The famed Ramon Sanchez Pijzuan takes centre stage as it plays host to Barcelona’s final game of the 2023-24 season on Sunday. A long journey to Seville means a stiff challenge awaits the Catalans, even if the result will be for next to nothing.
After sealing the position of runners-up in La Liga with a victory over Rayo Vallecano last weekend, the Catalans will not lose anything against Sevilla. But it will be an important game for reasons beyond the points table.
The club is bracing itself up for a change in June, and tomorrow’s encounter will all be about bringing down the curtains on the present chapter in a positive manner.
They head to Seville with a good record at the venue and will have intended to take further their ongoing streak of not losing in three games when it matters most from Ramon Sanchez Pijzuan.
Barça Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Sevilla vs Barcelona.
Xavi’s final act
“Stability is a maxim in successful projects, especially for this one,” Joan Laporta said a little over a month ago during a press conference while trying to explain why he persisted with Xavi as the first-team manager and went on to continue believing in the tactician.
A month down the line, Barcelona prepare for their last game under Xavi. Indeed, the manager had succumbed to the pressure from Laporta to continue as coach only to be sacked by that very club president less than 30 days later.
The board can only be said to have handled the situation disrespectfully, the more so as it is a legend of the club who always placed Barcelona over personal gains.
Xavi indeed deserved better farewell arrangements, but somehow or the other the Catalans club finds a knack of pulling off shambolic departures for club legends.
The Spanish tactician showed no resentment towards the board during his press conference and accepted Laporta’s decision graciously. Tomorrow will be the last time Xavi manages the team, at least in this stint, and he deserves to bid goodbyes on a high-note.
Although the game is almost bereft of direct consequences on the season, the clash against Sevilla will definitely go in the annals of Barcelona history as the end of an era. Therefore, it’s upon the players to push for a fitting result and a night of smiles as they send the club legend off.
The end of a roller-coaster ride.
The 2023-24 season has been a mixed one for Barcelona, with a campaign that can be described only as a roller-coaster ride. The team has seen it all, from the high of dominating PSG in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals to the low in El Clasico.
Below par was how the campaign started off for Xavi’s side. Not long before Girona and Real Madrid had opened a chasm at the top of the table, but that table turned following an announcement by the manager early in the year of a pending departure.
Nobody can turn a blind eye to the fact that Barcelona did come back heavily motivated after Xavi announced his departure, as they went on to build a 13-game unbeaten streak across all competitions. There was a time in that period when a place in the UCL final and a shot to return to the title race seemed within sight.
But two straight defeats to PSG and Real Madrid once again derailed the team’s campaign. Where the former defeat could be excused due to a rookie red card, El Clasico was more on the team allowing a stoppage-time winner.
If anything, Barcelona never really looked like genuine title contenders at any point in the season, but the campaign did bring out several gems from La Masia in Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsi, and Fermin Lopez.
The roller-coaster that’s 2023-24 finally reaches its destination tomorrow as the team take to the field one last time this season. Finishing on a high, needless to say, would do a world of good to the dressing room.
A night of uncertain farewells
Already expected to be a very busy summer transfer window at Barcelona, the appointment of a new manager has all but confirmed the involvement of many departures in June.
The arrival of Hansi Flick is likely to trigger another filtering round in the Catalan capital, which may see some big names leaving the club.
Tomorrow will be the last time many players wear the Blaugrana colours, but neither the stands nor the dressing room are aware of the names on the farewell list. This night is going to be, therefore, of unsure goodbyes.
For some, like Marcos Alonso and Oriol Romeu, it’s almost certain that tomorrow will be the last time they don the Azulgrana colours. Others, like Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix, seem to be closer to moving towards the exit than staying.
It is, however, names like Ronald Araujo and Raphinha where the spotlight falls most glaringly on them tomorrow.
Knowing that a big sale is needed now, it will definitely be the last time that at least one from the names mentioned above plays as a Blaugrana.