A summer of transition in Catalunya has seen Pere Romeu replace Jonatan Giráldez as the Head Coach of Barça Femení, with the 31-year-old taking charge of his first UEFA Women’s Champions League pre-match press conference on Tuesday evening.
The Blaugrana commence their European season at the Joie Stadium on Wednesday, coming up against a Manchester City side looking to make amends for their lengthy absence from the continent’s elite competition.
What did Pere Romeu say?
“They’re a very good team despite having not played in the Champions League in the past few seasons,” insisted Pere Romeu, leaving no room for uncertainty surrounding his thoughts on Manchester City’s capabilities.
The battle for the top spot in Group D is likely to be contested between the two teams, with Wednesday’s clash potentially serving as a early indicator of who could come out on top after the group stages wrap up in mid-December.
Romeu was asked for his thoughts on playing such an important game so early on in the season, with the Catalan manager suggesting that “you can’t hide and decide when you want to play these types of games.”
“I think we’ve been playing really well up to this point and have created a lot of chances,” he proclaimed, adding that Wednesday will provide “a great opportunity to show what we’re capable of as a team.”
Ahead of Barcelona’s arrival in Manchester, much was made of the travelling squad which saw the return of Aitana Bonmatí after the Ballon d’Or holder missed out on the weekend’s trip to Madrid CFF.
Embed from Getty ImagesRomeu confirmed: “Aitana had a heavy cold so we decided to give her some time off to rest, because she wasn’t 100%. She’ll be back in contention for minutes tomorrow.”
Ellie Roebuck has also travelled with the squad to face her former club, but the goalkeeper remains “in a process of adaptation and is unlikely to get minutes,” while Salma Paralluelo remains in Spain.
For many, Wednesday’s match will serve as an indication of what to expect from Pere Romeu’s tenure. By means of comparison to his predecessor, the 31-year-old remains a relatively unknown figure on the European stage – and asked to describe the differences fans can expect to see, Romeu emphasised that “no two coaches are the same.”
“[Jonatan] Giráldez is a great person and a great coach. The similarities are that we’re both at a club that has a defined identity in terms of play style. We’ve been able to do that because we have fantastic players at our disposal,” he added.
Barcelona get their UEFA Women’s Champions League campaign underway at 20:00 BST on Wednesday, 9 October 2024. The match will be shown live in the United Kingdom by DAZN, with extensive coverage also available on FromTheSpot.
