While many top-tier clubs choose to travel to the United States or Asia for pre-season, Barcelona has opted to conduct their training sessions in the United Kingdom. Manager Hansi Flick has established a base at St George’s Park in Staffordshire as the team prepares for the upcoming campaign. The choice was influenced by the club’s desire to avoid long-haul travel during a complex period involving various player return schedules following the World Cup.
The squad in the Midlands is missing several notable players who are currently on extended leave, including eight individuals who participated in the recent World Cup victory with Spain. Additionally, the team is without other senior internationals such as Anthony Gordon, Raphinha, Jules Kounde, and Ronald Araujo. Despite these absences, recent signing Karim Adeyemi is participating in the camp.
Barcelona is scheduled to play two warm-up matches during this period. They will face Birmingham City at St Andrew’s on Friday and hold a closed-door training match against Preston at St George’s Park next Monday. These fixtures provide high-quality opposition for a squad that combines senior professionals, including a traveling Frenkie de Jong and goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, with emerging talents from the club’s B team and under-19 setup.
