Barcelona set to finalise the opponent and date for the Joan Gamper Trophy

The pre-season is underway at FC Barcelona with new manager Hansi Flick overseeing his first training session in charge today.

In a couple of weeks, the German tactician will take the team to the USA where Barça are scheduled to play three pre-season friendlies.

Upon returning and before the season starts, Barcelona will play the Joan Gamper Trophy match – their traditional curtain-raiser for the new season.

AS Monaco set to be the opponent

Mundo Deportivo now has brought forth an update regarding the possible opponent for Barcelona for the Joan Gamper Trophy and the date on which it will be played.

As things stand, everything appears set for Barcelona to face French giants AS Monaco in what will be the 59th edition of the Gamper Trophy.

The game is likely to be played on August 12, at the Catalans’ temporary home – Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Montjuic.

AS Monaco to play Barcelona in the Gamper Trophy match? (Photo by NICOLAS TUCAT/AFP via Getty Images)

The agreement is very close to being completed and the matter could soon be made official by the Catalan giants.

Monaco, managed Adi Hutter, finished as runners-up in Ligue 1 last season and could pose a good test for Barça as they prepare for Hansi Flick’s first official match next month.

How everything came about

The decision to play AS Monaco was set in motion on 3 July when the French Professional Football League announced that the French Super Cup final between PSG and Monaco, scheduled for 8 August in Beijing, was being postponed “to a later date and a venue to be determined”.

Barça had considered various clubs with 125 years of history, such as Olympique Marseille, AC Milan and Werder Bremen, but ended up opting for Monaco.

Barcelona’s plan was to play the Gamper on the weekend before the start of La Liga, but in the end, it will be played on Monday, 12 August, to give the team some time to rest after the return from the American tour, scheduled for 7 August.

Manager Flick has scheduled a couple of days off to get over the jet lag, and then train to prepare for the Gamper Trophy match and the La Liga opener against Valencia.