Barcelona v Valencia set to take place at Johan Cruyff Stadium

On the weekend of September 13th and 14th, with kick-off times yet to be confirmed, Barcelona are scheduled to play their first home match of the La Liga season. The fixture is against Valencia, but the club are still unsure where the match will take place. According to 'Sport', a number of factors mean the Johan Cruyff Stadium is now the frontrunner, given the hurdles the club has encountered at Spotify Camp Nou.

Although Barcelona's priority remains opening the Camp Nou, even at reduced capacity, they are awaiting final approval from the local authorities, despite having met the final building certification for the first phase of development. While the club believe they will be ready in time, they are preparing the Johan Cruyff Stadium as an alternative, which, at least for this first match against Valencia, appears the more likely option.

However, the club must meet certain requirements with their Plan B if they want to play the match against Valencia there. The Johan Cruyff Stadium currently has a capacity of 6,000, while La Liga demands a minimum of 15,000 for its matches. This means the club would need permission from the league to fall short of the requirement or install temporary stands to provide almost 9,000 additional seats to comply.

Furthermore, the necessary technology for video arbitration would need to be installed, as the Johan Cruyff Stadium currently lacks VAR facilities. This will be an essential requirement if the match against Valencia is to be held there. A decision is expected by next week. Until then, discussions with La Liga are expected to continue to determine the most feasible option for the Week Four fixture.