Barca Empire Falling Apart
The world seems to fall apart more every day. This also seems to reign true for Barcelona FC. After many years, it seems that the 2010 Barca empire is falling apart.
After the unbelievable loss to Bayern Munich in the 2020 UEFA Champions League, the team hasn’t been quiet about the unhappiness at the club. Not long after the game, Quique Setien was fired as a manager. Then it didn’t take long for the club to hire Ronald Koeman.
There has been a lot of mixed reviews about the hire. Lionel Messi was “furious” about the outcome. Then Koeman responded to the star’s outburst.
“He’s still got a contract and is still a Barcelona player. At this point I need to speak to him because he is the captain,” said Koeman.
“We need to work with him and speak with various players. We need to make some decisions but in Messi’s case I hope he stays with us.
“I don’t know if I have to convince Messi [to stay], whether it’s that or not. He is the best player in the world and the best player in the world you want in your team, you don’t want him playing against you.
“As a coach I would love to work with Messi because he wins matches. If he’s at the ability and level he has always shown I’d be more than happy for him to stay.”
Even though Koeman revealed that Messi is a large part of the rebuilding plan, other stars didn’t make the cut. Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique and Jordi Albi seem to disappear from either list of who the club will get rid of and who they will keep. Then Koeman made no secret about trying to get rid of Luis Suarez, Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal and Samuel Umtiti. These are huge changes to the team, and it has left club members upset.
After the Champions League match against Bayern Munich, Pique said that if getting rid of him is better for the club then it should happen. However, not every player is on the same page. Suarez was wanting to try anything to stay at the club, even sitting bench. Which may happen, but for a short time.
PSG already has their eyes on Suarez. They want to reconnect with Neymar and Suarez in the offensive line. However, they would want to wait till he’s a free agent. Suarez’s current contract is set to expire on June 30, 2021. This means Suarez could be sitting bench for a year before leaving the club for good.
He’s already rejected a return to Ajax. But even after leaving Liverpool in 2014, Suarez still has Premier League connections and could make a move there. Barca could find a deal to get him off of their wage bill since he makes £290,000 a week. But this would include Suarez’s lawyers getting involved to terminate the contract and get him a pay-out.
Clubs like PSG, Manchester City and Inter Milan already have interests in Messi. His contract is set to expire in a year, and he shocked the world when he didn’t extend the contract. But Barca has put a £631 million release clause on Messi, which no team has the money for this year.
Many can see the world star moving to Man City to be reunited with Pep Guardiola. People know that Guardiola would be able to create a whole new team around Lionel Messi that could win big titles. However, Guardiola gave up on that dream a while ago.
On top of these huge changes, the Barca club presidential election is coming up in February. One of the presidential candidates, Victor Font, claimed that he would replace Koeman regardless of his success at the club. He would prefer to have Xavi Hernandez running the show.
If Barca could hire Xavi, there would be a spark in the club again. Messi would most likely stay at the club as well.
All of these changes are drastic and the Barca empire is falling apart. The team is a long way from where it was in 2010. Hopefully, the club can find a new balance to welcome future players. The club already has Riqui Puig that has brought youthfulness to the team. The empire is falling, but maybe there is some hope ahead.
