Rafa Yuste talks Barcelona registrations, Camp Nou reopening, Ter Stegen, Ronald Araujo, and the club’s transfer plans | OneFootball

Barcelona is finally back in action and the preseason tour has kicked off positively. Despite the initial cancellation of the tour to Japan, everything was sorted out later. Moreover, the first preseason friendly also ended in victory for Barcelona.

With the recent win over Vissel Kobe, the Catalan giants have managed to start off their preseason on a positive note. Moving forward, they will now be headed to South Korea to play the remaining fixtures on their planned tour before returning for the Joan Gamper trophy.

Rafa Yuste talks Hansi Flick’s squad and the Asia tour

Photo by Paul Miller/Getty Images

Even Barcelona vice president Rafa Yuste was asked recently to talk about various topics ranging from the game to the topic of registrations and individual players as well. As quoted by MARCA, Yuste had this to say when asked about the team’s recent performance:

“Hansi is very happy with the team’s performance. We used two different lineups and it was clear we have a compact squad of 24 players. I just came from training and I can say we’re already looking better than last season — and that’s saying a lot given the strong squad we had then.”

Regarding the tour’s initial issues, the Barcelona vice president cleared that away quickly enough:

“Being here is already great news. There was a payment issue, but we stood firm in defense of the club’s interests.”

Barcelona transfer plans and player registrations

As for potential signings beyond the recent arrival of Marcus Rashford, Yuste confirmed that he will speak with Deco and they will plan and discuss things together. However, he confirmed that he is pleased with the way the squad looks right now:

“I’m going back to speak with Deco — there are still some things to discuss. But I’m very pleased with what we have and with what the coach sees in the team. We’ve brought in Rashford, and also Roony, who’s been standing out.”

He was then asked about player registrations, with the likes of Joan Garcia and Rashford awaiting their registrations even now, and he provided assurance regarding the situation and how the club plans on dealing with it:

“We’re very close to having everything fit into place. The regulations sometimes change abruptly, but I’m optimistic. We’ll finalize some details with Deco once I’m back in Barcelona. We’re confident and hopeful everything will end well soon. Deco has done an extraordinary job, and now we’re just working on fine-tuning potential extra income sources — because as you know, the 1:1 rule is still evolving. These extra funds could come from external investors or a sponsor the commercial department is working on.”

The cases of Araujo and Ter Stegen

When asked about Ronald Araujo’s situation at the club, he replied positive about the Uruguayan’s availability:

“We’re very happy with Ronald and with all the players who are here.”

As for Marc-Andre Ter Stegen’s current situation at the club, Yuste made it clear that the decision over that matter lied with Hansi Flick and the team itself. However, he stated that there remains total respect for the Barcelona captain:

“That decision rests entirely with the coach and the team. It doesn’t depend on me. It’s not my place to analyze it — it’s an internal matter. We have the utmost respect for the player, and we’ll stand by him no matter what.”

The return to the Camp Nou for Barcelona

He also briefly touched on the topic of the return to the Camp Nou, something that continues to be delayed and has fans agitated as well:

Beyond all this, however, Yuste’s own continuity with Barcelona remains in danger. With Al-Nassr being heavily linked to the Catalan club’s vice president, there seems to be no guarantee for now regarding which club Rafa Yuste ends up pledging his alliance to moving forward.