Tuesday’s night stunning comeback victory over Benfica means that Barcelona go into the final round of league phase fixture in second place. They have already assured themselves of automatic progression to the last 16 of the Champions League, although that does not mean that next week’s match against Atalanta is a dead rubber for Hansi Flick’s side.
After an opening matchday defeat at AS Monaco, Barcelona have come roaring back in the Champions League. They have won their next six matches in the league phase (vs Young Boys, Bayern Munich, Crvena Zvedza, Brest, Borussia Dortmund and Benfica), and this has them on course for a top two finish – they can still finish top, although they would need to win with Liverpool losing at PSV Eindhoven.
As of right now, Barcelona have accumulated €41.2m in prize money as a result of their results in the league phase. Should they secure victory against Atalanta next week, that figure could rise to €53.3m, although that would depend on Liverpool losing – although even if the Catalans finish second, the amount earned will be very similar, as per Diario AS.
Barcelona are determined to earn as much money as possible in order to restore financial parity in the coming years, and many different avenues are being explored by club officials. The best possible way to raise funds is with efforts on the pitch, and for this, there has been a lot of success so far this season. However, there is still more work to be done.
There is no doubt that Barcelona will be taking the match against Atalanta very seriously, as they will want to secure that top two finish. Flick will want this irrespective of the financial benefits, although if it means that there’s extra money available in the summer, he would not be complaining.
