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Barca did a lot of winning the past few years, but they did it in the wrong way. It won’t be about winning and losing either. If, like Cruyff, Barca puts the game first and the business second, there will be pride in the club again. All the socios and fans around the world. Whether Messi stays or goes, and whether Ronald Koeman succeeds or fails, I hope the next president understands what Cruyff knew to be true. With the hiring of Josep Maria Bartomeu, a businessman without a football background, Barca became a club all about money.įrom Ousmane Dembele and Philippe Coutinho, to the Qatar Airways sponsorship, Bartomeu’s business-centric thinking destroyed the beautiful culture that Cruyff developed.
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A blessing, and as it turned out, also a curse. Photo by Pressefoto Ulmer\ullstein bild via Getty ImagesĪs a result, they had resources they’d never had before. Pep Guardiola not only adopted the tactics and philosophy of his old coach, he supercharged them and changed the game forever.īetween Ronaldinho who came before him, and Pep’s second generation “Dream Team,” Barca became a global marketing giant, on par with Real Madrid and Manchester United. He instilled this belief in players who would go on to manage the biggest clubs in the world. He proved that hard work, tactics, and passion could trump money. Johan Cruyff truly believed in the integrity of the beautiful game. Whoever the best player in the world was, they would write a check and make them their next superstar. Real Madrid developed a reputation for spending money. Photo by John Stillwell - PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images This was a big deal for a team who for so long existed in the shadow of Real Madrid, rivals who made winning this trophy look like their birth right. Many remember him for bringing the team it’s first European Cup in 1992. We can play it everywhere.”Ĭruyff became the manager at the Camp Nou in 1988, and when he left in 1996 he had truly made Barca more than a club. This is sad because football is the most beautiful game.
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There are problems with the values within the game. Without Lionel Messi and a galactico spending budget, we would have seen it sooner.Īs the club searches for a path forward, the following lament of Johan Cruyff is worth thinking about. We now know that the system has been broken for a long time. Embarrassing Champions League defeats, and record signing players that consistently under-performed. Most of us recognize that this moment has been years in the making, masked by the facade of seemingly endless trophies.Įven when we were bad, we thought we were good because at least there were La Liga and Copa del Rey championships to celebrate.Īnd yet every year there were red flags. For many Barcelona fans the past few weeks have felt like the darkest chapters in the club’s proud history.