Liverpool boss Arne Slot, Lionesses manager Sarina Wiegman and Paris Saint-Germain's Luis Enrique are among the prominent nominees for the Johan Cruyff awards that will be given away at the 2025 Ballon d'Or. Both Chelsea coaches, Enzo Maresca and Sonia Bompastor, have been nominated as well, along with Barcelona's Hansi Flick, who inspired the Blaugranas to a domestic treble.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has heaped praise on Paris Saint-Germain, describing the French club as one of the most exciting and dominant forces in European football and expressed optimism about a potential matchup with the Blaugrana in the upcoming campaign. Luis Enrique’s squad clinched both the Ligue 1 title and the UEFA Champions League and the Barcelona chief was quick to highlight the style and substance of the Parisian outfit.
Barcelona are considering taking disciplinary action against Marc-Andre ter Stegen and could strip him of their captaincy as the feud between the goalkeeper and the club continues. The Germany international publicly announced the news of his back surgery last month and that he would remain out of action for three months, which left the Blaugrana fuming.
Barcelona have opened disciplinary proceedings against Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who has reportedly declined to authorize the club to share the details of his recent lower back surgery and recovery timeline with La Liga's medical commission. This has effectively stalled Barcelona's efforts to classify his injury as long-term, which would have allowed them to temporarily offload 80 per cent of his salary from their wage bill and register a new player.
Former Barcelona president Joan Gaspart has boldly claimed that Marcus Rashford is a better player than Nico Williams, in response to criticism of the club from the Athletic Club winger's brother Inaki. Williams snubbed a move to Barca in favour of signing a new long-term deal with Athletic Club, which paved the way for Rashford to join the Catalan side on loan from Manchester United.