Ilkay Gündogan spoke first. Ronald Araujo answered. After the exchange of opinions and a day of rest, the Barça group met again at the Ciudad Deportiva to train this Friday, also the first contact for both players since Barça's defeat against PSG. “The mood is good. The training session went well. “We are looking forward,” the German player shared with ESPN. “I believe this is how the most successful teams develop and improve, by communicating, looking each other in the eyes and speaking for the benefit of each person. But at the end of the day, the final objective is the benefit of the club,” added the midfielder to settle the controversy. There is no division in the locker room, only the noise from outside that sneaks in between the lockers. That's what the protagonists say.
“Union” and “family,” captain Sergi Roberto highlighted again and again at the Movistar microphones this Friday. “The statements have been more external noise than problems within the locker room. We are very united,” he conceded, smiling and pragmatic, with the intention of closing controversies and putting on the table the importance of the next Clásico on Sunday, at 9:00 p.m. (Movistar LaLiga). “Don't look for problems where there aren't any. The team is very united. What has happened is not going to change anything,” he stated. And Gündogan is already thinking beyond the controversy. “All the frustration and disappointment that this last match against PSG has caused is something that all footballers can take advantage of, especially the younger ones, to do better,” said the German player for the club's media.
And Jules Koundé followed his colleagues in statements to TVE: “The issue is closed, we are united, as always. “We all have the same desire, we want to win and we have the same objectives.” “The locker room is calm, we have talked about it among ourselves, and the issue is closed. “I think Ilkay didn't want to do any harm, and Ronald understood that after speaking,” the defender continued for DAZN. The Barça captain and goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen also spoke with Movistar about the communication in the locker room: “There is no problem. We speak in the moment. Talking about things always solves the issue before it gets bigger, we deal with things like that.”
The controversial event, a red card and expulsion in the 29th minute of the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals in his anxiety to stop Bradley Barcola. For Xavi Hernández and Araujo, excessive. And Gündogan, when asked about the action, was analytical and critical. “Gündo, what he did was explain what happened in the game, but without any intention of pointing fingers at anyone,” said Sergi Roberto. “No meeting is necessary. There has been talk, of course, especially about the external noise, to clarify that there is no problem between anyone. I have read that there was division in the locker room, but far from it,” stated the captain.
Among the exchange of statements after the defeat and expulsion from the Champions League, the focus fell on the controversy between both players. Carles Puyol, ex-Azulgrana and former culé captain, was asked about the matter. “I believe that everyone is free to say what they believe. "I am in favor of the things that have to be talked about, being talked about within the locker room," Puyol confessed in front of the media at an event organized for the match between Barcelona and Real Madrid this Sunday. But Puyol defended: “Many times it gets more impact from the press. You have to try not to say too many things outside, because then they can be interpreted in many ways, but I think [Gündogan] gives an opinion without bad intentions.” He also analyzed the action that gave the culé defender a direct red against PSG. “Regarding Araujo's play, defending is not easy. It is a very fast action, he commits a foul and the one who I am sure did not want to do it is Araujo. These are things that happen in football.”
With the matter settled, on Sunday FC Barcelona faces another challenge: Madrid. “We have to get a victory, and we are going to the Bernabéu for that,” Koundé assured public television. “We are prepared for Sunday, and to fight it as if it were a final,” added Sergi Roberto for his part. And Gündogan, in the middle of the noise, is clear: “A huge game is coming, one of the biggest in the world. We are very excited. It is a privilege to play the Clásico while being with Barça.” The focus is decided, and the locker room is clear.