English legend says Barcelona should prove they are ‘Mes Que Un Club’ | OneFootball

Icon: Barca Universal

Barca Universal

·20 April 2021

English legend says Barcelona should prove they are ‘Mes Que Un Club’

Article image:English legend says Barcelona should prove they are ‘Mes Que Un Club’

Recently, Gary Lineker has taken to Twitter to criticise Football Club Barcelona for their confirmed participation in the new European Super League.

The premise of the Super League is essentially to replace the Champions League. The competition format is set to be radically different, with twelve-to-fifteen founding clubs being permanent in the competition. It will be funded by American banking giant JP Morgan, who are debt financing close to €6b for the venture spearheaded by Florentino Perez.


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The idea of the Super League is against the meritocratic nature of football; it strips away opportunities from less fortunate clubs while also widening the gap between the big giants in Europe and the rest of the clubs. Even agreeing to join the ESL gives each of the founding clubs upwards of €350m.

Moreover, none of these founding clubs can ever be relegated from the league, meaning it is a closed circuit competition where smaller clubs such as Ajax will rarely have the chance to compete or light up the league much like they did in the UCL in 2018/19. Upsets may become, unfortunately, a thing of the past.

Former England and Barcelona legend Gary Lineker has recently given his two cents on the matter, specifically focusing on Barça’s participation in the league. Expectedly, he is not keen on their agreement to join the ESL, publicly expressing his discontent:

Come on @FCBarcelona, you’re so much better than this. This is not what you’re about. You’re Més Que Un Club. Prove that’s still true.“Most fans will predictably agree with the former English striker’s view on the matter, as the Super League is an unfair competition which prioritises financials over football. It also disrespects the merit-based structure of European competition, completely stripping away the opportunity for smaller clubs to compete on the biggest stages.

Hopefully, the governing bodies and domestic leagues can band together and find a solution to prevent the formation of such a chaotic tournament.

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