The battle has already begun off the pitch in Spain this summer…
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While Barcelona were denied the opportunity to present new signing Luis Suarez to the media this week, there is still undoubtedly a significant amount of optimism surrounding the club as they look ahead to unleashing their new attacking trident.
The Uruguayan will serve his suspension and miss the start of the new season, but it is seen as a mere delay for the supporters in witnessing one of the most impressive attacking trios in football alongside Neymar and Lionel Messi.
New Coach Luis Enrique will hope to reap the rewards of the club’s substantial investment this summer which has also seen the likes of Claudio Bravo and Ivan Rakitic arrive, yet the general focus remains on how well three of the most talented players in world football will combine.
On paper, it looks daunting for opposition defences, and ultimately it will likely become a reality when they face them in the upcoming campaign. However, there isn’t necessarily a guarantee that it will work immediately, but it is undeniably a message to their rivals that they intend on bouncing back from recent disappointment.
However, ordinarily when such a message is sent, the response is swift, and rivals Real Madrid are preparing theirs with a double signing that will improve Carlo Ancelotti’s squad further.
Seemingly not content with winning both the Copa del Rey and the Champions League in his first year in charge, the Italian tactician wants to continue the development of his team and reinforcements in the form of Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez will undoubtedly help him achieve that, with Football Espana reporting that the German international will likely be presented to the media this week, while the Colombian ace could soon follow.
Granted, Los Blancos will have to make sacrifices, and with speculation suggesting that Angel Di Maria and Sami Khedira will move on, as reported by Squawka, in order to create space in the squad and financial flexibility, the Spanish giants are arguably improving and will be even more dangerous.
While both Kroos and Rodriguez have long proven their ability at club level, both emerged from the World Cup as stars of the tournament, and Madrid president Florentino Perez is ready to display his desire to bring the best players to the club again.
Perhaps the only negative aspect of the summer spending will be the impact on the youngsters looking to push through, with the likes of Isco and Asier Illarramendi likely to suffer in terms of playing time.
Nevertheless, Atletico Madrid’s title triumph last season was refreshing in that it broke up the previous dominance enjoyed by Barca and rivals Real. However, it appears as though Diego Simeone may well have served to anger the beasts as Spain’s big two prepare their assault not only in the transfer market, but also in next season’s La Liga title race and the battle in Europe.
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