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Barça crusade to avoid going to Montjuïc

BarcelonaAt the gates of the referendum on Espai Barça, where members must ratify the decision of the assembly and authorize the board to seek funding worth 1.5 billion to carry out the reform of the Camp Nou, the work team who is in charge of preparing the works is finalizing the details of the project before putting the cranes in the stadium. The forecast, if anything goes wrong – starting with the approval of the members – is that during the first quarter of 2022 the financing agreement will be signed and that in the summer, just when the League ends, work will begin. But there is one thing that does not suit them at all: leaving the Camp Nou temporarily. The people in charge of the project have not seen the alternative of going to Montjuïc with good eyes and are working hard to avoid it. They believe that the ideal solution is to combine matches and remodeling, and for this reason they are looking for an alternative plan to the one announced a few days ago by Barça itself.

During the presentation of the telematic referendum, Joan Laporta’s board of directors wanted to put the cards on the table and explain to the members that a year away from the Camp Nou should be played. A measure that would allow working inside the stadium without the pressure of combining work with football. It seemed a logical option that, in addition to avoiding inconvenience, also made it possible to speed up the reform and even lower the final price. But after carefully exploring the options, the Espai Barça team has regained the idea of ​​staying at the Camp Nou. A tug-of-war that is generating a great deal of internal debate in both the reform committee and the board.

The cost of repairing Montjuïc

As ARA explained a few days ago, playing in Montjuïc was not free. Reforms had to be made to the playing field, changing rooms and lighting system, as well as installing additional bleachers. The capacity had to be expanded, but above all it was necessary to adapt to the demands of the League, the Federation and UEFA to host official matches. What was not expected at Barça was that the cost would be so high. According to an authorized voice of the club, the final figure rises to 40 million. “It’s not just what it costs, it’s also what you stop earning,” he added. Therefore, the balance is tilted again to stay at the Barça stadium. “We are working on it, we need to find the solution.” The decision is not yet fully made, as it has yet to be ratified by the board, but the working committee is convinced that it is the best option of all.

In fact, for months he had been suspicious of the possibility of playing at the Lluís Companys Stadium. Partly because of the work that had to be done and partly because it had been the home of Espanyol, the great citizen rival, for a few years. Without any other stadium with sufficient capacity in Barcelona, ​​Barça had explored other routes, such as going to Johan Cruyff (Sant Joan Despí), but it was quickly ruled out because, if the capacity was extended, the accesses would not be in a position to absorb the volume of traffic that would be generated in a first team match. Someone even dared to put the Espanyol stadium on the table. “It simply came to our notice then [Laporta], it was clear to us that it was not a viable option “, they explain from the club, with a point of irony. “It simply came to our notice then. It is either Camp Nou or Montjuïc. And putting everything on the scales, it’s much better to stay at the Camp Nou “, they conclude. A decision that, if confirmed, will also be applauded by the locker room, which opposed changing the field in order to maintain the same dimensions of the playing field and the same type of turf.

Regardless of whether they leave or not, the club admits that there is “a lot of haste” to start remodeling work, at least at the Camp Nou. The intention is, instead of asking for a full license for the whole stadium, to apply for small licenses to act in the different points to be reformed. At Barça they assume that in the summer they will start work.

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