Hansi Flick had the opportunity to talk to the media prior to the start of preseason training this Thursday, July 17. A contact in which, among other things, he made an important revelation regarding the cuts he will make ahead of the Asian tour that FC Barcelona will undertake soon, where they will face several rivals such as:
- Vissel Kobe - 07/27
- FC Seoul - 07/31
- Daegu FC - 08/04
In this sense, the German coach admitted that, of the 36 elements he currently has at his disposal, he will have to do without at least 10. The Heidelberg native plans to make the expedition to Asia with a squad of 26 players.
However, the German coach still does not have the list defined. He will take advantage of this week of preseason to evaluate which assets will play the stage of the Barça team in Asian lands.
Barcelona's goal: Who travels?
Under this premise, and seeing the overbooking of players in certain positions, Hansi Flick will inevitably have to make cuts. One of those cases is the goal, where currently Barcelona has a total of five elements:
- Marc-André ter Stegen
- Joan García
- Wojciech Szczęsny
- Iñaki Peña
- Diego Kochen
In this section, Marc-André ter Stegen could be dropped from the list, who apparently will have to undergo surgery to correct a back ailment. Likewise, another great candidate is Iñaki Peña, whose future is expected to be outside the Barça team.
With respect to the Alicante native, it is ruled out that, from now until the start of the tour, he may have already resolved his union with another team. If he has not been linked to another team, he will probably travel with the culé team.
For his part, the presence of Diego Kochen on the Asian tour is also not entirely clear, as it is not ruled out that he will be part of the subsidiary's stage.
Azulgrana defense: duplicated positions and decisions to be made
In defense there also do not seem to be too many doubts, except on the flanks, since both the right and left backs are tripled. On the right side are Jules Koundé, Héctor Fort and the Barça Atlètic player, Landry Farre. While on the left side are Alejandro Balde, Gerard Martín and Jofre Torrents, also from B.
Although both subsidiary players are liked by the culé technical staff, it would not be ruled out that one of them is dispensed with.
At the level of defenders, there seems to be no discussion with the usual ones: Pau Cubarsí, Iñigo Martínez, Ronald Araujo and Eric García. Except for the case of Andreas Christensen, one of the players that Barcelona hopes to get rid of this summer. It would not be ruled out that, for the start of the tour, his future has already been resolved.
Culé Midfield: The sector with the most overbooking
Later, there is the medullary zone, probably where the Catalan team has the most assets and where there must be a cut. In this sector, names like Pedri González, Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Marc Casadó, Dani Olmo and Fermín López indicate that they will be part of the expedition.
It will be necessary to see if Barcelona decides to take Marc Bernal, who is in the final stretch of his recovery from a rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee and an injury associated with the external meniscus. At the level of B players, it is convenient to observe if names like Guille and Pedro Fernández or Juan Hernández end up being discarded.
In turn, a name that has many integers to fall from the call is the midfielder Oriol Romeu, to whom the culé team is looking for an exit.
Blaugrana Forward: Fixed and Possible Discards
At the offensive level, there are also several assets to choose from. It is clear that names like Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, Lewandowski, Ferran Torres and Roony Bardghji must have their presence assured on the list. From there, a series of B players emerge such as Ibrahim Diarra and Toni Hernández (right wingers) or Jan Virgili (left winger), of whom perhaps one will be dispensed with.
The situation of Pau Víctor is also not clear, whose future is still uncertain. It is not known if he will continue in the team or if he will definitely be transferred. His presence on the expedition seems to be, for the moment, in question.