Gerard Piqué will hang his football boots on the willows on Saturday. Football commentator Michael Van Vaerenbergh gives text and explanation about Pique’s career, his dreams and his empire. “He is a fantastic footballer who has meant something to the FC Barcelona club, but at the same time he is also an entrepreneur with some notable scandals surrounding his figure.”
Gerard Piqué has played at the highest level at FC Barcelona for 19 years. The native Catalan played in the golden generation of Barça together with Andres Iniesta, Víctor Valdés, Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernández, Sergio Busquets and Lionel Messi.
“As a defender, he will in any case appear in the top 10 in the history of Barcelona,” says Michael Van Vaerenbergh. “With the center defenders, he will be in the top 3 after Carles Puyol and Ronald Koeman.”
As a centre-back, he will be in the top 3 after Carles Puyol and Ronald Koeman.
Pique’s honors list is dazzling. “He twice achieved a triplet with a win of three competitions in the same season with the national title, cup and Champions League. The last time that happened was in 2015,” said Van Vaerenbergh.
“Since then, Barcelona’s level has seriously deteriorated and so has Pique’s level, even more than the club itself.”
In November 2020, Pique suffered a serious knee injury against Atletico Madrid. “He then made the choice not to have surgery. I have the impression that he has not been able to reach his level since then.”
Is this the season too much? “Sure, it’s even 3 seasons too much.”
Gerard Pique’s huge honors list:
8 times La Liga
7 times Spanish Cup
4 keer Champions League
3 times world champion for clubs
3 times European Super Cup
6 times Spanish Super Cup
1 time Premier League
1 time League Cup
1 keer Community Shield
World Champion Spain (2010)
European Champion Spain (2012)
“If Pique was allowed to play, he would fall through the basket”
“In the past matches he was usually on the bench,” Van Vaerenbergh continues. “And if he was allowed to play due to injuries, he would fall through the basket.”
Two iconic images from the past two years show Gerard Piqué’s downward trend.
“The Champion League game against PSG where Piqué can’t follow Kylian Mbappe and pulls on that shirt with all his might to stop him.”
“And the image against Inter where he stands with his arms wide. Pique lets himself be caught on a high ball and lets the ball pass for goalkeeper Ter Stegen, but does not realize that Barella is in his back. The Italian chases the ball nice in goal in the turn.”
“As a true Catalan, it is his dream to become chairman of the club of his heart”
Why is Piqué announcing his retirement in the middle of the season? “It’s pure propaganda, I suspect,” says Van Vaerenbergh.
“He is afraid that he will make more sporting blunders and that he will string together even more weak performances, and that could shatter his big dream in the future.”
“As a true Catalan, it is his dream to become chairman of his club
heart. I think he thought: “if I go on like this, the perception will turn against me even harder”. It could mean he wouldn’t be elected.”
“I think that’s the idea behind Pique, but that’s guesswork, because I don’t know him personally.”
“Imperium Piqué and the scandals surrounding his figure”
In addition to football, Piqué earned a master’s degree in business from Harvard. He is
also an entrepreneur at heart. “While he practiced entrepreneurship as a hobby as a football player, it will now take precedence,” said Van Vaerenbergh.
He helped, among other things, with the reorganization of the Davis Cup in tennis. “That immediately put some bad blood in the tennis world.”
Piqué was also instrumental in Barcelona’s sponsorship deal with Japan’s Netflix Rakuten, where he set up a holding company with owner Hiroshi Mikitani.
“There were always whispers, because Pique had made a deal of 50 million euros with the Japanese company, which also flowed a small percentage to him.”
The 35-year-old Catalan also had a hand in the modernization of the Spanish Supercup with the assignment to Saudi Arabia.
“It remains a bit strange that, as a big earner in football and an active football player, he is involved in commemorating the Supercup, where the winner of the cup plays against the national champion. It all has to do with money. tinge of fraud around.”
There were always whispers, because Pique had made a deal of 50 million euros with the Japanese company, a small percentage also flowed to him.
“There are tapped telephones and whatsapps with the federation chairman, where he asked to put some pressure on the national coach of the U21, to raise the age to participate in the Olympics.”
“He has taken FC Andorra out of anonymity, including Leo Messi, as a silent partner. After lobbying, it is now a Spanish second division.”
Pique also has a heart of gold for his club FC Barcelona. “He was the first in the post-corona era to help Barcelona when they were in financial distress by donating his wages to the club.”
“The outstanding debt of 50 million euros that Barcelona Pique still owes, also remains in the club’s greenhouse,” concludes Van Vaerenbergh.
