By Jacob Hernandez, Sport Management, ’26

 

Barcelona are no strangers to crashing out of the Champions League nowadays. They have made it past the quarter-finals once in the past 9 seasons, that being their monumental collapse to Liverpool in the semi-finals of the 18/19 season.

And on Tuesday, they crumbled again, losing to PSG in a reverse Remontada. Barcelona went down to 10 men and like Thierry Henry said, the team got nervous and made mistakes, which can’t happen if you want to progress in the Champions League. Performance and history aside, the early exit from the competition will most certainly have ramifications for the club and it could potentially be the start of some serious changes at Barcelona.

 

The first change has been going on for a while now. Xavi announced that he would be stepping down as manager at the end of the season, and after all the media speculation throughout the second half of the league campaign, the main candidate still standing is Barça B coach Rafa Márquez.

For me, I loved Xavi as a player, I loved it when he came in as manager, but I think it’s time to go. While he wasn’t given much to work with money wise, which I will speak about later, the fact is that he has more red cards than trophies. Rafa Márquez on the other hand, is currently managing the Barcelona second team, from which the likes of Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsí, Marc Guiu, and Héctor Fort have progressed, all of whom have made huge impacts on the first team this season. With this track record, the fact that he won the Champions League with Barça as a player in 2006, and the reports that other manager signings are now not possible, he seems like the best option for Barça at this point in time. The La Liga season is not over yet, but Barcelona are likely to go trophyless once again, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a new manager come next season.

 

Now for the big issue that has been haunting Barcelona since before Joan Laporta became President of the club for the second time in 2021, Barcelona are broke. Crashing out of the Champions League means Barcelona will miss out on precious prize money that they so desperately need. In an article by Conor Laird of Get Spanish Football News, “as per a report from Mundo Deportivo, advancing to the semi-finals of the Champions League would have resulted in Barcelona securing an additional €12.5 million. On top of this, a further €6 million is likely to have been raised through ticket sales for the club’s final-4 outing at Montjuïc. What also must be taken into consideration, though, is the fact that Barça have now officially been eliminated from contention for the 2025 Club World Cup. Participants in the new competition are understood to be entitled to a minimum payout of a hefty €50 million”. And while this could seem like chump change in the modern era of fútbol with transfers frequently above or around $100 million for just one player, the fact is that Barcelona was once over $1 billion in debt. And while they are recovering well from what I can tell, this extra influx of money could be the difference in keeping vs selling a key first team player or two. I trust in Laporta to keep the club going in the right direction, as he did bring the club to a sextuple in 2009. But, with these reported numbers in mind, I predict he will have to tell whoever the manager may be that sales are once again required before they can bring in any new replacements of their own.

 

Lastly, moving onto sales, what Barcelona players could be sold to raise funds to improve the team next season? Or would any large-scale sale be more detrimental to the team than helpful? Barcelona have made some big splashes in terms of free transfers in the past year or so, and the best way to get replacements for aging or out of favor players without a transfer budget, other than La Masia, would be through free transfers. Marcos Alonso looks to be on the way out the door for free, opening up some funds in the wage budget. And on the way in the door, the only rumor I heard of was Jorginho, but he is now said to be looking to go back home to Italy after his contract with Arsenal expires. So, Barcelona may not be busy in the free transfer department this summer. Contrary to free transfers, signings and sales still need to be figured out. João Cancelo and João Félix’s futures are still in the air, and while Félix seems like he wants to stay in Catalonia, someone most certainly has to go the opposite way to Madrid in order to make it happen. Sporting director Deco is currently said to be working on the two João’s exclusively, but there are other holes in the Barcelona lineup that shouldn’t be ignored. Coming full circle, with the club missing out on future prize money, someone will have to be sold to bring in either a new right back or defensive midfielder, the clubs most uncertain positions. At the right back position, Cancelo is option one, and the other two are to bring back either Sergiño Dest or Julián Araujo from their respective loans. However, Dest is expected to be sold and Araujo is not at the level of a starter yet. The target for defensive midfielder is Aleix García from Girona, the club from which Barcelona bought Oriol Romeu last summer. If Barcelona is to sign him, hopefully Mr. García is better than his former teammate, I mean he can’t be any worse.

 

With the loanees being top priorities for Barça, other holes 100% existing in the lineup, and no money in the bank, it might be time to sell some stars. While I would rather not have to sell stars, Barça’s current financial predicament means Raphinha’s Premier League interest might need to be revisited. $60 million could go a long way in keeping the club stable and competitive. And sadly, Frenkie de Jong and Ronald Araújo’s massive offers might have to be considered as well. Deco’s first full summer transfer window as sporting director could be very influential in determining the future of Barcelona. Will he keep the core together, sell everyone to right the financial ship, or somehow mix together both and be able to win trophies.

 

Only time will tell.

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