Regarding Barça

The Financial Times‘ sport columnist, Simon Kuper, spent a few days last month at Camp Nou interviewing Frank Rijkaard and members of the team and the great Catalan club.

He even got to kick-about on the expansive pitch and commented on the psychological effects of playing in such a theatrical atmosphere with 99,000 people watching your every step …

There is a psychological difference between the centre of the Nou Camp and the wing. Running around in the middle of the field, you can almost forget the setting. The Nou Camp becomes just another football field, not so different from a sandy park ground. Any pitch anywhere is reassuringly familiar.

But out on the wing, you feel the gaze of millions. You can see individual faces in the crowd. (The day I kicked around, there were quite a few visitors on stadium tours, and each time I fired into the empty goal, some cheered.) On the wing you are nearer to some spectators than to the goalmouth. If you look up you can have a relationship for a moment with an individual fan. It probably takes a special personality to play on the wing in the company of millions.

Among other things, we learn that Theirry Henry already speaks fluent Spanish, the language of the Barça dressing room (not Catalan, as you may have expected).

The Man Utd players have been relishing the upcoming performance for over a week now, so Wednesday evening at Camp Nou will be electric.

“Ferguson relishing Barcelona test” | BBC Sport

“Barcelona v Man Utd” | BBC Sport

“Messi the key – Tevez” | BBC Sport

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Tags: Barça, Barcelona, Camp Nou, Financial Times, Frank Rijkaard, Man Utd, Manchester United, Simon Kuper

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