FC Barcelona News: 21 August 2015; Two Youngsters Not Renewed, La Liga Schedule Changed

Luis Enrique Barcelona have issues on defence vs Athletic - ESPN FC
Gerard Pique's four-match ban for insulting the linesman during the Supercopa de Espana has made an already perilous situation even worse for his club. While Barcelona should theoretically have 10 first-team defenders at their disposal, only four are currently available to manager Luis Enrique for Sunday's showdown. Even by the their typically tight standards when it comes to defensive numbers, that's cutting it close.

Historic league season openers in Bilbao | FC Barcelona
Barça will kick off the new league campaign in Bilbao for the sixth time in their history this Sunday. The previous meetings between the two sides on Basque soil in the first week of the season took place in 1949, 1960, 1962, 1970 and 2003 with the Catalans picking up three wins, one draw and one loss.

Aleix Vidal: Around the block and now back at the Camp Nou | FC Barcelona
The story of Aleix Vidal and FC Barcelona is not exactly one of love at first sight. It has been more of a long distance one that did not go too well at the beginning. It has taken a journey of 13 years and twelve different teams to finally get back together.

Pedro's 10 best moments at Barça | FC Barcelona
The goals that won Super Cups, goals at Wembley and the Santiago Bernabéu amongst the most remembered moments.

FC Barcelona official announcement: some academy players' licences not be renewed | FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona wishes to announce that as a preventative measure, it shall not be renewing the licences of some of the players in the club’s academy. This is to avoid any interpretation that there has been any breach of FIFA regulations. FC Barcelona, in coordination with FIFA, is immersed in a process of legalising the situation of the players connected with the enquiry that led to the sanction.

Barcelona back off youth contracts to avoid FIFA sanctions - ESPN FC
Fode Fofana of the Netherlands and Matias Lacava of Vanezuela, both of Barcelona's U14 A-team squad, won't receive new contracts on Thursday as the Catalan club aim to steer clear of the laws governing the movement of players under the age of 18.

League matches to take place on 30 and 31 December | FC Barcelona
The board of the Royal Spanish Football Federation accepted on Wednesday the proposal of the Spanish Footballers' Association to bring forward Week 17 of the league to December 30th and 31st. As a result, the matches that were to be played on the weekend of the 2nd and 3rd of January have instead been rescheduled for the last two days of the calendar year.

Sky Sports to show more games in La Liga in 2015/16 than ever | Sky Sports
For the first time, Sky Sports will show more than 300 live games from La Liga, with a comprehensive Spanish football offering across its platforms. As part of its unrivalled football schedule, Sky Sports viewers will be able to enjoy more coverage than ever before this season across TV, online and mobile devices.

The two seasons Robert and Valverde spent together at FC Barcelona | FC Barcelona
The current Athletic Club manager, Ernesto Valverde, and the Barça technical director, Robert Fernández, shared two years together at the Camp Nou, from 1988 to 1990. Under the orders of Johan Cruyff, in the Dutchman’s first two seasons as manager at the club, they won the European Cup Winners’ Cup and the Copa del Rey.

Source: Bostjan Cernensek http://ift.tt/1NzxJK8