Flick confirms Barcelona’s provisional captains: ‘Raphinha, together with Eric and Pedri’ | OneFootball

Barcelona will begin the new season with Raphinha wearing the captain’s armband, with the decision officially confirmed.

It was reported yesterday that the Brazilian would be Barça’s first captain at the Joan Gamper and not Frenkie de Jong, who was technically next in line.

The departures of Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Ronald Araujo have left the Catalans with a decision to make on who takes the armband going forward.

Now, speaking to the official club media, manager Hansi Flick has confirmed the list of provisional captains ahead of the new season.

Raphinha takes the armband for now

The Barça coach explained that he does not want the squad to hold its final captaincy vote until the first-team group has been completely defined.

“Raphinha will be the captain because, normally, Frenkie is the third captain, but right now he is not available. Also, Marc and Ronald are not here,” Flick explained.

Barcelona’s first captain. (Photo by Daniela Porcelli/Getty Images)

Frenkie is currently out with a medial collateral ligament tear that he suffered at the World Cup, rendering him unavailable for the foreseeable future.

That has left Raphinha as Flick’s choice to lead the team for the moment.

Flick waiting until transfer window settles

More importantly, Flick confirmed that Barcelona’s squad could still undergo further changes before the hierarchy becomes permanent.

“I have decided to wait until we can vote because the squad is still not closed. More players could arrive or some could leave,” he said.

Those comments provide another reminder that Deco’s transfer work is not finished, with Barcelona still considering changes in several areas of the squad.

“Until that happens, Raphinha will be the captain, together with Eric and Pedri,” Flick added.

Joining the leadership group. (Photo by Manuel Velasquez/Getty Images)

Temporary reshuffling or a sign of things to come?

Captaincy at Barça is generally decided by squad votes, and Flick has confirmed that the vote will be held closer to the end of the summer transfer window.

More importantly, the German manager has stressed that this is a provisional captaincy list and not the final decision.

What this means is that tomorrow, ahead of the Gamper, Raphinha will be the one to address the Camp Nou crowd in the absence of Frenkie.

However, when the squad choose to vote on the captaincy order, they could still put Frenkie above Raphinha in terms of incumbency.

It remains to be seen whether Flick’s change to the captaincy hierarchy is merely temporary or a sign of things to come at Barcelona in the coming weeks.