Welcome to Inside Barcelona, a new weekly series of articles to follow throughout the 2025-26 La Liga season.

Every week, we will bring you our latest information and analysis on the biggest talking points, cutting through the noisy world of all things Barca with reporting you can trust.

This week, our writer Dermot Corrigan explores when the team might realistically return to the Camp Nou, whether they might look to sell academy graduate Marc Casado and Marcus Rashford’s mixed first start for the club.

What’s the biggest talking point at Barcelona?

We are two weeks into the 2025-26 season but it is still unclear where Barca are going to play their home games.

The first team have spent the last two years across the city at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, commonly known as Montjuic because of the hill it is located on, with the Camp Nou undergoing an expensive and extensive renovation.

Earlier in the summer, Barca were confident they could finally return to play at the Camp Nou for the start of this campaign, albeit with a limited attendance while work continued on the stadium. That date was pushed to mid-September, with La Liga agreeing to let Barca play their first three games away from home.

But the paperwork required for local authorities to grant permits to play at the stadium in front of a crowd has still not been filed. Inspectors from both La Liga and UEFA, European football’s governing body, visited the Camp Nou last week to assess the work’s progress. A town hall representative suggested in an interview with Catalan radio station RAC1 on Thursday that Hansi Flick’s team should return to Montjuic for the first half of the season at least.

All their focus is on the home game against Valencia, currently set for September 14. Montjuic is unavailable that weekend, as American rapper and singer Post Malone has a concert there.

The Athletic has been told that La Liga will not ‘flip’ the calendar, so Barca could play that game at Valencia’s Mestalla instead. The Estadi Johan Cruyff at Barca’s training ground is not an option as it does not meet Spanish top-flight standards. Barca could, in theory, ask to ‘rent’ another La Liga stadium, with Girona’s Montilivi ground the most likely, but no such official request has yet been made.

The state of the Camp Nou at present (Xavier Bonilla/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

It is an embarrassment for president Joan Laporta and his board — and complicates their salary cap situation for La Liga, as the €100million (£87m; $117m) VIP seats deal from last December can still not be included as part of their accounts.

It is also a significant source of frustration for Barca fans, who had been told they would be back home more than six months ago. Staff and players would also like certainty on what is happening, but silence from the club hierarchy has fed speculation over what might happen.

What’s the latest on their transfer plans and registrations? Do they want to sell Marc Casado?

Barca are unlikely to make any further signings this window but they have three players to register with La Liga — goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, 23-year-old defender Gerard Martin and Swedish forward Roony Bardghji (who scored in a 3-2 friendly win for the second team, Barca Atletic, against Atletic Lleida over the weekend).

Veteran midfielder Oriol Romeu and goalkeeper Inaki Pena are both almost certain to leave this week, on a free transfer and on loan. Others who could follow are homegrown defender Hector Fort and midfielder Marc Casado.

Casado’s case is the most interesting. Coming through La Masia, the 21-year-old was not widely tipped as a future star. But circumstances 12 months ago — including injuries and the club’s transfer strategy — thrust him into the first-team picture. Casado responded well, playing 36 games, mostly as a starter, while winning La Liga, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana medals.

As the season progressed, Casado’s role in the team faded, and he is not a crucial part of Flick’s plans, especially with the more highly rated and even younger Marc Bernal, 18, almost fit again.

Casado stepped up last season (Maria Gracia Jimenez/Soccrates/Getty Images)

Last season’s displays put Casado into the shop window. The Athletic can confirm that Premier League club West Ham United have shown an interest, but their first-choice target for the position remains Southampton’s Mateus Fernandes. Wolverhampton Wanderers are also reportedly interested, according to Catalan outlets.

For Barca’s hierarchy, it could make financial sense to sell now, especially at the €30m fee being talked about in the Catalan press. That money would be really useful in raising the club’s salary limit for this season, while the player’s value would fall significantly if he spends most of the campaign on the bench.

Casado himself does not want to leave, while Flick made his feelings clear by starting him at the base of midfield at Levante on Saturday evening (with Frenkie de Jong out after the birth of his second child). The move did not go well for the player, though — Barca were 2-0 down at half-time, and he was replaced at the break.

What else did we learn from Saturday’s game?

Flick’s other surprise selection at Levante was to give Rashford a first start on the left wing. That meant a very attacking XI, with Raphinha as No 10 behind Ferran Torres at centre-forward and Lamine Yamal in his usual role on the right.

It just did not work. Rashford started brightly, including a nutmeg on his marker out near the sideline and a dangerous run with the ball deep into the Levante penalty area. The England international soon faded.

Meanwhile, problems with Barca’s ill-defined team shape and lack of intensity off the ball allowed Levante to launch a series of counter-attacks. Two of those resulted in goals, giving the promoted team a shock 2-0 half-time lead.

Flick fixed the problem at the break, withdrawing Rashford and sending on Dani Olmo, shifting Raphinha back out to the left. Barca were immediately much improved, with a half-time rocket from Flick lifting their intensity and work rate. Goals from Pedri and Torres quickly drew the sides level, before Yamal’s curling cross provoked a Levante own goal to decide the game in the 91st minute.

It would be harsh to blame Rashford personally for the shambolic first-half display — he completed all of his 30 passes and his one shot was on target. But the 45 minutes showed how Barca can only really start three of their out-and-out forwards, and he remains a back-up option, for now at least.

What should we look out for this week?

Barca will find out their league-phase opponents in the Champions League draw on Thursday, with Flick’s side hoping to lift the only trophy that eluded them last season following their semi-final heartbreak against Inter.

The transfer window closes next Monday, so we should also expect some movement in the market.

It remains to be seen whether Roony will stay with the first team or be sent out on loan. The Athletic previously reported that Roony playing for Barca Atletic could help the club register him for the first team — second-team players are not subject to La Liga’s salary cap for their initial registration, although the squad’s wage expenditure has an impact on their overall salary limit.

(Top photo: Alex Caparros/Getty Images)