Curious Case: Barcelona's English Friendly Called Off Due to Opponent's Player Shortage

Barcelona's planned friendly against English Championship side Preston North End has surprisingly fallen through, according to Catalan media reports. The closed-door match was scheduled for tomorrow at 4 PM at St. George's Park in Birmingham.

Reports indicate that the sudden cancellation of the pre-season fixture is due to a shortage of first-team players for Preston. The English club reportedly offered Barcelona the option of playing their youth squad instead, but the Spanish champions declined. Consequently, Hansi Flick's players will now conduct a regular training session and may return to Spain earlier than planned.

Nevertheless, Barça's next opponent will indeed be an English team: Nottingham Forest. However, that match on August 8th will take place at Spotify Camp Nou. Two days prior, the Blaugrana drew 2-2 away against Birmingham City, subsequently losing 3-2 in a penalty shootout.