Barcelona have made their stance clear on Juliano Belletti's future at Barca Atletic, and it's good news for the former Champions League hero. Despite a season that fell short of promotion, the club is fully backing their B team boss to continue developing the next generation of talent.
It was a campaign of near-misses for Belletti's side, who narrowly missed out on a promotion play-off spot. Injuries to key players and regular call-ups to the first team certainly didn't help, but the coach's ability to adapt has impressed the board. According to *Mundo Deportivo*, Barcelona have "no doubts" about keeping Belletti at the helm.
After the final game of the season, Belletti reflected on his role with a coach's wisdom. "That's a matter for the board. My job is to bring the players into the reality of competitive football," he said. "This is how I can continue as a coach, working to better prepare them for the first team. The good thing is that Flick likes young players who understand the context."
The Brazilian also took a moment to praise his squad's resilience. "We had to demand too much from the youngsters; I talked about protecting them, and yet they've shown something different, especially in their character."
Looking ahead, Barca Atletic will aim for promotion once again next season. While they may lose talents like Xavi Espart and Tommy Marques to the senior setup, Belletti will have plenty of exciting prospects to work with—including the highly-rated Ibrahim Diarra, Toni Fernandez, and Ebrima Tunkara. For Barcelona, the future remains bright at every level of the club.
