Barca plan summer changes

Barcelona technical secretary Txiki Bergiristain has warned the club will make a decision on the future of every player at the end of the season.


The Catalan titans have endured a mixed season as they have struggled to keep pace with Real Madrid at the top of La Liga, and they have had to contend with persistent rumours regarding the futures of coach Frank Rijkaard and star player Ronaldinho.

Rijkaard has repeatedly been rumoured to be leaving at the end of the year with former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho lined up as a replacement.

Ronaldinho has come in for strong criticism since he refused to play because of a thigh injury despite scans showing no damage.

On Saturday, Barca threw away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 to lowly Real Betis and dropped to third in the table, seven points behind Madrid.

And while Bergiristain insists jobs are safe for now, he warned the club will be looking to make some changes come May.

"There's no need to make drastic decisions," Bergiristain told Catalan TV programme Gol a Gol.

"At the end of the season we'll assess the effort, the age, the negative and positive progression of each player and from there we will put together a squad with desire and which isn't waiting to recover but which instead is growing and determined to win titles.

"If at the end of the year we haven't been happy with the effort of individuals then we'll decide if we want that player to continue or not, but now we can't damage the group."