How Barcelona players found out about the cancelled friendly vs Vissel Kobe | OneFootball

As confirmed on Wednesday night, FC Barcelona will not proceed with the first leg of its Asia tour for the time being.

The squad was scheduled to board a flight to Japan this Thursday at 11:00 am, but the trip has now been cancelled.

The club announced that it had been forced to take this decision due to a breach of contract by the promoter of the friendly match against Vissel Kobe, which was set to take place this Sunday.

How did the players find out?

The decision came so abruptly that it caught everyone off guard, including the Barcelona players, reports Mundo Deportivo.

Reliable sources from within the club explained that the players were informed on the same evening, just moments before the official announcement was made public.

No flight to Japan. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

The club and the technical staff notified the team via a shared WhatsApp group message. It was not an individual communication.

The content of the message simply stated that the first part of the tour had been cancelled and that all players were expected to report the following day for a double training session.

There was no detailed information provided about why it was done.

All players were surprised by the announcement. Some reviewed the official statement and consulted the media for further details. There were also phone calls exchanged between players and members of the coaching staff.

For now, the South Korea leg of the pre-season tour is expected to go along as per plans, with Barcelona tipped to fly out on Monday for the same.