Koeman works for successor at Barcelona

Ronald Koeman seemed to turn the tide with FC Barcelona after the victory over Juventus (2-0) at the Catalan club, but after the third loss of points in a row in La Liga, dark clouds are forming over Camp Nou. Not only sporty, but also financially Barcelona is not doing well at all. Top acquisitions failed to materialize and with the upcoming presidential elections added to that, Koeman seems to be mainly working for his successor.

Ronald Koeman has, in addition to successes at various clubs, another common thread running through his coaching career. The 57-year-old coach has proven in the past to like to switch employers while his contract was still running and was just as unhappy about that as his Barcelona team was in the finish against Deportivo Alaves (1-1, ed.).

Ronald Koeman

Koeman has managed to put a number of wonderful clubs behind his name in his coaching career. As one of the few trainers in Dutch football, he stood for the group of Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. He also left before his contract ended at each of those associations. After a departure soap, he exchanged Ajax for SL Benfica. He left PSV for a failed adventure at Valencia and he exchanged Feyenoord for Southampton, to then leave that English club again for an apparently better job at Everton.

In that respect, there was also great understanding when Koeman addressed FC Barcelona’s interest this summer; Given his career and a clause in the contract with the KNVB, it was after all expected that Koeman would close the door behind him early. The fact that he exchanged a situation such as with the Dutch national team, where he had a good relationship with the players and a qualification for the European Championship 2021, was a good starting point, for the Catalan chaos, becomes all the more incomprehensible with the wisdom of today.

Catalan chaos

Although Koeman, unlike his predecessors, has gotten Barcelona back to playing football somewhat, the club is a battlefield outside the lines. The corona crisis not only ensures that the stadium remains empty, no major purchases could be made in the (post) summer transfer period, but also that revenues in the field of merchandising are almost completely at a standstill due to the lack of tourists. in the Catalan capital.

Due to the lack of resources, Koeman made only one notable purchase this summer: Ajax player Sergiño Dest was taken over for around twenty million euros. The young American was not only achieved for his football qualities: as an international of Team USA, the 19-year-old fullback also represents great value for the marketing department of the club.

However, the biggest chaos at Barcelona was not the corona, but the administrative crisis. The fact that the board of the Spanish superpower resigned last week has one major political disadvantage for Koeman. The coach has been appointed by the chairman who according to the new presidential candidates (and star player Lionel Messi) has destroyed the club. As a result, the Zaandammer is practically always 1-0 behind and the many loss points in recent weeks do not contribute to his position.

Presidential election

The new Barça board must, in the short term, primarily ensure that the financial situation of the club is under control. Under the leadership of Carles Tusquets, the club must get into calmer waters towards the new presidential elections, but that seems to be a utopia due to one tricky point: the selection of FC Barcelona should again make a wage sacrifice to ensure the continuity of the club.

Many dearly paid celebrities, who without exception earn one million euros per month, are not waiting for that, according to many Spanish media. This situation also indirectly has an effect on the functioning of Koeman: because the players are at odds with their club (and because players like Frenkie de Jong and Gerard Piqué have agreed, also with each other), the team morale of the Catalans has also suffer.

Still, if the results do not improve, Koeman has the most to fear for the campaigns of the various presidential candidates at the Catalan top club. Especially Victor Font, who has already spoken out strongly against the appointment of the Zaandammer and is seen as the favorite for the highest administrative position, was clear about his plans for the club. Since many Barcelona fans are currently unhappy with the team’s results and Font bergen with money and Xavi as head coach promises, he can probably count on a lot of support.

Working for successor

Although you cannot fully attribute the current performance of FC Barcelona to the account of the former national coach of the Dutch national team. Koeman has no resources at his disposal as only the sale of Luis Suárez and Nelson Semedo yielded somewhat of a respectable transfer amount. As a result, Koeman has a selection at his disposal where, by a number of players who are at the pinnacle of their career (Pique, Sergio Busquets and currently also Lionel Messi) and underperforming mega-purchases (Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembélé and Philippe Coutinho ) especially a lot is asked of young talent.

It will be a relief for Koeman to be able to work with growth giants such as Ansu Fati and Pedri, but consistently performing with a team full of talents is a cause-effect relationship that does not appear to exist in football. Fati only received hymns this season, but missed two 100% opportunities in the league match against Alaves, so that the points were ultimately shared instead of going to Barcelona.

As a result, Koeman seems to be mainly working on a successful foundation for his (possible) successor. Just like the fact that in the past the Zaandammer made a switch from a successful team to an unfortunate project, it is also a repetition of his personal history. After Koeman’s departure from Feyenoord, the Rotterdammers became champions of the Netherlands under the leadership of Giovanni van Bronckhorst. If Font is indeed elected as president and the situation in Barcelona does not change in the meantime, that may have one ‘advantage’: then Koeman is still on track to reach the European Championship 2021.