Barca.

Mes que un club.

Futbol Club Barcelona. One of the world’s biggest sports clubs with millions of fans across the world. However it is more than a club, it is a powerful symbol of Catalan culture.

FC Barcelona has a rich tradition of attracting the best footballers in the world and playing in great matches. Cruyff, Maradona, Ronaldino and now Messi have thrilled and  entertained fans at Camp Nou. I had to visit.

Like many clubs around the world, some of  its early activists came from the UK. Brothers  Arthur and Earnest Witty played for the club  and later Arthur became its president. They had both been educated at Merchant Taylor’s School in Crosby and it is believed that the famous blaugrana (blue and red) shirts of FC Barcelona were chosen because that was the colours of rugby teams at Merchant Taylor’s School. The school and the football club are still linked and whilst I was there the current school football team played at the stadium.

However the club’s most important links are with its fans and the Catalan community. The club does not have shareholders like most of its rivals. Instead it has over 140 000 members who elect a president and  directors. The club attempts to reflect Catalan culture and the club crest includes the red and yellow stripes of the flag of Catalonia.

Thousands visit Camp Nou, not just to see a game but to visit the club’s museum and to explore the stadium on guided tours. The group I toured with included Rozella from Argentina as well as Sam, Colin, Mel and Graham from the UK.

A stadium tour is a great experience but to attend a game is even better.

I saw Barca host Getafe in a top La Liga clash played in front of over 80 000 fans. Sadly there was no Suarez or Dembele to entertain me but there was Pique, Jordi Alba, De Jong, Griezmann and of course Messi.

It was a great game. Strikes from Griezmann and Sergi Roberto helped Barca to a 2-1 victory.

Not surprisingly my focus was to watch Lionel Messi. What a wonderful player he is. In the following days press he was awarded 7/10 in the player ratings. However 7/10 for Messi is equivalent to 11/10 for any other player on the planet. He created the first goal with a sublime pass to Griezmann, had a rare header that was thwarted by an amazing save by Soria in Getafe’s goal and then almost scored with a beautifully arced free kick.

The ease by which he drifted around the pitch was remarkable. He always looked comfortable however and wherever he received the ball. Messi is not a big man, he is only about 170cm tall. His legs might not be long but his feet are fast. Watching Messi accelerate past a hapless defender is like watching Road Runner blistering by Wile E Coyote. Beep beep !

I saw Lionel Messi play for his club in front of his own fans and it was worth every euro.