Gerard Pique urges Barcelona to trust La Masia amid financial troubles: “You cannot sell smoke”

Former Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has talked about the club’s situation, insisting that it is absolutely not worth selling false hopes to the fans. 

Speaking with streamer Ibai Llanos on his Twitch channel last Sunday (h/t SPORT), the former defender gave his opinion on the financial situation of the team, saying that the partners associated with the club deserve to know the truth.

“If the reality of the club is that there is ‘not a penny’, it must be said,” he said. 

“You cannot sell smoke and say that we are going to win the Champions League and then there is no money to compete,” he added.

The 37-year-old added that although signing players like Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland would look nice for Barcelona, there are options at La Masia who could be bet upon. 

“We are going to trust the people of La Masía, who are very good people and very talented. Let them work hard and we will try to compete to win La Liga with them.”

About the Real Madrid-Valencia controversy

Gerard Pique spoke on the recent Real Madrid-Valencia controversy. (Photo by JOSE JORDAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Pique has never shied away from speaking about the controversies and he did share his thoughts on the recent incident, involving Real Madrid and Valencia where the referee ruled out Jude Bellingham’s last-minute goal.

Pique reflected on the occasion when the referee, Jesus Gil Manzano, issued him a red card in his final professional match.

“He threw me out at El Sadar, and I didn’t say anything, but apart from this, which in the end doesn’t matter to me, he has a history, since I don’t understand it, because he is an international referee, he would have to have a top level,” said Pique.

Lastly, Pique acknowledged the frustration of Real Madrid fans, saying that he thinks the referee should have concluded the match before the corner kick was taken.