Inside Spain: Leadership battle at Barcelona, Real Madrid replace Thibaut Courtois and the most wholeseome story of the week
Inside Spain is a weekly instalment brought to you by Football España, providing an insight into all of the major stories coming out of the rich and intense climes of La Liga and beyond.
There is never a quiet day at Barcelona. With Neymar Junior in Saudi Arabia, you could have been forgiven for thinking that Barcelona would spend their week quietly working away to sign Joao Cancelo from Manchester City. Instead, they announced they would be getting rid of the man who has led their transfer strategy for the last two years, to replace him with someone who has never done the job before.
That person would be Deco. Director of Football Mateu Alemany was on the verge of an exit in May to Aston Villa, but made a U-turn and elected to stay for ‘a long time’ in his words. However it appears Deco has President Joan Laporta’s ear, and he will have full autonomy in a move that could even put Xavi Hernandez’s job in jeopardy long-term. Alemany is now a target for Tottenham Hotspur, Deco still has three signings in mind over the next two weeks.
One of those is Cancelo. It appears if they do not get the deal done shortly, Arsenal may enter the fray following injury to Jurrien Timber. Outside of that, Joao Felix continues to be mentioned, but Xavi, if he still has the power to do so, continues to veto his signing. That was his stance over Neymar Junior, but reading the list of luxuries that Neymar will have at Al Hilal, it is very clear Barcelona could not have afforded him. Oh, and Barcelona opened their title defence with a 0-0 draw away at Getafe.
Returning to Real Oviedo 20 years after his departure is a dream come true for Santi Cazorla. pic.twitter.com/iXIHNbpS8Q
— Football España (@footballespana_) August 17, 2023
At Real Madrid, Kepa Arrizabalaga arrived on loan from Chelsea on loan. He says he sent Thibaut Courtois a message wishing him well with his recovery from an ACL injury, but ruffled a few feathers already by declaring he wants to stay even longer. Brazilian defender Eder Militao also tore his ACL on Saturday in a cruel twist of fate. The headlines on Sunday, after Real Madrid beat Athletic Club 2-0, were all for the fantastic Jude Bellingham, who scored on his debut.
Militao will not be replaced. Real Madrid are closed for business barring a major twist, and that includes Kylian Mbappe. After the Paris Saint-Germain star returned to training, the noises coming out of the Spanish capital have been laced with warnings for Mbappe.
Elsewhere Yassine Bounou looks like he is on his way Saudi Arabia, Gabri Veiga, once certain to move to the Premier League, will join Napoli, and most importantly of all, Santi Cazorla is back in Spain. Two decades after Cazorla left boyhood club Real Oviedo, the 38-year-old has ended his spell in Qatar in order to return to the North of Spain. He will earn ‘just’ €90k per year and has ensured 90% of his image rights will go to the Oviedo academy, his story is remarkable, and in a week which has seen questioning of the game in Spain for its rules, its finances and its stability, is the most wholesome story of the week.
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