Barcelona say they still have transfer cash to spend

New Bayern Munich forward Mario Goetze (left) and Sporting Director Matthias Sammer pose for photographers during Goetze’s presentation in Munich yesterday. (EPA)Reuters/BarcelonaBarcelona’s transfer resources have not been exhausted by the 60 million euros ($78 million) they paid for Brazil forward Neymar, a club spokesman said yesterday. Neymar will line up alongside World Player of the Year Lionel Messi in a formidable forward line for the Spanish champions but they probably need to strengthen a defence that was worryingly porous last season. “Barca can afford all the transfers the technical staff deem necessary, as has always been the case,” Toni Freixa, spokesman for the club’s board of directors, told a news conference. “But we cannot of course tell the market how much we are prepared to spend.” The club’s 35-year-old captain Carles Puyol has suffered a series of injury problems and Barca’s central defensive pairing last season was typically Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano, a converted midfielder. Barca romped to a fourth title in five years but conceded 40 goals in 38 matches, 11 more than the previous campaign. Neymar’s Brazil team-mate Thiago Silva told reporters this week that Barca coach Tito Vilanova had tried to coax him to the Catalan capital but the centre-back’s club, Paris St-Germain, are reluctant to part with him. Vilanova has seemed reluctant to heap too much responsibility on Spain Under-21 international Marc Bartra. He  had a fine European Championship in Israel last month and could play more of a role next season. Alex Song, another midfielder, was bought from Arsenal because he can also fill in at centre back but has proved a disappointment. Daniel Alves and Jordi Alba are fixtures at right and left back respectively and Barca have Martin Montoya and Adriano as cover. The arrival of Neymar may trigger the exit of David Villa, who has not been the same lethal marksman since breaking his leg at the Club World Cup in late 2011 and will be 32 in December.Goetze presented in Munich, doesn’t see price tag as burden

Munich: Germany midfielder Mario Goetze sees his 37-million euros (48 million dollars) price tag as an honour rather than a burden as he was yesterday formally presented by treble winners Bayern Munich. Munich splashed out the big fee required to buy him out of his contract until 2016 at Champions League finalists, with Goetze reportedly heavily desired by new Munich coach Pep Guardiola, the former Barcelona helmsman. The 37 million are the biggest fee ever spent for a transfer within the Bundesliga, but Goetze said it shows him “the high esteem” he is held in although he refuted all comparison to Barca in general and Lionel Messi in particular. “We have big aims and we have a very good coach. Comparisons with Barcelona are normal, but every player is prepared for that,” he said. The Bavaria-born Goetze said the move was not so much a home-coming but rather a logical step in his development as a footballer. “I chose this path becaue it seemed the best one for me from a sports perspective. I don’t really want to call it a return home,” he said. Goetze, 21, will soon move into a flat with his brother Fabian, who plays at third-division Unterhaching. He is still sidelined with a thigh-muscle injury which denied him a final appearance for Dortmund in the Champions League final they lost against Munich in May. “I hope to return to the pitch as soon as possible and to play football again. It will be ambition to achieve a lot with the club and to play good and beautiful football,” Goetze said. Munich sports director Matthias Sammer praised Goetze as “an outstanding player” and also noted “a lot of potential” in Jan Kirchhoff, another new signing who was presented yesterday in a move from Mainz. Sammer left it open whether Munich would make further summer signings. “The transfer window is open another two months. It is always possible that something will happen,” Sammer said.