Five Swiss players want to shake up the Spanish league – Barça go into the race as title favorites

FC Barcelona is aiming for its first successful title defense in Spain since 2019 with an almost unchanged team. Meanwhile, five Swiss players want to cause a sensation with their teams.

Nico Williams should have been FC Barcelona’s transfer king. However, the Basque winger decided to stay with Athletic Bilbao at the last minute. The 102 goals scored in the last championship, which the Catalans won by a wide margin, prove that Barça’s offense works perfectly even without Nico Williams.

With Lamine Yamal’s well-coordinated team, Barcelona will be the favorites going into the new season, which already has a first highlight in store with the return to the renovated Camp Nou in the fall. The stadium, which should have been ready for the return at the end of last year, has been a source of concern for the Catalans for months. According to reports, over 200 construction defects have been found during inspections.

Investments by Real and Atlético

At Real Madrid, the analysis of the disappointing past season revealed a need for action in the defense in particular. Coach Xabi Alonso, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti, spent 120 million euros on new defenders – Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alvaro Carreras for the flanks and Dean Huijsen for the center. Kylian Mbappé, last season’s top scorer, is still primarily responsible for the goals.

The Frenchman, who is a prolific scorer but not always reliable defensively, was given the number 10 shirt by Luka Modric, who had moved to Milan. The ten should belong to the playmaker, according to some. However, it remains to be seen who will play a decisive role in the Blancos’ game. Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham and Arda Güler, who got better and better towards the end of last season, are all candidates.

Apart from Barcelona and Real Madrid, only Atlético Madrid are seen as serious title contenders by the betting agencies. The team of Diego Simeone, who is entering his 15th season as coach of the Colchoneros, has strengthened its squad for over 150 million euros.

Three Swiss players in Seville

From a Swiss perspective, Valencia and Sevilla are also in the spotlight. At Betis Sevilla, Ricardo Rodriguez is hoping for a similarly successful season as last time with 6th place and a place in the Conference League final. For Sevilla FC with Ruben Vargas and Djibril Sow, things are set to pick up again after narrowly avoiding relegation in early summer last year. The Argentinian Matias Almeyda is the new coach of the struggling Europa League record winners.

Valencia also wants to get closer to the top national places again with two Swiss players. Filip Ugrinic joined the club of controversial Singaporean investor Peter Lim from Young Boys. Eray Cömert returned to the Valencians after two seasons on loan at Nantes and Valladolid, for whom he had not played a competitive game for over two years.