Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman is ‘NOT convinced by Gerard Pique and is suspicious of his close relationship with club president Joan Laporta’ amid increasing pressure on manager
- Ronald Koeman is under pressure to keep his job after a poor start to the season
- Barcelona are ninth in LaLiga and bottom of their Champions League group
- Gerard Pique has been outspoken following poor performances this season
- The Spanish centre back also has a close relationship with Joan Laporta
- Koeman is concerned that the defender has a degree of influence over the board
Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman is reportedly suspicious of Gerard Pique’s close relationship with president Joan Laporta amid the team’s poor start to the season.
Koeman is under immense pressure to keep his job at the Nou Camp after a start to the season which sees them sit ninth in LaLiga and bottom of their Champions League group following 3-0 defeats against Bayern Munich and Benfica.
The Dutch manager lost captain and club legend Lionel Messi in the summer and is now having doubts about 34-year-old stalwart Pique and is not convinced by the centre back, according to Spanish outlet Cuatro as reported in Marca.
Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman is reportedly not convinced by defender Gerard Pique (right)
Koeman is said to be suspicious of Pique’s close relationship with Joan Laporta (left)
Koeman is said to be suspicious of Pique’s close relationship with Laporta, with concern in the dressing room that the defender has a degree of influence over the board.
Pique has been in the spotlight this season, particularly for not holding back in post-match comments following disappointing displays on the pitch.
The Spaniard said after Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid: ‘We could play for three hours and still not score.’
Explaining his first half argument with Sergio Busquets after Luis Suarez scored Atletico’s second goal, he added: ‘We had spoken about when [Thomas] Lemar lays the ball off and Joao Felix runs forward they outnumber you and someone has to follow him. But this is the nervousness that comes in these situations.’
Pique (right) argued with Sergio Busquets (left) after Atletico Madrid scored last Saturday
Pique was also the first player in the squad to take a pay cut amid the crippling levels of financial debt, though he was closely followed by the other first-team captains.
The 34-year-old, married to pop star Shakira, also has interests in the world of business, with his company Kosmos Holding buying the Spanish broadcasting rights to France’s Ligue 1 this season, with Messi’s PSG debut streamed for free on the Twitch channel of popular Spanish streamer Ibai Llanos.
Kosmos have also revamped tennis’s Davis Cup in recent years and bought the rights to Serie A and last summer’s Copa America in Spain.
Advertisement
