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Business Upturn
9 minutes ago
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- Business Upturn
Where to watch FC Seoul vs FC Barcelona friendly in India
By Aman Shukla Published on July 31, 2025, 09:53 IST The highly anticipated pre-season friendly match between FC Seoul and FC Barcelona is set to take place on Thursday, July 31, 2025, at the Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul, South Korea. As part of Barcelona's Blaugrana Tour Asia Edition 2025, this exciting clash promises thrilling football action for Indian fans. Led by coach Hansi Flick, Barcelona are coming off a 3-1 victory against Vissel Kobe, while FC Seoul, fourth in the K League 1, are riding the momentum of a 1-0 win over Daejeon Hana Citizen. If you're in India and wondering where to watch the FC Seoul vs Barcelona friendly match, this article covers all the details, including live streaming options and kick-off time Match Details: FC Seoul vs Barcelona Friendly Date : Thursday, July 31, 2025 Kick-Off Time : 4:30 PM IST Venue : Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea Competition: Club Friendly Match This match marks the first-ever meeting between FC Seoul and Barcelona, making it a must-watch for football enthusiasts in India. With stars like Jesse Lingard for FC Seoul and Barcelona's young talents and new signings on display, fans can expect an entertaining encounter. Where to Watch FC Seoul vs Barcelona in India Indian football fans have multiple options to catch the live action of the FC Seoul vs Barcelona friendly match. Here are the confirmed platforms for watching the game: 1. FanCode App and Website The FanCode app and website are go-to platforms for sports streaming in India, offering live coverage of various football events. The FC Seoul vs Barcelona friendly is expected to be available for streaming on FanCode, though a subscription may be required. 2. Barça One (FC Barcelona's Official Streaming Platform) FC Barcelona's official streaming service, Barça One (formerly Barça TV+), will broadcast the match live. Indian fans can access this platform to watch the game with a Preseason Pack subscription. Ahmedabad Plane Crash Aman Shukla is a post-graduate in mass communication . A media enthusiast who has a strong hold on communication ,content writing and copy writing. Aman is currently working as journalist at
New York Times
an hour ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Barcelona have a new La Masia star shining on tour. Introducing… Pedro Fernandez
It wasn't supposed to be like this. Few expected Barcelona's pre-season to be another marked by a new La Masia talent announcing themselves on a bigger stage. Back in 2023, Fermin Lopez grabbed his moment. Last summer, Marc Bernal and Marc Casado shone brightest among a travelling squad that featured 16 Barca youth teamers. By contrast, this year, with practically all of the senior squad having been available since training resumed earlier in July, Hansi Flick's group for their tour of Japan and South Korea features just five. Advertisement But Pedro Fernandez — known as 'Dro', more on that later — is the latest to step up. Having already established himself as the sensation of Barca's first weeks of training back home, on Sunday, he produced a delightful 15-minute cameo in the club's opening game of a three-match trip, scoring the third goal in a 3-1 win over Vissel Kobe. Alongside 18-year-old left-back Jofre Torrents, Fernandez was one of just two youth academy players to feature in the game, and while Torrents' involvement only came because Gerard Martin wasn't fully fit (there might now be a spot up for grabs as a backup to Alejandro Balde in that position), Dro's time on the pitch was entirely down to Flick's personal choice. Fernandez, 17, spent most of last season with Barcelona's under-18 age group. He still has not made his debut with Barcelona Atletic — the club's reserve side that is essentially the first team of the youth academy. When he joined with the seniors for training for the first time this summer, some might have expected more established members of Barca Atletic, or the under-19 side that won last season's UEFA Youth League (as well as league and cup titles at domestic level), to have been promoted ahead of him. Either way, he has definitely taken his chance. Sources from the backroom staff — who, like all those cited here, preferred to speak anonymously as they did not have permission to comment — say Barca's German manager Flick has been hugely impressed by Fernandez in pre-season. Then came his brilliantly taken goal in Sunday's 3-1 friendly win in Kobe. 'I didn't even know how to celebrate, to be honest,' Fernandez said after the match. 'It was unbelievable. I came in a bit nervous, the first time with the best club in the world, but then the ball came to my feet on the edge of the box and I gave it a go. Hansi and my team-mates calmed me down before the game and I felt so comfortable. Advertisement 'Flick told me to do what I know to do with the ball, and then off the ball to push and press as hard as I can. Everyone has congratulated me for the goal, it's just unreal.' Barcelona signed Fernandez in the summer of 2022, having monitored him for years. He was playing with his boyhood club, Val Minor, one of the most renowned youth teams in the north-west of Spain. Based in Nigran, Galicia, where Fernandez was born to a mum from the Philippines and a Spanish dad, footballers such as the Alcantara brothers, Thiago and Rafinha, as well as former Leeds forward Rodrigo Moreno and Liverpool's Stefan Bajcetic started out there, too. Val Minor and Nigran are still very much close to his heart. This summer, before joining the Barca seniors for pre-season, he used the Val Minor facilities to start working, under the supervision of a physical coach following instructions from Barcelona. 'Dro started playing with us when he was four or five years old and kept playing with us up until under-14s,' says Val Minor's sporting director, Javier Lago. 'At this age, the kids are playing futsal until they grow up and start playing football. 'One of the coaches we have in the club, Jose Antonio Covelo, is a Barca scout who played for Barcelona back in the 1980s. So it was thanks to him that Barcelona had him monitored for quite a long time. 'In terms of talent, especially in the last third of the pitch, he is off the charts. He's among the best I've ever seen. I've managed Thiago and Rafinha Alcantara, seen Rodrigo Moreno… well, Dro is around that level for sure.' The story behind Fernandez being called 'Dro' dates from this stage. When he started playing at Val Minor, one of his team-mates was called Pedro Villar. With two Pedros in the team, it was decided they should have nicknames in order to differentiate them: Pedro Fernandez became 'Dro', and Pedro Villar became 'Villi'. Advertisement Dro and Villi became, by some distance, the best players in their age group at Val Minor — to the point that Barcelona decided to sign them both in summer 2022. There, the nicknames became even more handy because in their team at La Masia was Pedro Rodriguez. So, for the sake of better communication, Dro kept being Dro. 'Dro had a lot of suitors back in the day,' Lago adds. 'Before leaving to Barca, he had gone to train with Celta Vigo in their youth ranks. He had plenty of offers, but in the end, both decided going to La Masia was the best thing, Dro and Villi. We try to go to Barcelona every year and check on them both. It's something we like to do as a club. We are all good friends here.' At Barca, Fernandez has played as an attacking midfielder, both as a No 8 and No 10, as well as a left-winger. His technical finesse, powerful striking of the ball and ability to play in tight spaces between the lines have been a difference-maker from the first day he joined. Last season, he scored two goals in the 107 minutes he played across seven games with Barca's under-19 in the UEFA Youth League. La Masia's coaches opted not to rush him into men's football, but his talent was never in doubt. Sources at Barca say his promotion to the senior setup for this pre-season is all part of a well-established plan to let him develop physically, adding that keeping him playing at age-group level means he benefits from the experience and responsibility that comes with a major role in the team. Having now had his first taste of life with the senior group, many fans are getting excited. Could he become the next La Masia star to break through? He seems to be up for the challenge. 'The first-team dressing room is brilliant and they have helped me a lot,' Fernandez said on Sunday. 'The first day I joined them for training, I didn't even dare to go and have breakfast with them. I did not know if I could. I stayed in the dressing room and I didn't know if I was allowed to check my phone either in there. 'I think of myself as a technical player. I like to dribble past players and have fun on the pitch. I try to do what I know, and that's it. Now I have to be patient, go step by step because this is just getting started.'
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Barcelona Centre-Forward Is Generating Interest From Saudi Arabia: Can Flick Afford To Let Him Go?
In a recent report, Mundo Deportivo claimed that Barcelona centre-forward Robert Lewandowski is generating interest from Saudi Arabia this summer. It has been revealed that Saudi clubs are keeping tabs on the Polish striker's situation, but the Catalan club are happy to retain his services until the end of next season. Lewandowski had a brilliant campaign at the Catalan club recently as he was responsible for putting in a lot of productive displays for them in front of the opponent's goal. The Poland international participated in 52 matches for Barcelona last season, scoring 42 times and earning three assists across various competitions. The 36-year-old led the line well for the Catalan giants based on his average of 3.75 shots per 90 minutes in La Liga. He kept 40.5% of his attempts on target. Lewandowski even distributed possession relatively well after completing 73.4% of his attempted passes in the Spanish top tier (stats via Lewandowski's current contract at the Nou Camp will run out at the end of next season. Hence, Hansi Flick would have to cash in on him this summer or else risk losing him on a free transfer next year. KOBE, JAPAN – JULY 27: FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski (L) has his shot at goal blocked by Vissel Kobe's Caetano during the preseason friendly between Vissel Kobe and FC Barcelona at Noevir Stadium Kobe on July 27, 2025 in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan. (Photo by) Can Barcelona Boss Hansi Flick Afford To Let Lewandowski Go This Summer? Lewandowski excels at finding a yard of space for himself to get some strikes in at goal. He remains a lethal finisher in the final third and can create the odd chance for others around him in and around the opponent's penalty area. Standing at 1.85m, the Polish sensation is a strong presence in the air as well. He has proven himself to be a consistent goal-getter in La Liga. Lewandowski is one of the first names in Barcelona boss Hansi Flick's teamsheet. Hence, the Catalan outfit cannot afford to let a player of his quality leave unless they receive a big fee for his services. At 36, Lewandowski is still going strong and could help Barcelona challenge for some major honours in the upcoming campaign. With all things considered, Flick should focus on keeping hold of the Polish forward's services for at least another season as he remains an irreplaceable member of his squad.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
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- Yahoo
‘A little child' – Barcelona star the subject of fresh criticism
Barcelona star Marc-André ter Stegen has this week come in for a fresh round of altogether heavy criticism. This of course comes amid ongoing rumours pointing towards mounting tension between club and player. The subject of goalkeeper Ter Stegen's relationship with those behind the scenes at the Camp Nou has emerged as an altogether prominent one in the media over recent weeks. This comes with the 33-year-old all of a sudden finding himself in something of a precarious situation in Hansi Flick's squad. After so long acting as the undisputed no.1 option between the posts in Catalunya's capital, Ter Stegen has this summer tumbled all the way down to third-choice. Such developments are understood to have left the shot-stopper far from impressed, giving rise to widespread claims of growing tension between the parties. Hansi Flick, meanwhile, was on more than one occasion left bemused by the behaviour of his fellow countryman this past season. And as alluded to above, this week, Ter Stegen has been singled out for some fresh and altogether ruthless criticism. Speaking during an appearance on El Larguero, journalist Santi Gimenez of SER embarked on the following rant regarding Barca's out-of-favour shot-stopper: 'Ter Stegen has behaved like a little child… Since last season: He acted poorly against Szczęsny, acted poorly against Peña, and stated that he wants to return and play to participate in the Nations League with Germany. He chooses moments of glory and avoids tough moments, which is absolutely unacceptable for a team captain! I mean, he went to Seville to lift the Copa del Rey, but he didn't travel to Milan to attend the team's UCL semi-final… While Koundé, for example, traveled in economy class to support his teammates. As for Ter Stegen, since there was no glory, he didn't want to show up. And on the day of the La Liga coronation, because he was angry for not playing, he sabotaged the speech that was planned in front of the crowd waiting for the players to speak at the stadium. And to make matters worse, his latest behavior was when he announced the duration of his absence before the surgery!' Conor Laird – GSFN
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
‘Ter Stegen will be our number one if he is for Barcelona' – Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann
Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen has been told that in order to guarantee a starting spot at the 2026 World Cup, he must be the number one at club level. It cranks up the pressure on the 33-year-old, who had surgery on his back on Tuesday. Ter Stegen has been forced to undergo an operation on his back, coming at a difficult time for him, as he watches Barcelona try to oust him as number one, following the signing of Joan Garcia. Hansi Flick has told ter Stegen he will be their third-choice goalkeeper, but he had vowed to fight on for his spot, with three years left on his deal. Germany position puts ter Stegen under pressure Meanwhile one of Barcelona's bargaining chips with which to persuade ter Stegen to leave was to bench him, with the 33-year-old desperate to play the 2026 World Cup with Germany, having sat behind Manuel Neuer for many years. Yet in Germany, BILD report that Bayern Munich veteran Manuel Neuer could return to international duty to play in the USA if he is asked, as doubts grow about ter Stegen. Image viaHis injury complicates his route to the number one spot in the USA, Canada and Mexico. Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann is also a candidate to compete for the number one spot next summer, and he will be given a chance in Germany's remaining fixtures in 2025. Nagelsmann sets ter Stegen condition However speaking to the German press, Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann stated that in order for ter Stegen to retain his number one spot, he must be playing regularly at Barcelona. 'He is our number one if he is healthy and he is number one at his club. In my thoughts, I know that Marc will return in December, he will play both matches in March, in June too, and then he will compete in the World Cup,' he told Sky DE, as quoted by MD. ' 'The rhythm of games and training is very important, and he knows it. If he's his club's starting goalkeeper again, he can certainly be our starting goalkeeper, because he deserves it, but he must meet the necessary conditions like any other player.' Neuer story denied by Nagelsmann 'We have many good ideas and solutions,' he responded when asked if that scenario did not play out. From ter Stegen's point of view, one positive was that a return for Neuer was ruled out, with Nagelsmann stating that 'this possibility does not exist'. Germany position could change Barcelona equation Ter Stegen has thus far been adamant that he will not leave Barcelona, who are keen on an exit, and willing to reach an agreement to terminate his deal. However ter Stegen may well be more willing to consider a permanent or loan exit, be it now or in January, if he knows he will not play at Barcelona, thus jeopardising his international future. The Catalan giants will certainly feel that benching ter Stegen will have more of an impact given Nagelsmann's stance.
