La Masia’s struggles to provide talent are affecting the ‘B’ team’s fortunes, writes Andy Mitten
Barcelona last week unveiled plans for a new 6,000-seat stadium on the outskirts of the Catalan capital, which will be used by their “B” team.
Costing €40 million (Dh158.1m) and expected to open in August 2017, it will form part of their expanding training ground complex, which they recently renamed after former coach Tito Vilanova, who died of cancer a year ago.
The existing 16,500-capacity Mini Estadi, which sits on prime land by the city’s polo club, will be knocked down and replaced by an indoor arena used by the club’s basketball team. A public space in front of Camp Nou will be created also, a move that will pacify residents and satisfy the club, which wants fans to spend more time at the stadium before matches.
The Mini Estadi is seldom full and even a second-tier clasico only attracted a crowd of 11,000 last season, while average crowds for the reserve team are about 3,000. That’s more than the reserve sides of almost every team in world football manage to attract, but the venue is ageing and the seating capacity is at least four times bigger than needed these days.
Barca are raising funds for a huge redevelopment of Camp Nou, too, which is slated to begin in 2017, but club elections this year may see those plans changed.
Following the relegation of Real Madrid’s second string last term, Barca B are the only reserve team in Spain’s second division. They had dropped as low as the fourth division, but Pep Guardiola led them to promotion in 2008 before graduating to the first team.
They were promoted again in 2011 and have been in Spain’s second division since, just as they were for the majority of the 1990s.
The team’s existence gives emerging players the chance to play against the first teams of major clubs, such as Real Zaragoza, Betis, Sporting Gijon, Osasuna or Las Palmas. Barca B have often excelled and finished in the top 10 in each of the past four seasons.
They were third last term, but promotion was denied to them as reserve teams are unable to play in the same league as the senior team.
This season has not gone so well. Despite regular appearances from players with first-team experience including Munir el Haddadi, Sergi Samper and Jean Marie Dongou, the team are 21st in the 22-team league. Four are relegated each season and only 11 games remain.
Barca B’s problems are many. For the first time in their history, they dismissed their coach, the former first-team player Eusebio Sacristan. He was popular with the players, but a huge problem for Barca B is that their team has wholesale changes every year.
Seven players departed or were sent on loan this season, including the best ones, Denis Suarez and Carles Planas, who are with Sevilla and Celta Vigo, respectively.
Sacristan was left with young players who thought they had become stars before their time. Sources cite Adama Traore as an example; a striker, they say, with a poor attitude and unjustified arrogance.
It was hard for Sacristan, blooding youngsters into a very competitive league. His successor Jordi Vinyals, an experienced coach from the famed youth system, has the same problem.
Questions have been asked of the level of talent coming through the celebrated Masia. Vinyals would know better than most. He has got the team playing more aggressively against wilier foes, but there are queries on whether that is the Barca way.
A change in the way the club recruits players will have an impact. Barca are already banned from making transfers this year because of their rule-breaking in signing youth players in the past, and players from outside Europe now have to wait until they are 18 to play competitively.
But the Catalans can, and do, recruit the best Spanish youngsters along with Real Madrid.
Barca B may have a new home to look forward to in two years, although whether that will be staging second division football hangs in the balance.
sports@thenational.ae
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
