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FC Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman has admitted that he is pessimistic about the club’s chances of strengthening its squad before starting the new season.
Barcelona are left out of the first two weeks of La Liga after playing the quarterfinals of the last Champions League, and so far the only new faces at the Camp Nou are teenage forward Pedri, Portuguese winger Francisco Trincao and midfielder Miralem Pjanic, arriving as part of a deal that saw Arthur Melo move to Juventus.
Koeman had expressed interest in signing Dutch international Memphis Depay from Lyon, but in a television interview on Tuesday night, he explained that Barca’s financial situation was complicating the deal.
“We have to sell first before Depay arrives,” he told FOX Sports, before indicating that he did not expect any new signings before Barça begin their campaign at home against Villarreal on September 27.
“We are working hard for the new season and I think we will have the same group of players that we have now in preseason,” he said.
After selling Ivan Rakitic to Sevilla, Barça are looking to sell forward Luis Suárez, with Juventus as a possible destination, while Arturo Vidal is close to signing for Inter Milan.
Koeman also insisted that he had a good relationship with Lionel Messi, after the forward told the club he wanted to leave, only to later say that he would stay to avoid lengthy legal disputes.
“What happened was a conflict between Messi and the club. I have spoken with Messi and we continue with normality,” said the Barça coach.
