One of the two Titans of Spanish football, Barcelona, has a massive appetite. It can’t be successful. This was a fine season by all means, especially after a slump that was ongoing for the last few years in Cataluña. Winning two trophies, and playing in the semi-final of the Champions League should be enough for any team, yet with Barca it feels like it was not enough. You could view it like that considering just how close they were to eliminating Inter Milan in the semis of the CL.
The Champions League loss to Inter can be attributed to the inexperience the Spanish giants had in its ranks. Yes, it is one of the most talented and youngest squads in the world, but that comes with a hefty price of inexperience in big matches. This was evident when facing the super experienced Inter team, when Barca was unable to hold onto its lead despite dominating the match through both legs. At the end of the day, admitting that the team did well, and that what was lost this year can be achieved next season, would be fine. Unfortunately nothing is promised in football.
Barcelona will without doubt try to build on what was achieved this year. The foundation is already there as their manager’s contract was extended until 2027. Hansi Flick will remain tied to Barca for the foreseeable future. The German expert instilled his ideas to the young Barcelona team, and they’ve been playing the most attractive type of football throughout the year. The likes of Lamine Yamal and Raphinha have been playing out of their minds. According to Stake and similar sports betting outlets both are in the run to win the Ballon d’Or.
In addition to these two masters of their craft, Barcelona has a good team, but not an entirely balanced one. Also, their team building strategy is suspect to say the least, and it is all thanks to their financial woes that have been around for some time now. By now, you’ve heard about the popular levers that are often used to complete transfer deals for the club. The previous administration has left the club in a dire situation, but the sun finally shines over Barcelona after a few years of facing adversity. They’re still not out of the black hole, but the rise of Lamine Yamal has helped the fans to dream again. Winning the title and cup also helped with that.
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As we said, there are pieces that Flick can work with, but there are also many questions signs over a few big names wearing the Barca shirt. One of the biggest ones is Robert Lewandowski. The Pole is one of the best strikers of his generation. While still performing at a high level, it is evident that his best days are behind him. A massive drop is expected any season now, which all would be fine if he wasn’t on astronomical wages. Not even his wages would be an issue if Barcelona had a clear succession solution for him. There isn’t one on the team, and the media is suspect that there will be enough funds to fund a replacement. But, we’ll focus on transfer later on.
The core of the team is their midfield as we’re used to Barcelona being, where Pedri and Frankie de Jong dominate the possession. While the Spaniard’s future is closely tied to Barcelona and we expect him to lead the team for years to come, there’s a transfer saga with de Jong each offseason. As we said, Barca has financial woes and with Frenkie’s departure some of them would be solved. The Dutchman can command a high transfer fee and cutting his wages off the payroll would do wonders for Barcelona’s plans in the transfer market. Yet, de Jong refuses to leave year in and year out, and when he’s playing, he’s their best player on the field.
Even if a transfer happens eventually, Barcelona has plenty of players waiting in line, many of them coming from La Masia. The likes of Marc Casado and Pablo Torre have already proven themselves. While none possess the quality of the Dutch player, Barcelona needs plenty of reinforcements across all positions. The downside of their work with youngsters is that they hype every one of them coming through the ranks from La Masia. Much was expected from Nico and Gavi, and while the latter is still with the team, but not playing close to expectations, Nico was already sold.
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Another massive issue for Barcelona is their defence, and their weakness was revealed during the semi-final bout vs. Inter Milan. Barca has a play style that dominates the possession, and they’re now dangerous on the counter too, which makes teams attack them with a holdback. Through the entire year, the likes of Inigo Martinez, Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde, Eric Garcia, and Jules Kounde haven’t really been tested. When they have, as was the case vs. Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final and in the last league duel, they conceded plenty and were bailed out by their attackers. Also, the matter of the starting goalkeeper hasn’t been resolved yet, as while Marc-Andre ter Stegen is injured and it is unknown what his future will be, Wojciech Szczesny did well in his stead.
With everything above said Barcelona can’t be seen as a sport betting favourite to win the competitions they’ve won this year, and even less in the much coveted Champions League. They’ve been outstanding through the entire year, but it is hard to expect that this team can be carried by an 18-year old Yamal, and it is even less likely to expect that Raphinha will repeat the year he had statistically. Remember, the Brazilian is entering the last round of La Liga with 18 goals and 9 assists. His Champions League run was even more impressive as he scored 13 goals in 14 duels and added 9 more assists. He was phenomenal. Will he be like that next year? Quote us on this in 12 months time – there is no chance in hell!
What Barcelona needs to do to be at least this competitive next year, and in years to come is to be smart in the transfer market. Yes, La Masia is still doing a great job, but with all due respect these boys in the current first team are not Xavi, Puyol, and Iniesta reincarnated. They’re not even close. Yes, a jackpot was struck with Lamine Yamal and the boy has even proven himself on the international level winning Euro with Spain. While an amazing talent, the people in Barcelona need to realize that they’re putting too much burden on his back. He is a top player at his young and fragile age, but he is no Leo Messi.
This year, he has been underestimated by opponents on more than a few occasions. This will not be the case next year. Lewandowski, who to be fair scored 25 league goals this season, will not be able to play at this level for much longer, and he spent some time sidelined due to injuries this year too. He is in dire need of replacement. As we said, Barcelona has good players on all three fronts, yet, none of them fit that superstar, world class player fully. Lamine and Pedri can get there. Lewa was world class but his advancing age make him less so, while the only true world class player is de Jong, and Kounde is close.
What we’re trying to say, that despite winning the domestic double this season, this Barca team is still work in progress. To build on what was achieved this year they need to bring in fresh faces ready to start from the first day. While nothing is official yet, Barcelona is targeting Marcus Rashford from Manchester United and Luis Diaz from Liverpool. This news was confirmed by the team’s sporting director Deco. While an amazing creator during his heyday, Deco has not impressed in his role to date. If Diaz and Rashford are his targets, in our opinion he needs to be fired on the spot. Diaz is currently the better player out of the two, but he is expensive player, on high wages, not consistent, not a starter in Liverpool, and in advancing age not fitting the Barca’s timeline.
Rashford is a rotten apple who closed the doors on the house of his boyhood club Manchester United, and Barcelona shouldn’t be in a race to reinvigorate his career. It’s not what big clubs do, and we remain unsure whether this should be the approach Barcelona takes this summer, or whether there is truth to these rumours beyond Deco stating he’s liking the two named players. If you ask us, there’s nothing wrong with the potency Barca has upfront or on the wings. Raphinha, Yamal, Ferran Torres, Fermin, and Dani Olmo are a fine rotation. Yes, the team needs depth, but Rashford and Diaz are not long term solutions, and they’re too expensive to be stop-gaps. Instead of focusing on them, Barcelona would be wiser to add depth to their defence.
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Their best defender last year was Jules Kounde. At times the French international was unbeatable at the back. The second best was Inigo Martinez. He’s entering the last stage of his career, and he was not Barca standard to begin with despite performing well last year. You can expect him to turn into Oriol Romeu next year. What Barca needs to do is to pay attention to what is happening in Munich. Bayern has just signed Tah on a free from Bayer, making one of their prized CBs expendable. Barca could do good with either Kim, de Light, or Upamecano. Their defence needs experience, quality, and leadership. It’s been lacking at least two of those things last year, and as season end approached, it became more and more obvious.
While winning the domestic double is an amazing success, just a few misplaced passes could paint a different picture for Barca’s season. They won the league by a fine margin, and if Real Madrid wasn’t playing interchangeably through the whole year, the race could be even closer. Remember when Real was 2:0 up in El Clasico? Barcelona wasn’t saved by their defence, but by a much potent attack. Remember the final of the Copa del Rey? An extra time win after 2:2 in regulation. Barca played with flair, but they were not all that convincing. If not reinforced during the summer most of their flaws will be exposed next season.
The one shining point we can see going Barcelona’s way next year, and it is something their fans have been patiently waiting for, is the team’s return to Camp Nou. In the future the venue will be carrying the name Spotify Camp Nou, and it will come with one of the biggest sports sponsorships to date in terms of stadiums. Its capacity will be expanded to 105,000. You can expect for Barcelona to dominate their opponents at the always packed venue. They were handicapped this season by always playing in front of only 55 thousand fans. You can bet that with the fully packed Camp Nou they will be a different animal. But, before that happens, they need to make a few changes to their roster.
While fans have high ambitions for the season to come, we are not as optimistic. The results this Barca team achieved this season are their pinnacle. The team for the next season needs to be revamped and reinforced. The foundations have been laid by Hansi Flick, and all that is left is to build on what the team has done this year. If nothing changes, and financial struggles and poor transfers continue in the future, we can see Real Madrid establishing a league romance not seen before. Considering that both teams are in a form of transition do not be surprised if Simeone and his Atlético de Madrid take home the title once again while RM and Barca fight among themselves.
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