Barcelona to let Trio go.
New FC Barcelona head man Pep Guardiola says the big three, Ronaldinho, Deco and Eto’o, are not in his plan for the future of the club. After two disappointing seasons without any hardware the Catalan club made a change of managers by releasing Frank Rijkard and replacing him with local legend Guardiola who was officially introduced in a press conference yesterday. Not only did he say the three would be available for sale he also stated that he and the club have no intention of signing Cristiano Ronaldo.
‘All of the players in the first-team squad last season are of a very high level,’ he said. ‘But with the technical secretary we are forming a squad and Deco, Ronaldinho and Eto’o are not in our minds.’
However, Guardiola admitted he would be happy to keep Ronaldinho if the Brazilian could recapture his best form.
‘If I felt that he wanted to be the player he was again, he would be here,’ he added. ‘But the situation has deteriorated and the solution is to build a strong dressing-room.’
The imminent departure of the Brazilian and the recent exit of Giovani Dos Santos to Tottenham means Guardiola will be short of options on the left flank, but the 37-year-old ruled out a summer swoop for Manchester United winger Ronaldo.
‘I wouldn’t make a space for him in the team, even though I think he is a very good player,’ he said. Guardiola said the club’s priority is to sign a striker.
‘We will look at the possibility of bringing in a winger, but if we don’t then that’s fine; the priority is a number nine,’ he said. He joked: ‘We are looking for a number nine who scores 60 goals for us.
I like that Pep has come straight out of the gate and let it be known that he is in charge of this club and this team is his. His strong stance should allow him to have complete control over the locker room next season which should lead to more harmony on the pitch. However I would like to see Ronaldinho return to form for Barca instead of Milan and I would have liked to see Dos Santos remain with the club. Not only would either of these moves allow Barcelona to have a playmaker who creates opportunities for teammates, something they were completely lacking most of last season when Ronny and Deco were out, but it also would have solved the teams need for a striker. Eto’o would have had a much better season if he had someone to set him up because for all of his talent he is merely a striker, a player who needs to be feed the ball in a position to strike. The other way it would help is that it would allow Henry to move back into the center where he is most comfortable playing as a striker instead of being a facilitator. Although even if Ronaldinho is indeed sent to Milan or elsewhere, signing Cristiano Ronaldo would allow for the same type of situation to occur not to mention the fact that it would keep Real Madrid from the one player they desire over all others.
