Barcelona’s hunt for someone to play them goes on.
As happens every year, the Catalans had scheduled the Joan Gamper trophy as their season curtain-raiser ahead of the beginning of La Liga. Set for the 6th of August, both men’s and women’s teams will play a friendly, with the squad for the new season being presented to the fans between the two.
AS Roma had initially been scheduled to play Barcelona but pulled out of the match, stating it was not ideal for their preparation ahead of the new season. Milan were then suggested as the next option in the media, but Sport say that the Rossoneri have also turned down the opportunity, picking up on a report from Gazzetta dello Sport.
Rumours have circulated that Paris Saint-Germain CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi has told other clubs to avoid friendlies with the teams involved in the Superleague, although there is no confirmation that is the case.
Regardless of the cause, time is running out to organise the friendly with little over a month to go. Although not entirely their fault, it isn’t a good look for the Blaugrana.