A lot has been bantered on and off the press and airwaves about Barca’s ensuing quandary regarding their players this period, especially with news recirculating about Neymar’s resurrected intentions of rejoining the Blaugrana come hell or high heaven.
And we’ve heard from everyone from the president himself, Neymar and even his father, the great Lionel Messi, pundits, former and current players and of course the media. Almost everyone. The one person who has the right and the privilege to also offer his views on this, and other salient issues revolving around the Barcelona circus is none other than coach Quique Setién, otherwise fondly referred to as The Maestro.
When finally approached for his views recently, Setién in his low-keyed, humble way spoke about the current circumstances and all the news that are tossing around in the media like hailstones in a storm.
For starters, he confessed that he had called ‘Xavi’ for assistance:
“When Xavi comes, we will open the door for him and we will let him enter. I have thought of calling Xavi to ask for his assistance. He knows this club and he knows the philosophy and style of this team.”
On the current pandemic and no-football situation, Quique said:
“To be honest, what’s happening is unbelievable. I start to coach Barcelona and then a disaster hits us. In the last few days, I have read more about the coronavirus than football.
“We all want to finish the season even if it’s behind closed doors. But I want guarantees that no problems will occur. I hope two weeks of training is enough for the players to get ready for playing matches again.”
On the academy, La Masia, Setién is clearly not satisfied:
“No player from La Masia has convinced me that he deserves a spot in the first team. I’m not equivocal when it comes to assessing players from the academy. I’ll give the youngsters a chance when I can count on them to win games.”
With regards to a possible Lautaro Martinez and Neymar signing, the usually reticent Setién had t his to say:
“I’m neither pessimistic nor optimistic about Lautaro. I admire great players and I have no delusions with any player.
“I see Neymar’s arrival quite complicated. I think it’s financially difficult for him to arrive at such a difficult time.”
Well, there now we have it all in the proverbial nutshell from the unflappable, salt-of-the-earth man who’s been tasked with getting all the teams of Barcelona into pristine shape and form to continue their dominance in the world of competitive football.
Continue weaving your baton, Maestro!