerning the ultra-extension rules of the Laliga Financial Fair (FFP). Laliga, so far, continue to take a different point of view.

To give you a visual image: Barça walks high with the inflated chest in public, but on the knee mixed with hands joined in private prayer, and Laliga bosses scratch the chin in skepticism and doubt.

At the time of writing the time of the editorial staff, with ten days until the start of the season, none of the new players of Hansi Flick (or Wojciech Szczęsny or Gerard Martín, who have received new contracts) are still eligible to appear for the champions. The new additions have been signed (or taken on loan, in the case of Rashford) by Barcelona, but they do not have the certification of Laliga that they will be allowed to play.

If this confirmation is not won when the transfer market closed, these players would be ineligible until January. Improbable, but a factual reality.

Then, the club announces, then reporting embarrassingly, their return to Camp Nou for over a year now. (It is not an exaggeration. Eighteen months ago, they predicted with confidence the celebration of their 125th anniversary, which came and came last November, in their renewed and rebuilt house.)

However, they will face their traditional seasonal gaming tournament and much appreciated in their Johan Cruyff stadium of 5,000 capacities rather than Camp Nou as previously announced.

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Once finished, the stadium will look and feel, quite extraordinary.

But the immediate plan was that the first team contributes to a maximum capacity of 30,000 (lower than their temporary home in the Montjuic stadium and a little less than a third of what Camp Nou will last once finished). It is hardly optimal for fans or players, and does not create any hostile atmosphere for visiting teams.

The problem is that no one really knows with certainty when Camp Nou is open to business.

The champions convinced Laliga that their first three competition games (Mallorca, Levante, Rayo Vallecano) should be played far from their homes to give Barça time to complete the various security certificates and the administrative formalities of the local council which are currently not resolved, but the men and women occupied in the corridors of the Camp Nou of the power do not make the threatening, more important.

The UEFA Champions League begins in mid-September, precisely when Barcelona should play its first home league match, welcoming Valence. Good luck to end all the end details in time while meeting the criteria set by the authorities of the city, Laliga and UEFA for a safe, modern and well -functioning stadium.

Once again, I would point out that the club gives off confident noises that their duties are well done. But here is the apocalyptic threat.

If, for an unexpected reason, some of the criteria are not met and that Barcelona cannot play his first home game in the Champions League phase at Camp Nou, then wherever they choose, the rules of the UEFA mean the Blaugrana must play all Their home games of the Champions League on this same field until January.

It is only a potential setback, but it was a question of materializing, embarrassment, recrimination and financial losses would follow.

Questioned by Mundo Deportivo this week if the Camp Nou would be ready in time, the director of Barcelona, Joan Soler, replied: “What we are clear is that we will return to Camp Nou. We should not set a date, because it becomes an additional pressure. Building a stadium of this magnitude is colossal, but that must have been done.

“We must guarantee the safety of the people who attend it. Until the appropriate certification, we will not be back to Camp Nou. We are going as quickly as possible, because the club needs, both from a sporting point of view, so that the team can play home games and in terms of income.”

Has Barcelona quietly said to UEFA if they could also be guaranteed to play their first two games in the Champions League far from their home, just as they do at the national level? They have already asked that their first game be on the road.

Finally and above all, Barça and their 11-year-old veteran Marc-André Ter Stegen have almost fallen in love with each other, and everything becomes a little aggressive passive.

Ter Stegen’s behavior towards the end of last season specifically angry the film. They can share a nationality and be former allies, but Ter Stegen fell due to the strict disciplinary code of Flick.

The goalkeeper felt daring enough to show his dissatisfaction not to play enough once he had returned to fitness, and the coach radically changed his attitude for the captain of the first 33 -year -old team. What followed is that García is now considered the starting goalkeeper, Szczęsny has renewed his contract, Ter Stegen was said that it was time to find a new club and that there is a massive debate on the question of whether the German international will keep his captain.

Beyond Barcelona simply concerning García as the way to follow, they want to go from Ter Stegen, which would considerably reduce their salary bill and allow them to pacify Laliga and record Rashford, García and the promising Bardghji.

But Ter Stegen, who has a very lucrative contract with three more years, is intelligent, stubborn and annoyed by the way he was treated. In addition, the German coach Julian Nagelsmann clearly indicated that during a season of the FIFA World Cup, Ter Stegen, if he is in good shape and starring regularly for his club, will be the Mannschaftn ° 1.

The challenges, for Barcelona and their goalkeeper winning five times, are super high.

Last month, Ter Stegen decided that he needed a touch -up on a previous rear operation. It was completed last week in France, and the argument now, between him and Laporta, is whether the recovery will be three, four or five months.

A meeting is scheduled for this week with the club who needs to ask his poorly treated player to accept that he will be released until January, rather than returning to training in November. The difference being to know if Barcelona can then transform the absence of Ter Stegen (while paying it fully) in a financial exemption from Laliga so that they can rebalance the books and meet the FFP criteria to record their new players.

This is a tip that they used last year to record Olmo and Pau Víctor for six months when Andreas Christensen was injured. If they can, it is a victory for their tactics.

If they cannot, and Ter Stegen is not only injured, but they cannot use his absence either to modify their FFP status, then their treatment of him becomes an objective of the operation.

“We are making adequate progress in recording new players, we are convinced that we will succeed,” said Laporta during the Barcelona tour in South Korea. “Using the absence of TER Stegen to transform with Laliga [so] That we can record Joan García is not the only route, it’s just the most direct. “”

Not necessarily the most reassuring words, but it may be better that Laporta speaks with caution than being optimistic.

Times for the champions, but, I must admit, I will discuss in this space in the days and weeks to come that they are my best bet to win Laliga again – even in the face of an interesting and renewed Real Madrid challenge.

Stay listening.