Abidal deserves trust but questions must be asked

Eric Abidal held his first press conference as Technical Secretary at Barcelona. It was preceded by the 'no' from Antoine Griezmann, something which had nothing to do with him, but he came across as confident, relaxed and realistic. He didn't throw out the standard easy answers and took every question in good faith. "I've been preparing for this role for years and I know the dressing room," was Abidal's first message.

Abidal is a respected figure, much loved in these parts and has the trust of Barcelona fans. In saying that he doesn't have an easy job on his hands either. He arrived late, with the market already open and without the time to meticulously strategise a major deal. He's obligated to move quickly in the world of football agents which every day is becoming more and more difficult.

Not long after Abidal was handed his new role, he was forced to deal with that Griezmann documentary that was produced by Gerard Pique's company.

Yesterday Jordi Mestre said that the Barcelona "were surprised and upset" with Pique and Samuel Umtiti, who made a comment on social media about the mini-film, and they'd be spoken to "when they returned from the World Cup". Beware, as it appears a small spark could turn into a raging fire. The comments from Mestre came across as something of a threat and the dressing room is unlikely to tolerate one of its leaders being called out so publically, especially on a matter most don't deem worthy of talking about.

The club must find some middle ground in this complicated environment. They must show that this behaviour, what they feel is making the club look weak, can't be tolerated but at the same time not further sour the mood amongst the players. The weak part of what Mestre did is that he read a pre prepared text and refused to answer any questions. When someone believes in what they say, they shouldn't be afraid to face questions about it, whatever they may be. Either way, the presentation of Abidal took place with far too much going on in the background.

And with Barcelona you need to question why their current board members looked so unhappy at the press conference. In whichever presentation it is, it's important to not only talk about having the right attitudes but also demonstrate them. And yesterday far too many of the people in charge were sat with tense faces as if there were about to be interrogated by the press. The good news is that the most relaxed of them all was Abidal and it was him who was being presented.