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Liverpool have enjoyed such success in recent years that it is difficult to select a result that adequately symbolizes recent seasons. The throbbing nature of the Champions League victories over Manchester City in 2018 is an obvious contender, alongside the 3-1 win over Pep Guardiola’s side at Anfield in the Premier League clash last November. Those results indicated signs of a shift in power and a resurgence for the Reds, but none gave the club as much faith as the Champions League semi-final victory over Barcelona in May 2019.
It was such an unlikely outcome that it transformed that season and the one that followed. After going 3-0 in the first leg at Camp Nou, inspired by a majestic hat-trick by Lionel Messi, it looked like the Reds would fall short again in Europe, having been knocked down by Real Madrid in the final of the previous season. The odds of the progression of Jürgen Klopp’s team were remote even before taking into account the absences of Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino.
What followed was a 90-minute display of pure Klopp soccer: organized chaos, intensity, and an unshakable belief in yourself. Divock Origi scored twice, as did Gini Wijnaldum, as the alertness and positivity of the Reds defeated the Catalan giants. That campaign was one of the greatest in Liverpool history, but without this performance, they would have ended the season without a trophy and the psychological damage it could have caused would have been immeasurable. Instead, he gave them the belief that anything was possible, that you could win any game and break any record. Lifting the Champions League provided the enormous euphoria that fueled the club’s momentum into the following campaign and an eventual Premier League title.
While Liverpool were a sleeping giant finally rekindling their true potential, Barcelona were a team in the midst of steep decline. That feels like a slightly ridiculous reaction for a team that, that season, won its eighth La Liga title in 11 seasons. A team that had the best player in the world, and possibly the best to ever play the game. A team that owned two of the four most expensive players in the history of sport and had an agreement with Antoine Griezmann to make it three of the top five. A team that was a regular in the final phase of the European competition.
However, the reality of the situation was that all of those factors were precisely why they were declining. It was an aging team with an unsustainable salary bill, the highest in world football, with an equally unsustainable relationship between the club’s income and the player’s salary. The economic ramifications of the Covid-19 pandemic have accelerated and magnified the alarming situation facing the club, but the reality is that there was a time bomb that was going to explode sooner rather than later.
The collapse at Anfield was surprising in its form and nature, but it was a similar story to how the club had been eliminated from Europe in recent years. Last season, they blew a 4-1 lead in the first leg against Roma in the quarterfinals to be eliminated by away goals. The season before that, they lost 4-0 at Paris Saint-Germain and 3-0 away to Juventus. A winger who could not match the intensity and pressure of elite rivals and who were exposed. Messi was still the best player in the world and Luis Suárez was still a ruthless clinical frontman, but neither had the physical attributes to contribute anything in the defensive sense. Their individual talents were more than enough to beat most teams in La Liga, but again top-tier teams were caught in transition phases and were often overwhelmed in their own defensive third.
This was highlighted by the humiliating 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in August, with the club ripped apart by a polished and well-oiled machine. From Barcelona’s initial formation, four players – Suarez, Messi, Arturo Vidal and Gerard Piqué – were 33 years old, while Sergio Busquets (32) and Jordi Alba (31) were also in the fall of their careers. Of his bench, Ivan Rakitić (32) and Antoine Griezmann (29) were the most recognizable names. It was an old team, with gigantic salaries, and the club had no choice but to sell and rejuvenate this summer.
It wasn’t about getting rid of their most expendable players, but about selling to those who still wanted the best teams. Barcelona had lost their negotiating position, rival clubs smelled desperation and were making the most of it. Suárez signed for Atlético de Madrid, Inter signed Vidal, Rakitić returned to Sevilla while a buyer was sought for Nélson Semedo. Arthur Melo joined Juventus, in a de facto exchange deal for Miralem Pjanić, in a deal that was purely to help balance the club’s books for the financial year, it had little sporting coherence.
The lesson for Liverpool here in a sporting sense is clear: there was a sentimental attachment to the success of these players at the Camp Nou, with the club looking at past successes and short-term results without seeing a clearer picture in the long run. term. Klopp’s intense methods of pressing at the top of the field can take its toll on players in the long run, and players can drop from these levels quickly as muscles begin to wear out.
This season began with Sadio Mané, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, all 28 years old, while Virgil Van Dijk and Thiago Alcântara are both one year old and Gini Wijnaldum is now 30 years old. That largely explains the Reds’ reluctance to renew the Dutchman’s contract: He is now entering a period in his career where his production is likely to decline, while his age and status will likely lead to higher wage demands. It also helps justify the signing of 24-year-old Diogo Jota to bring instant competition and rejuvenation to the club’s attack line.
While there are similarities on the pitch between Liverpool and Barcelona from five years ago in terms of success and age profile, there is a world of economic difference. The Reds have a strict salary structure that is sensible, prudent and sustainable. The club has the benefit of the Premier League television deal, which, as the Financial Times points out, is still several times larger than any other major league. The club has abundant other sources of income from corporate and commercial ties, along with a strong global brand and merchandising presence.
Many of these factors were true for the Blaugrana, but they led to complacency and faced them in an arms race for supremacy with Real Madrid. Embarrassed by the departure of star forward Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017, they felt compelled to flex their financial muscle and make rash and irresponsible investments. This sparked a wave of discontent against the club’s management, which picked up a significant pace when the results ran out. As Football España has pointed out, the club’s president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, was charged in September with corruption charges by the Catalan police forces. Bartomeu and his board resigned from their positions the following month after a motion by a member triggered a vote of no confidence in their positions.
Earlier this month, the club’s interim president, Carlos Tusquets, gave an extensive interview to the Catalan radio station RAC1, with quotes completed by Marca, which revealed the astonishing situation the club is going through. Tusquets spoke of the “worrying” economic situation, described how the club’s Camp Nou stadium was literally falling down (parts were falling from the ceiling and needed urgent repair), how the club could no longer commit to the payment of the January salary. to his squad and how, financially, it would have made a lot more sense to sell Messi this summer.
The club’s financial figures, as described by Marca, show that the club’s debt had more than doubled during the 2019-20 campaign, from € 217 million in June 2019 to € 488 million in June 2020. The Catalan newspaper Diario Sport claimed 80 million has been eliminated from the salary bill due to a series of player departures, but that the situation was untenable.
The Blaugrana recently confirmed that finally, after weeks of negotiations, they had reached a salary cut agreement with their players that would allow them to save 122 million euros immediately, although it was still well below the savings they wanted to make. Tusquets has no intention of running for president on a permanent basis and his comments make it clear that a big reason for this is his awareness of how bleak the financial situation for the club seems.
Liverpool must enjoy and enjoy their success, but must be aware of how other clubs, whose status and power within the game is significant, can find themselves embroiled in mismanagement and complacency. The players are to be savored and appreciated, but the story of Catalan opponents is that regeneration and managed continuity are keys to long-term success.
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