- Barcelona lurches from crisis to crisis. But there are some very good players at the club. Can they catch Real Madrid this season and win La Liga?
- Barcelona have struggled to meet financial regulations this year
The 2022/23 La Liga season has just kicked off and – as usual – there is still a lot of confusion surrounding Barcelona. Big name signings have been made in the summer, although there is a lot to be done on the financial side if they will get on the pitch in the near future.
But even with the usual circus playing out at the Camp Nou, Barcelona is still one of the main favourites to win the league. Reading a betonline.ag review of the Spanish league would suggest that there is a chance of glory this year. But can Xavi work his magic? Will the star players get to pull on the famous shirts? And can Barcelona really catch Real Madrid this season?
Will the Financial Situation Be Resolved?
No matter how it is explained, it does seem strange that Barcelona were over a billion dollars in debt but were still able to spend so much on a raft of new big-name signings this summer. Selling future domestic TV rights has alleviated that somewhat – as well as a percentage of the in-house studios being sold off.
By the time the opening day of the season came around, Barcelona were able to field the majority of their new faces. Robert Lewandowski, Andreas Christensen and Raphinha all started against Rayo Vallecano, with Franck Kessié coming on as a second half substitute.
Is Xavi Up to the Job?
When Xavi returned to the club last season there was intense jubilation among Barcelona supporters. Ronald Koeman’s regime was seen as a failure that also included the departure of club legend Lionel Messi and the return of another former fans’ favourite was seen as a good sign.
Although Xavi oversaw some decent results last season, there were also some poor performances too. The home losses to Cadiz and Rayo Vallecano stand out – and there was also the exit from the Europa League at the hands of Eintracht Frankfurt. Xavi is still relatively untested at the top level and needs greater consistency this season to fully convince.
Can Real Be Caught?
It doesn’t matter if Barcelona buy and register any number of top players before the end of the transfer window if Real Madrid don’t falter, of course. The La Liga and European champions were already looking very strong before the additions of Aurelien Tchouameni and Antonio Rudiger.
If Karim Benzema can perform like he did last season, then there will be few defences that will be able to deal with him. There is also the chance that Eden Hazard will finally fulfil his Bernabeu potential and stay injury-free. If all that comes to pass then Barca may not have a chance of the title anyway.
Other Challengers
There are only usually two options when it comes to predicting the La Liga champions most years – with the addition of Atletico Madrid in recent times. Sevilla have shown that they can be counted as a real Champions League place contender. But the top spot is probably still out of reach.
Atletico lost Luis Suarez in the summer and have turned to Alvaro Morata as a replacement. He has the ability to do well at the Wanda Metropolitano but the main hopes for the club are a strong defence and for Joao Felix to really take off and have the season of his life.
So, Can Barca Win It?
With all the new additions to the Barcelona squad, they must be considered to have a good chance of winning the league this season. It looks as though the Camp Nou club have made their financial problems magically disappear for another year and that automatically makes them a main challenger.
But there is still a sense of chaos surrounding the club. With questions over Xavi’s abilities still not completely gone away, it feels as though there is still a gap between Barcelona and Real Madrid. It could be a fourth consecutive year without the league title – and it hasn’t been that bad since before the turning of the 21st century.
