Understanding the goings-on in the Spanish top-flight during 2022 is nigh on impossible. Indeed, it is a league that is full of contractions and seemingly never-ending disputes but astonishingly, the league appears to be the preferred destination of many of the world’s top footballers despite the current unrest.

From England with love

We did after all see Ferran Torres sign for Barcelona after deciding he would prefer to swap the drizzle in Manchester for the sun of Catalonia. Significantly, it wasn’t a cheap move and cost the club €55 million, but more on that later. Similarly, we saw Adama Traore join Barca on loan but with an option to be bought permanently in the summer for €34 million, a decision that the Nou Camp club are reportedly keen on doing.

Revealingly, the pulling power of the Santander La Liga was on show for all to see as the muscular winger snubbed a move to Tottenham Hotspur in favour of the Nou Camp. Perhaps this had more to do with the fact that Barca are now the odds-on favourite to play in the Gazprom Champions League next season whilst that eventually is far from certain for Spurs. Although it should be said that is the best that Barca can hope for this season given that winning the actual league title now looks to be a bridge too far with the latest Betway Sports markets pricing the Catalans at 25/1 to do as much (as of 9 February).

Still, it is telling that an increasing majority of the game’s best players are more than happy to leave England to take up residence in La Liga. It is an attitude that Spain’s best clubs are taking advantage of as they continue to snap up those players making flattering glances across the English Channel and onto the continent.

Indeed, we saw Anthony Martial move to Sevilla whilst Arsenal wantaway Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang also joined Barcelona in January in another high-profile departure from England. Needless to say, signing these players requires significant capital outlay which is something that many Spanish top-flight clubs aren’t said to have. So what’s going on?

How can the most cash-strapped clubs in the world afford these signings?

In reality, your guess is as good as anybody’s given the level of debt that clubs in La Liga are dealing with. Barcelona in particular are reported to have debts of over €1.2 billion whilst fierce rivals Real Madrid are saddled with €901 million worth of debt. Altogether, that is over €2 billion of debt hanging over the league’s two biggest clubs but still, they continue to open the checkbook and bring in players from all over the world.

At best it seems incredibly reckless to carry on splashing the cash when in effect, neither Barcelona nor Real Madrid has any to speak of. Perhaps what was even more astonishing is that in the summer of 2021, Madrid were prepared to spend €160 million on Kylian Mbappe who only had 12 months left on his PSG contract before he would become available on a free transfer. Indeed, when you hear what is being reported in the Spanish media you do begin to wonder where this will all end and if the supporters will eventually pay the price for good money being thrown after bad.

Living on a wing and a prayer with no guarantee of the European Super League happening

When all is said and done, the only possible explanation you can think of is that Spain’s biggest clubs are waiting for a chance to revive the failed European Super League in a bid to have a magic wand – in the form of new lucrative TV rights deals – wave away all of their debt.

This is of course why both clubs along with Juventus are still actively pursuing ways for this competition to take place. The obvious flaw in this plan is that they run out of road and can’t for one reason or another, get this idea off the ground. Now, regardless of this fate, it will still be time to pay the piper and those debts will be even larger than they were.

The fact of the matter is that Barcelona and Real Madrid are sailing perilously close to the wind and may soon be stuck in the middle of an almighty storm with no help forthcoming.

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