The Spanish Players Association (AFE) released a strong statement on Thursday opposing La Liga’s controversial plan to hold a match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Miami in December, a statement that was signed by all 20 captains of the league’s first division teams. That includes Barça captain Marc-André ter Stegen, and that has led to even more tensions between the German and the club.
According to a report from Catalan radio RAC1, there is “discontent at Barça” due to Ter Stegen’s decision to sign the letter from AFE, and the club believes Ter Stegen’s gesture “contradicts the club’s interests”.
Barça president Joan Laporta said earlier this summer that it would be “a great honor” to play the game in the United States, and the Catalans are certainly in favor of the commercial and marketing benefits that the occasion would bring.
But the AFE statement called the plan “disrespectful” and blasted La Liga for going ahead without a discussion with the union and never having the players’ best interests in mind when starting the process of moving the game to Miami.
Ter Stegen’s decision to sign the statement and Barça’s reaction adds even more tension to the relationship between the player and the club, who have disagreed on several matters over the last couple of months, from Ter Stegen’s refusal to accept Barça’s decision to sell him as well as his reluctance to sign the medical report that would allow the club to use part of his salary to help with registrations.
This latest development certainly doesn’t help matters, and the eventual and inevitable breakup between the two parties will surely be a very ugly one.
