Barcelona wanted to sign Nico Williams. They couldn’t. The Athletic Club striker, who visits Montjuïc today (19.00, DAZN), kept his promise and will play in the Europa League alongside his brother Iñaki. The Blaugrana then opted for another of Spain’s big names at the last European Championship: Dani Olmo. Romantically linked to Barça, the then RB Leipzig player was willing to wait for an offer from the club where he had trained as a youth player until 2014. He was not unaware, of course, of the delicate financial situation that Barcelona is going through. So Dani Olmo is not surprised that he has not yet been able to register his contract with La Liga.
Neither the new Aramark leverage (40 million) nor the sale of Mika Faye to Rennes (12 million) generated the necessary financial fair play. Not even the departure of Ilkay Gündogan to Manchester City was enough. Barça, then, is looking for new (old) strategies: a new leverage or a new endorsement from the directors.
The club has known for some time that it would continue to be outside the salary margins imposed by LaLiga, as a result of the non-payment by the company Libero in the sale of a part of Barça Vision, the Catalan club’s audiovisual content platform. In the offices at Camp Nou, they were counting on the new Nike contract to resolve the imbalance. The agreement, however, has not yet been closed. The club’s other strategy was to sell the percentage of Barça Vision that Libero had not paid to the catering company Aramark. This did not compensate either. So, as happened last summer to register Iñigo Martínez, João Félix and João Cancelo, the club is working with LaLiga to repeat the formula: a guarantee from the president, Joan Laporta.
Summer after summer, the same dilemma is repeated at Barcelona. A dilemma that was not solved even by the hasty departure of one of its best players last season, Gündogan. “I am leaving in a difficult situation, but if my departure can help the club financially, that makes me feel a little less sad,” explained the German in his farewell letter on social media. The footballer returned to Manchester City yesterday. A round trip, after his journey at Barcelona lasted only one year. The German, 33 years old (he will turn 34 on October 24), agreed with Txiki Begiristain, director of football at the English club, a one-year contract, plus another optional one. “I came here to face a new and exciting challenge, and I was ready for it. I have given everything to fight for the team and the club in the best way possible in a difficult season and I was eager to help my teammates in the new campaign,” Gündogan said goodbye to the Barça fans.
Last summer he arrived at Barça in search of a new challenge. After winning the league, Xavi Hernández’s team was looking for a step up in quality, with few better at zero cost than the German, captain of the then Champions League winners. “I felt it was the right thing to do to come here, that it was wonderful to be able to show myself that I could play in a different league, in a different country,” he said last summer upon arriving in Barcelona. And he did not fare badly, especially if one takes into account his individual performance after Xavi’s team came up empty last season. Gündogan scored five goals and provided 14 assists in 51 games. Numbers, in any case, that were not enough. At least, for Hansi Flick, the new coach.
The coach and the footballer had been together in the German national team. feeling He was never good at it. That’s why when Flick took over from Xavi, Gündogan frowned. It didn’t take long for the coach to reveal his idea. “You won’t be indispensable in the starting eleven. I have Pedri and Dani Olmo to cover that position,” the coach told him last Thursday in a talk at the Ciudad Deportiva. That same night Gündogan phoned Pep Guardiola. “Can I come back?” he asked. Guardiola promised him that he would do everything possible to make his return happen. “He wanted to help us, but he changed his mind this week. I know him and I can only say good things about him. He’s a fantastic player and person,” explained Flick yesterday, in the run-up to the match against Athletic. A few minutes earlier, City had made official the return of Gündogan to the Etihad Stadium.
City Business
A good deal for City, a financial relief for Barcelona. When Mateu Alemany, the former director of football at Barcelona, signed Gündogan, the two agreed a three-year contract. The third year, however, was subject to a number of games that the player had to play for Barça. The German reached that number of games last season, according to those in the offices of the Ciudad Deportiva Joan Gamper. “Players have to leave. One of them could be Gündogan. We don’t rule out his departure,” Barcelona said after securing Olmo’s signing. The problem was that the German didn’t think the same. However, he was beginning to feel the pressure from the club. “He started to hear all kinds of things, that he’s fat, that he’s paid too much, that he’s old,” complained those close to the player.
Without a protective shield from the press or the coaching staff, the best alternative was a friendly exit. Gündogan ruled out taking refuge in Qatar – “I feel competitive,” he said – and agreed with Barcelona to terminate the contract, his weapon to convince Begiristain: City was not willing to pay a transfer fee. Barcelona thought it was right. The main objective of the Catalan club was to save the German’s salary, some 40 million over the next two seasons.
But Gündogan’s help was not enough to be able to register his replacement. “It is not my job to talk about registrations. I really like Dani Olmo’s work. He is ready to play. I hope he is ready for this match. He is a fantastic player. I see him in training, under pressure,” concluded Flick. Nico Williams’ Athletic Club visits Montjuïc today, but Barcelona still do not know if they will be able to count on Dani Olmo. Three and a half years after Laporta returned to the presidency, nothing has changed at Barcelona.
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