MADRID, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick could be expecting a slow start to the season as his side looks to win a third consecutive La Liga title in the wake of this summer's World Cup.
"This pre-season isn't normal," he commented after Barcelona played in a three-team tournament against Nottingham Forest and Udinese on Saturday without any of his players who featured at the World Cup.
"We aren't going to be 100 percent until after the international break," warned Flick.
Given that the international break does not come until after the seventh round of matches, Flick's comments might appear to hand rivals such as Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal an early advantage. However, Barcelona has been heavily affected by the summer tournament.
Joan Garcia, Eric Garcia, Pau Cubarsi, Gavi, Pedri, Dani Olmo, Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal were all with World Cup winner Spain, while Jules Kounde represented France and new signing Anthony Gordon was with England. Raphinha and Frenkie de Jong featured for Brazil and the Netherlands, respectively, with both suffering injuries during the tournament and De Jong ruled out for several months.
Although Kounde, Gordon and Garcia all took part in training on Sunday, none of Barcelona's Spain, England or France internationals were due to begin pre-season until Monday, less than two weeks before the club opens its title defense at home to Athletic Bilbao.
Meanwhile, the likely absence of Raphinha and De Jong presents a major headache for Flick, who has also seen Marcus Rashford and Joao Cancelo's loan spells end, while Ronald Araujo is on the verge of joining Liverpool, Robert Lewandowski's contract expired at the end of June and Marc Casado is also heading for the exit.
Germany international winger Karim Adeyemi looks an exciting replacement for Rashford, while versatile Hector Fort has returned from a loan spell at Elche and young winger Jesse Bisiwu has arrived from Club Brugge, although it remains uncertain whether he will stay with the first team.
There is also a strong possibility that Ferran Torres will join Paris Saint-Germain before the transfer window closes. Although Barcelona has secured the future of teenage Egyptian forward Hamza Abdelkarim, the club could still need to sign another attacker.
Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez is Barcelona's main target, but Atletico does not want to sell and the saga looks likely to continue throughout the summer.
Barcelona is also pursuing Manchester City's Spain captain Rodrigo Hernandez, who would strengthen the midfield and help cover for the injured De Jong, while the club is also working to bring Cancelo back from Al-Hilal.
Flick's side therefore remains very much a work in progress, although the squad still contains considerable talent, with 19-year-old Lamine Yamal leading the attack and Cubarsi, Pedri, Dani Olmo and Eric Garcia having repeatedly shown their quality.
One of Flick's strengths during his two seasons in charge has been his willingness to turn to Barcelona's youth system, and other players such as Xavi Espart could also be given opportunities, while Marc Bernal has the chance to stake a claim in central midfield.
Barcelona has been written off before, and Flick's side made a slow start last season before finding its form in November and eventually cruising to the title.
However, with Real Madrid unlikely to surrender as many points under Jose Mourinho as it did last season, Flick cannot afford to see his side fall too far behind in the opening weeks. He needs Barcelona to complete its transfer business and its returning internationals to get up to speed as quickly as possible. ■