In an effort to tap the Indian market to the maximum and forge a close connection with the fans, Barcelona will send its first team in the next two to three years to play friendly matches.
In an interview to a group of journalists from India, FC Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu said the club is also in the process of opening more Barcelona Schools in India; the club will teach young coaches the Barcelona philosophy.
Excerpts
What are your expansion plans?
There is a lot to promote in other countries. We want to get closer to our fans in India. I know cricket is the popular sport, but I also know many people follow Barcelona.
We want to come to India to teach young people the concept of FC Barcelona.
You already have two centres in India. What do you expect from them?
We have 24-26 schools all over the world and it is growing. We go to cities that have huge demand. We would like to teach the kids the way we play. Once they finish, they can play in local leagues.
The object is to make them capable of playing in the local leagues. Not only that, we would like to teach young coaches also. We are also in the process of opening more Barcelona Schools in India.
Any plans to come to India with the first team?
One of our objectives is to come to India with our first team. Now the dates are very tight. The season ends late and starts early.
I am sure we will come to India in the next two to three years. Our board is seriously thinking about it.
How do you see the latest changes in La Liga?
Very positive. We have the best players in the world so it is easy to market our product.
I know our fans and members wouldn’t like an early kick-off.
We may be having our lunch at the time of kick-off, but we have to adapt. At the end of the day, we want to see our Indian fans watch our matches live.
On the difficulties of signing young players from other countries...
We can bring in young players only at the age of 16 years and non-Europeans at 18 years. I respect FIFA rules. There are rules to protect minors. There are reports that young players were treated badly by clubs and agents. But in our case, we are only giving scholarship to students. Parents are happy and this is a project of life. I request FIFA to allow us to continue developing such education.
How much money goes into La Masia (the club’s academy) every season?
Around €20 million.
How do you control your emotions during El Clasico?
It is tough. We respect our rival and try to keep our emotions in check. We don’t celebrate when we score goals. Barcelona has been signing lot of young players from outside in the last two years.
Have you lost faith in La Masia?
I would like to have 11 players from the academy. There are 22 players in the first team with 10 coming from the academy. Louis van Gaal wanted to field 11 players from the academy, but only Tito Vilanova succeeded. Only two or three players have the character to make the first team.
Not only that, Andres Iniesta has been playing for the last 20 years and nobody from the academy can replace him in that position; same with Lionel Messi, Neymar, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique and Ivan Rakitic.
We either sell them or send them on loan. Now we have three players who can make it to the first team in the near future.
S. Sudarsan is in Barcelona at the invitation of Sony Six
