Barça are crumbling

Barcelona are heading down a slippery slope. Josep María Bartomeu has given his all in good faith, but the mess that he inherited as incoming president was simply too big, making it impossible to restore order.

Victories and good play may have generated a smokescreen over the questionable decision not to call elections after Rosell's departure, but recent defeats and poor play coupled with the deluge of legal problems have made it all the clearer. Barça are crumbling.

Luis Enrique's decision not to start Messi and Neymar at the Anoeta set alarm bells ringing. The fact that 'Los Azulgranas' were unable to take advantage of Real Madrid's slip-up at the Mestalla simply made things worse.

That was only the start, however. Next up was news of Messi failing to attend the open-doors training session on Monday.

Some members of the board had already demanded Bartomeu show Zubizarreta the door as a stiff warning to Luis Enrique. Bartomeu responded by firing the club's sporting director on Monday.

The former goalkeeper's exit will do little to alleviate the unrest among Luis Enrique's players. Not just Messi, although the Argentine star is, of course, the most high-profile case. To put it simply, he cannot stand his coach. Barça know that hiring Luis Enrique was a mistake. He currently lacks the qualities to lead a group of stars that you might find at any of the world's big clubs.

Just to make matters worse, the latest catastrophe arrived in mid-afternoon when revered former captain Carles Puyol announced his departure...