It isn’t all bad news at FC Barcelona at present, with Xavi’s arrival seeming to be the tip of the iceberg as far as a turnaround for the Catalan club goes.
Already it appears that there is more coherence on the pitch than the team had under Ronald Koeman, and the football is undoubtedly much more to supporter liking given that Xavi is taking things back to basics.
Off the pitch, president, Joan Laporta, really has had his work cut out to right the wrongs of his predecessor, Josep Maria Bartomeu.
Not an easy task when you’re allegedly over a billion euros in debt.
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However, Laporta has managed to keep Barca’s heads above water and on an even keel as the club attempt to negotiate more stormy waters.
Good news could be just around the corner too, with news of decent financial offers for the naming rights to the new Camp Nou and for shirt sponsorship.
“There are at least five offers on the table [for Camp Nou naming rights] between 30 and 40 million [euros] per season,” Laporta said on TV3, cited by Mundo Deportivo.
“We want to get the most out of it and normally they are contracts that are made for 5, 10 or 20 years.
“We will negotiate to try to make it as short as possible because we believe it is the best course of action.
“We hope to close it [shirt sponsorship deal] before the end of the year or at the beginning of next year because Nike needs time to manufacture the shirts.
“There are other companies that are offering more money [than current sponsors Rakuten] and the amount is important.”
The expected influx of funds will surely go some way to alleviating the debt and any other financial roadblocks that exist at the club at present.