Valverde in at the deep end as Barça face hectic preseason
Barcelona will return to training on July 12 before American tour
They will play Real Madrid three times before the start of La Liga
Ernesto Valverde will be thrown straight into work at Barcelona. The new coach will not get the 100 days of grace that politicians get when they are elected president. In fact, from the day he starts working with his players, presumably July 12, he will have just 30 days until his first final.
That’s because the Spanish Super Cup will be around the final. Against the eternal rival, Real Madrid. There are still no official dates for the competition which pits the league winners against the cup winners, but the most likely options are that the first leg is at Camp Nou on August 12 or 13 and the return leg is at the Bernabeu on August 15 or 16.
Remember that the weekend of August 19 is when La Liga is due to start, so there are not many alternatives with Real Madrid to play the European Super Cup on August 8 if they beat Juventus this weekend in the Champions League final.
However, it will not be the first Clasico of the summer because the two teams will meet in the United States as part of their respective tours in Miami on July 29. On top of that, Barcelona will also play Juventus in New York (July 22) and Manchester United in Washington (July 26).
And they still have to decide on a date for the final preseason game, too, which will be against Brazilian side Chapecoense in the Joan Gamper. Everything suggests that fixture will be played between August 5 and August 7, followed by the Super Cup. Barcelona will arrive back from their American tour around July 30.
Luckily, Valverde will have the majority of his players from day one. The exceptions are Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Andre Gomes. Both players will take part in the Confederations Cup in Russia this summer with Germany and Portugal respectively.
BARÇA's preSEAOSN DATES
12 July: Start preseason
19 July: Leave for USA (York)
22 July: Barça - Juventus (New York)
26 July: Barça - Manchester United (Washington)
29 July: Barça - Real Madrid (Miami)
TBC: Barça - Chapecoense (Joan Gamper)
12/13 August: Barça - Madrid (Super Cup)
15/16 August: Madrid - Barça (Super Cup)
19/20 August: La Liga
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