Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski called on the club to plunge into the transfer market during the summer in order to become more competitive next season.
Barcelona have suffered from much-publicized financial troubles over the past two years, but committed nearly €160m to new players last summer and brought in just under €50m through sales.
They were unable to even register every new signing and contract renewal with La Liga until after the start of the season due to restrictions on purchasing power – Jules Conde missed out on a €50m purchase for the first two matches as a result of this delay.
Barcelona executives had to look for additional income and were able to secure an infusion of cash by activating various “economic levers”, effectively selling a percentage of the various future profits.
This strategy sort of worked, seeing Xavi’s side drop just 10 points all season to top La Liga with just 13 games left to play. Victory over Real Madrid in El Clásico at the Camp Nou on Sunday will extend their lead over Los Blancos to 12 points and secure their first title since 2018/19.
But the Champions League was a different story. Barcelona were knocked out at the group stage for the second season in a row and didn’t even get past the first knockout round in the Europa League after a two-legged aggregate defeat to Manchester United.
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Lewandowski, who joined from Bayern Munich for €45m and has scored 25 goals in all competitions, is not asking for miracles but has indicated that there is still a need for improvement.
“There’s a good team,” he said. ESPN. “Maybe one [or] Two changes make this team, not perfect, but more competitive. Sometimes we talk about little things, but if you change this, it will be more exciting.”
Speaking about Barcelona’s shortcomings in Europe, the Polish added: “This season we faced problems in the Champions League and this is what we must correct, but so far we are not ready to fight at the highest level for it.” [all] The three titles: the Champions League, the Spanish League and the King’s Cup.
“It’s impossible. In football, it’s impossible to change something in a week or a month, it takes time.
“I always wanted to play in La Liga. You know Barcelona have a lot of problems. But when I saw the path they wanted to take, I said, ‘I can be a part of this.'”
“I saw that I was challenging myself and told myself I was ready to play it. I may be 34 but it’s just a number and I know I can play for several years at the highest level, I don’t know exactly how many, but I’ve always been happy to play. I care more about mental things of material things.”
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In this edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90-Minute Podcast Network, Scott SaundersAnd Graeme Bailey & Toby Cudworth Discuss Harry Kane’s future at Tottenham Hotspur, Joao Felix likely to join Chelsea on a permanent basis, David Raya, Marco Asensio, Alexis McAllister and more! If you don’t see this embed, click here To listen to the podcast!
