No special welcome for returning hero Pep Guardiola: Barcelona president
Madrid, May 4 (IANS)
Spanish football club FC Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu says the club has nothing special organised for what will be an emotional return for former coach Pep Guardiola to the Camp Nou Stadium during the team's Champions League semi-final first leg tie against German side Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
Guardiola will be in the spotlight when he leads his Bayern Munich side out at what was his home as a player and for four hugely successful seasons as coach during which he won an incredible 14 trophies, reports Xinhua.
But with a Champions League semi-final to follow, Bartomeu is planning nothing special for the much-loved coach.
Guardiola will return to the Camp Nou someday: Bartomeu ?
"We have to respect Pep, but I think that it should be spontaneous and we are not going to organise anything for the occasion. There will not be any video or anything, but I am certain at the end of the game we will greet each other," Bartomeu said on Monday.
Guardiola allegedly had a strained relationship with Bartomeu during his last days at the club but insisted there were no problems in their relationship.
"He decided to leave and there is no issue. He knows the doors of the club are open when he wants and I think he will return one day," he said.
Bartomeu has confidence in Enrique
However, that 'one day' will not be in the immediate future as Bartomeu used the interview to show his confidence in current coach Luis Enrique, who has so far been evasive over whether or not he will be at the club next season.
"Bit by bit we are building a squad and a good group of players," he said.
"There is no great mystery over whether or not he continues, he is focused on the first team and he will have time to prepare for next season. He (Luis Enrique) has a contract with Barcelona at the moment and he gets asked a lot about the future, but what he wants to do is focus on the job he has to do," he explained.