What was expected to be a season of consolidation for Athletic Club has turned into an obstacle course. At Mestalla, the Basque side had to sweat until the last minute to secure their place in the Copa del Rey semi-finals against Valencia (1-2). The initial optimism has faded as the weeks have gone by. Ernesto Valverde's team is hanging by a thread this season. They are just three points above the relegation zone and were recently eliminated from the Champions League, in a sporting context far more fragile than expected. One of the key figures in this defeat is Nico Williams, who has been plagued by injuries.

"I remember when we were trying to get our driver's licenses. We drove around Portugal a bit during a preseason training camp. Maybe it wasn't legal the whole time, but it was a lot of fun," admits Viktor Claesson (Värnamo, Sweden, 1992), captain of Copenhagen, laughing as he prepares to take the reins. reunion with his compatriot Roony BardghjiA promising talent and a star for Denmark's top club for the past five seasons, he's the protagonist of an extraordinary story of precocity and love for Barça. This summer, the young winger realized his lifelong dream: to play for Barça.

"Honestly, it was a huge surprise for me to see him in the starting lineup. He hadn't played in the last few matches, so it was a surprise when Hansi Flick started him against Betis. It's also really fantastic to see his success, and I think a lot of people in Denmark are very happy." For many Barcelona fans, seeing Roony Bardghji's great performance was a welcome surprise, but he had already shown what he was capable of in Copenhagen. Victor Risager, a journalist from [unclear], explains. TipsbladetIn an interview with the newspaper ARA, Roony has been a Barcelona player since last summer –not without the corresponding legal process of registering with the first team– and, at 19, is a gem that both Barça and other major clubs on the continent had on their watchlists. But the Catalan club had an advantage: the winger is a Barça fan and wanted to wear the Blaugrana colors. Until now, he had had a minimal presence, with only two starts (against Valencia and Real Sociedad) and having missed four consecutive league matches. Despite his position being right wing, even when Lamine Yamal was out injured, Roony wasn't among the top candidates to replace him. ten At eleven. In Seville, his luck began to change.

Barça has won both of its league matches so far and hasn't missed the three players who are awaiting registration too much. Injuries haven't been a problem, aside from those of Marc-André ter Stegen and Marc Bernal, and Hansi Flick hasn't required the depth of Gerard Martín, Wojciech Szczęsny, and Roony Bardghji, who have yet to make their official debuts because the club is outside the 1:1 rule of the fair play financial and hasn't achieved enough savings to register them. The deadline is September 1st at night.