Why are Barcelona playing Valencia at 6,000-seater training ground stadium? | OneFootball

Post Malone has a surprise role in a LaLiga game being held at a 6,000-capacity venue

The new era of Barcelona has again been delayed as tonight’s LaLiga clash with Valencia will be played at a 6,000-capacity stadium at their training ground.

The Blaugrana opened their LaLiga title defence with three away fixtures in the hope that they would be able to return to their historic home, but the stadium is still not ready.

They had hoped to play at the Nou Camp with a reduced capacity, but could not obtain permission from the Barcelona City Council.

Improvements pending: The Nou Camp remains under construction

AFP via Getty Images

To complicate matters further, the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium, where they played home matches last season, was deemed unsafe after a Post Malone concert rendered the pitch unusable.

Instead, Barcelona will stage their home opener against Valencia at the Estadi Johan Cruyff in front of a modest crowd of just 6,000.

The stadium, the traditional home of Barcelona’s women’s and academy sides, is situated on the outskirts of the city at the Sant Joan Despi training ground.

LaLiga officials inspected the ground in midweek and mandated certain upgrades, including the installation of VAR cameras.

Chelsea suffered a 4-1 UWCL loss to Barcelona at the Estadi Johan Cruyff last season

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Barcelona said in a statement: “The Club is working intensively to obtain the necessary administrative permits for the opening of the Spotify Camp Nou stadium in the near future. Therefore, the match will ultimately be played at the Estadi Johan Cruyff.

"FC Barcelona thanks its members and fans for their understanding and support during the complex yet exciting process of returning to the new Spotify Camp Nou. The Club will soon provide information on all details regarding match organisation and ticketing.”

The Nou Camp is in the midst of a comprehensive £1.25billion renovation, which will see its capacity increase to 105,000.

It remains unclear how long Barcelona will be based out of the Estadi Johan Cruyff. Barcelona remain in talks to host a match in Miami later this year.