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The Mail on Sunday February 21, 2016 10 Sport CHAMPIONS LEAGUE V1 OSEP MARIA BARTomeU looks out of his office to the mini-Nou Camp across the road, where Barcelona B play, and then beyond to the main, more imposing arena. Outside itJ is a rare grey day in the city. There has been persistent drizzle since dawn and no sign of the sun. EXCLUSIVE It is more Mancunian than Mediter- ranean, which is ironic given that Rob DRAPER Barcelona’s president is pondering just what will keep Lionel Messi, ChiEF FooTBALL Neymar and Sergio Busquets at the club and away from the clutches of WRITER IN Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. BARCELONA ‘The weather,’ says Bartomeu with a wry smile, pointing at the rain and rolling dark clouds over Montjuic. Former Arsenal vice- chairman David Dein once said Roman Abramovich had parked his tanks on their lawn and was fir- ing £50 notes. These days it feels as if City, owned by Sheik Mansour, are doing the same, only the guns phere that we are not only a football are now pointed at Barcelona. club. We are more than a club.’ On Tuesday, in the Champions Yet Manchester United are ready to League last 16, Barcelona go to north pay the €190million release clause for London to play Arsenal. Barca are Neymar and generally cash, not overwhelming favourites to charitable work, is king in football. successfully defend the trophy they ‘Let’s see,’ says Bartomeu. ‘We are won in style last May, which would be confident because we know our play- unprecedented in the modern era. ers are very happy in our club, in our They boast the best player in the city. They enjoy sport, their profes- world, the best strike-force, the best sion, and they are in a group. So we team. They recently put seven past are very confident those players are Valencia and six past Celta Vigo, not moving, taking decisions because playing some of the most exhilarating of money. football we have seen. It is no wonder ‘Messi said a few days ago ‘‘Barce- teams want to copy them. lona will be the only European club City took their chief executive, that I play for’’. So if someone is inter- Ferran Soriano, their sporting direc- ested in Messi, forget it. He said this. tor, Txiki Begiristain, and next season I didn’t say it. He said this.’ Bartomeu, it seems, is relaxed, even regarding Neymar, whose entourage seems to offer most encouragement TAKE MESSI? Champions League to suitors. Barca have not assembled THE LAST 16 what many feel could be the greatest Tuesday, February 23 attacking line-up in football history Arsenal v Barcelona 7.45 just to see it unravelled by their Juventus v Bayern Munich 7.45 former employees. (Second legs: Wed, March 16) When you see the manner in which they destroyed Valencia and Celta Vigo and the sheer joy Messi, Neymar Wednesday, February 24 and Suarez seem to have playing Dynamo Kiev v Man City 7.45 together, it not only makes you fear PSV Eindhoven v Ath Madrid 7.45 for Arsenal this week; it suggests that NO CHANCE! (Second legs: Tues, March 15) perhaps Bartomeu is right, and that the players realise that together they Tuesday, March 8 are rewriting the game’s history. As the world’s best player comes to Arsenal this week, Real Madrid (2) v Roma (0) 7.45 ‘I think in the whole life of our club, Wolfsburg (3) v Gent (2) 7.45 maybe in the whole of world football, we haven’t joined three players of this quality,’ says Bartomeu. ‘Messi we Wednesday, March 9 knew, he was here from 13 years old; Barcelona warn City, Guardiola and the rest of the Zenit St P’burg (0) v Benfica (1) 5.0 Neymar came in 2013 and his first Chelsea (1) v PSG (2), 7.45 year was about improvement. Then Suarez came and we changed a little bit the way we play. We don’t always Premier League they will never lure their biggest ALL MATCHES play with a No9, sometimes with a false 9. Now he has found his place (at LIVE ON No9) quickly and perfectly.’ Surely, though, Suarez could be the stars away from the Nou Camp 1 star of 2the show at any other club in they will be led by the most successful the world. coach in Barca’s history, Guardiola. ‘He is a star,’ replies Bartomeu When you approach the Nou1 CampHD forcefully. ‘In his position, for us he is in Barcelona, the main stadium is on the best player in the world. Neymar one side of the main road, with a2 walkHD - is brilliant, he is also the best player. way providing access to the mini What can I say about Andres Iniesta, 41 stadium. Go to the Etihad in Manches- Busquets, Pique? All these players GOALS ter and you’ll see an exact replica. are incredible in their position. IN 37 City have extracted almost all of the ‘But Suarez accepts perfectly his intellectual property they can from role in the team. At the end what we GAMES the club, so why not the players? like from our players is that they don’t ‘We know Messi could earn more look at their individual success but 23 money in other teams, or Neymar, they look at team success. And that’s GOALS Busquets, Gerard Pique or Luis Sua- not something that happens in all the IN 32 rez,’ says Bartomeu, 53, who was teams in Europe, for sure. elected as club president by Barcelo- ‘I was here as a member of the board GAMES na’s 140,000 club members — or socios with [coach] Frank Rijkaard, with Pep — last summer. ‘Neymar, for exam- also, with Tito Vilanova, with Tata ple, when he came to Barcelona, had [Martino] and now with Luis Enrique Goal statistics from better offers from other teams. Sua- and what I can say is that it’s the first 2015-16 season rez also had better offers.’ time I see a locker-room where they He doesn’t name from who, but on are a block, they are a group. transformed into a world-class player, The threat from City is apparently Barcelona are a co-operative, a club both occasions City were the club. ‘Sometimes there are two or three has a deal which runs out in 2019. not a huge concern. owned by 140,000 members. Bartomeu ‘But they decided to come to Barce- groups in the locker-room. In this Bartomeu hints that it is all in hand. ‘City and all the big clubs are a had to stand for election to speak for lona because I think this club attracts team they are one group. And every- ‘All of our players are in a moment threat. Barcelona is a threat to them this club. You cannot imagine Sheik players, because we are more than a one is happy for the individual where we renew their contracts, we too. The big clubs in Europe compete Mansour doing that any time soon. club. success and the team success.’ extend their contracts,’ he adds. ‘Right on and off the pitch, not only for play- ‘I don’t like the word copy,’ says ‘We take care of a lot of other things, However, Bartomeu and his board now I don’t see that any of our players ers but for sponsorship, for commer- Bartomeu. ‘I don’t like it because no being closer to children in the world, may have to act fast. Messi and Ney- have to leave next summer. I cannot cial deals, for ticketing — everything. one copies everything. When Pep was through UNICEF, through the Melinda mar have contracts which expire in tell you if we have done it or not done It has always been like this through here he helped our club to grow, when Gates Foundation or through the 2018. Busquets, mooted as the ideal it. But as a member of the board we history, so we sleep well, it’s normal.’ Txiki was here he helped our club to International Olympic Committee in pivotal midfielder for Guardiola, a are responsible people. We know what Bartomeu, though, insists that how- grow. I came with Ferran Soriano Africa, through projects with chil- player taken from the Barca B team is best for our club. When something ever hard City try they cannot emulate when the club were in a very difficult dren. All of this creates an atmos- by the celebrated coach in 2008 and is done, we will announce it.’ the Barcelona model. At their heart, financial situation and the board and .