Barca face registration nightmare as problems emerge with fourth lever
FT Desk
- Updated: 12 Aug 2022 01:16 BST
- 3 min read
Barcelona seem to be running out of time in their quest to register new signings in time for the start of the La Liga season.
The Catalans kick off their campaign on Saturday at home to Rayo, with great things expectated by fans after a busy summer in the transfer market.
But their first challenge is merely to be able to pick any of the incoming players.
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As it stands all five new signings - free transfers Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen, and Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Jules Kounde - as well as Ousmane Dembele and Sergi Roberto will be unable to play at the weekend as the club continues to exceed the Liga salary cap.
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And it appears that the plan to exercise a fourth economic lever to make up that deficit has also run into trouble.
According to Spanish sports radio show El Partidazo de COPE, the planned sale of 24.5 per cent of Barca Studios is being held up in the final stages.
🚨 Noticia @partidazocope
💥 Informa @pedro_morata
❌ A esta hora hay problemas para la firma de la 4ª palanca del @FCBarcelona:
💰 Venta por 100 millones del 24,5% de Barça Studios
😱 El Barça no podría inscribir a varios de sus fichajes para el sábado
📻 #PartidazoCOPE pic.twitter.com/2z3dMw6MWa— El Partidazo de COPE (@partidazocope) August 11, 2022
Without the €100 million that the sell-off would bring in, Barca will not be able to register their players in time for the season opener.
While the club was adamant that the lever would be activated this week, as of Thursday there had been no official notification of the sale, suggesting that it would come too late to add to revenue projections and modify the salary cap.
A esta hora, las inscripciones en el Camp Nou para el debut ante el Rayo andan justitas. Queda tiempo. Horas decisivas. Veremos.
— David Bernabeu Reverter (@DBR8) August 11, 2022
Other sources in Spain, meanwhile, insist that while registration may come down to the last minute, Barca remain confident of having a full squad at their disposal at Camp Nou on Saturday.
President Joan Laporta has remained silent on the matter in recent days, while the Catalans continue to work on selling the likes of Samuel Umtiti, Frenkie de Jong and Martin Braithwaite in order to free up available wages.
