Friday, 25th April, 2014
Former Barcelona attacking midfielder Michael Laudrup feels that the current Barcelona squad have age on their side and do not need too much change to challenge for trophies again next season.
Barcelona are currently second in La Liga on 81 points with four games left to play and were knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final stage.
“This Barcelona is a different team to that I played in, that was a little older. Now there are many players who are between 25 and 27 years old, they have the space to grow and play at a good level”, the Dane was quoted as saying by Voetbal Primeur.
Laudrup admits that a few areas in the squad could be strengthened, but he doesn’t believe that wholesale changes are required.
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“There are a few players who have already passed 30 and Barca will focus on strengthening some positions, but it is exaggerated. It is not a question of revolution, but a little tinkering.”
Laudrup won four league titles with Barcelona in the 1990s and also won another league title with the Catalans’ hated rivals Real Madrid in 1995.
Former Barcelona manager Johan Cruyff said about Laudrup: "Had Michael been born in a poor ghetto in Brazil or Argentina with the ball being his only way out of poverty he would today be recognised as the biggest genius of the game ever.
“He had all the abilities to reach it but lacked this ghetto-instinct, which could have driven him there.”
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