Barcelona’s second consecutive Champions League group stage elimination has dealt a severe blow to the team’s short-term financial situation. As a result of Inter Milan’s victory over Viktoria Plzen, the La Liga giants’ chances of making it out of Group C were mathematically eliminated, and they will now compete in the Europa League for the knockout stages.
To have any hope of ensuring their passage to the round of 16, the Blaugrana needed the Czech minnows to keep Serie A powerhouse Inter from scooping up three points at the San Siro in the early kick-off on Wednesday.
However, the Nerazzurri were fired up from the get-go, and Simone Inzaghi’s team was able to score a comfortable 4-0 victory with goals from former Manchester United players Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Romelu Lukaku. This result eliminated Barcelona from the competition.
Although the outcome was beyond Barca’s control, it will only increase the pressure on the manager, Xavi Hernandez, who has admitted he is not exempt from losing his job after seeing his team lose their chances of qualifying on matchday four.
Nicolo Barella tied the score against Inter after the break after Ousmane Dembele had given the Catalan giants the lead. The Italians soon took the lead thanks to Lautaro Martinez, but Robert Lewandowski tied the score at 2-2 on the 82nd minute.
Prior to Lewandowski’s late equalizer, Inter appeared to have won with a magnificent goal from Robin Gosens. However, the outcome gave Inter the advantage to advance to the next round of the competition with a win over Plzen, who had not accrued a single point.
And that turned out to be a pipe dream when Inter displayed their might to easily waltz past the Czech champs. Because of this, Barcelona will no longer be able to overtake Inter, and their match against Bayern Munich would end before a single ball has been kicked.
After Julian Nagelsmann’s team preserved a perfect record, the Bavarian giants only need one point to clinch group victory, with Inter expected to finish in second place.
For Barca, it is a severe setback for president Joan Laporta, who had planned for the 2022–23 season under the presumption that the team would advance from its group.
They budgeted for at least a quarterfinal spot, so not reaching that level will cost them an additional £9.3 million. Given that teams that make it to the last 16 receive such a large sum in prize and broadcast money, the club will also lose out on at least £8.4 million if they are eliminated early.
The additional £150 million they spent on Lewandowski, Raphinha, and Jules Kounde raises doubts about Barcelona’s financial stability after they overestimated their on-field success.
Adam Ibrahim
Adam is passionate about politics and issues that affect governance. As a writer, he channels his energies into writing on pertinent national and political issues for the good of the Ghanaian people.