Barcelona board concerned about the number of injuries, identifies two reasons
The world of football has seen a stark rise in the number of injuries in recent years, and the story in Catalonia is no different. Barcelona, in fact, have been among the more affected sides this season, losing players 23 times to injuries and seldom ever fielding a fully fit squad.
Needless to say, there is tangible worry in the offices of Barcelona over the same topic, especially after Pedri, Frenkie de Jong and Raphinha have fallen prey to injury over seven days. Both the Sporting Commission and the board, thus, are seeking reasons for the same.
Two reasons identified
As revealed by SPORT, the Barcelona board is growing concerned about the number of injuries in the squad. Furthermore, they have narrowed down two reasons for the players’ volatile fitness this season.
The first and foremost, unsurprisingly, is the hectic schedule.
The board sees the team’s calendar to be very congested, and beyond a point, inhuman. After gruelling weeks at the club level, a major chunk of the Barcelona players head to their respective National Team camps on international duty, barely getting any rest.
Such workload, needless to say, is unforgiving on the body and manifests in the form of regular injuries.
With a new Champions League format coming next season and an increased number of qualification matches at the international level, the schedule will only get more intense.
The second reason as identified by the board is the thin squad. Regular injuries leave the manager with fewer options to choose from and no room to rotate, putting severe pressure on players on the field to perform for 90 minutes.
This is a common occurrence, for players have voluntarily asked to be taken off several times this season in a clear sign of overwork.
Need for harsh training
The solution, as the board see it, lies in the team’s training sessions. Barcelona have often been mocked for their relatively low-intensity training, and that could have a direct effect on the regular injuries.
The board now feels that the players need to train more intensely so that they not only have improved stamina but better resistance to injury. In fact, that is the reason Barcelona have a preference to opt for a German coach this summer to replace Xavi.
Julian Nagelsmann, Hansi Flick, Jurgen Klopp, and Thomas Tuchel are some of the German names linked with a move to Catalonia, and it remains to be seen which of the four makes it to the club’s next shortlist.
