2022–23 FC Barcelona season

The 2022–23 Futbol Club Barcelona season was the club's 124th season in existence and their 92nd consecutive season in the top flight. In addition to the domestic league, Barcelona participated in this season's editions of the Copa del Rey, the Supercopa de España, the UEFA Champions League (entering for the 19th consecutive season), and the UEFA Europa League. The season covered the period from 1 July 2022 until 30 June 2023.
This was the last season for Barcelona's defender Gerard Piqué, who retired before the winter World Cup. Piqué had spent fifteen seasons with Barcelona and won thirty official trophies with the club. Furthermore, captain Sergio Busquets announced that he would leave the club at the end of the season after eighteen years with Barcelona, having won 32 trophies with the Catalans. This was also Jordi Alba's last season at Barcelona after eleven years, having won nineteen trophies with the club.
On 15 January 2023, Barcelona clinched their first trophy since 2021 by defeating Real Madrid 3–1 in the Supercopa de España final. On 14 May 2023, Barcelona mathematically won their 27th La Liga title with four games to go, and the first since the 2018–19 season.
On 10 June 2022, Barcelona and Sergi Roberto negotiated a one-year contract extension lasting until 30 June 2023. Two days later, Dani Alves announced that he would be leaving the club, when his contract expires at the end of June. On 30 June, Barcelona and Sixth Street reach an agreement for the acquisition of a 10% share of the club's La Liga TV rights, with Barcelona generating a total capital gain of €267 million for the current season. Sixth Street would initially invest €207.5 million and in return would receive 10% of the club's La Liga TV rights for the next 25 years.
On 1 July, Barcelona announced that Adama Traoré and Luuk de Jong would be leaving the club after completing their loan stint. Three days later, Barcelona announced the signing of Franck Kessié from A.C. Milan on a free transfer. Later that day, Barcelona announced the signing of Andreas Christensen from Chelsea on a free transfer. On 8 July, Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur reached an agreement for the loan of Clément Lenglet for the rest of the season. On 12 July, Barcelona and Watford reached an agreement for transfer of Rey Manaj for an undisclosed fee.
On 13 July, Barcelona played their first pre-season friendly versus Olot, which ended in a draw 1–1 from a poor Barcelona side. That day, Barcelona and Leeds United reached an agreement for transfer of Raphinha for €48,000,000, with the fee potentially rising to €60,000,000. He signed a contract until 2027 with a buyout clause of €1 billion. Barcelona also reached an agreement with Sporting to loan Francisco Trincão for reported €3,000,000 until the end of the season with an option to buy. On 14 July, Barcelona and Ousmane Dembélé agreed a two years contract extension lasting until 30 June 2024 with a buyout clause of €100,000,000. Two days later, Barcelona and Bayern Munich reached an agreement for the transfer of Robert Lewandowski for €45,000,000, potentially rising to €50,000,000. He signed a four years contract until 2026 with a buyout clause of €500,000,000. Barcelona also announced the squad for the US tour, taking 28 players to play four pre-season matches there. On 19 July, Barcelona started the US tour with a 6–0 win over Inter Miami at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Two days later, Barcelona sold an additional 15% of the club's La Liga TV right to Sixth Street. In total, Sixth Street would receive 25% of the club's La Liga TV rights for the next 25 years. On 23 July, Barcelona won their second game of the US tour 1–0 over Real Madrid at the Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. Three days later, Barcelona drew 2–2 against Juventus in Dallas, with Ousmane Dembélé scoring a brace. On 27 July, Barcelona reached a verbal agreement to sign French defender Jules Koundé from Sevilla. Two days later, Barcelona announced the signing of Koundé on a 5-year contract with a release clause of €1 billion. Barça also reached an agreement with Celta de Vigo for the transfer of Óscar Mingueza, which maintained a buy-back clause and a 50% cut of any future sale. In their final match of the US tour on 30 July, Barcelona defeated the New York Red Bulls 2–0 in Harrison, New Jersey, with Ousmane Dembélé and Memphis Depay scoring a goal each.
On 1 August, Barcelona announced the activation of the third 'economic lever', selling 24.5% of Barça Studios to Socios.com for €100 million "to accelerate the club's audiovisual, blockchain, NFT and Web.3 strategy".
On 7 August, Barcelona concluded the pre-season with a 6–0 victory over Mexican club Pumas UNAM, winning the Joan Gamper Trophy for the 45th time. Pedri scored a brace, while Robert Lewandowski, Ousmane Dembélé, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Frenkie de Jong contributed to the victory with a goal each.
On 13 August, Barcelona were held to a goalless draw against Rayo Vallecano at Camp Nou in the first league match of the season. The new signings Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen and Franck Kessié made their competitive debuts in this match.
On 21 August, the team got their first league win of the season, after they beat Real Sociedad 4–1 away. Robert Lewandowski scored twice, with the other two goals coming from Ousmane Dembélé and Ansu Fati.
On 24 August, Barcelona drew 3–3 against Manchester City at Camp Nou, in a charity match to raise funds in the fight against ALS. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Frenkie de Jong and Memphis Depay scored for the Blaugrana.
On 28 August, Barça defeated Real Valladolid 4–0 with goals coming from Pedri, Sergi Roberto and the other two goals came from Robert Lewandowski. Jules Koundé made his competitive debut in this match.
On 1 September, Barcelona reached an agreement with Martin Braithwaite to terminate his contract after 59 appearances for the club during which he scored 10 goals. On the same day, defender Sergiño Dest was loaned to AC Milan, with the option to buy the player once the loan period expires.
On the next day, the club announced the signing of former La Masia graduate Héctor Bellerín. On the same day, it was announced that Barcelona and Chelsea had reached an agreement for the transfer of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for €12,000,000, he scored 13 goals in 24 matches. On that day, the club also announced the signing of Marcos Alonso.
A day later, Barcelona beat Sevilla 3–0 away. Raphinha and Eric García both scored their first goals for the club with the other goal coming from Robert Lewandowski.
On 7 September, Barcelona started the UEFA Champions League group stage with a big 5–1 win against Viktoria Plzeň in Group C. Robert Lewandowski scored his first hat-trick for the club, Franck Kessié scored his first goal for the club and a goal from Ferran Torres completed the victory. On the same day, Barcelona reached an agreement with midfielder Miralem Pjanić to terminate his contract after 30 appearances with the club.
Three days later, Barcelona beat Cádiz 4–0 away. Robert Lewandowski, Frenkie de Jong, Ansu Fati and Ousmane Dembélé got on the scoresheet with a goal each.
On 13 September, Barcelona suffered a 2–0 defeat against Bayern Munich.
On 17 September, Barcelona won 3–0 against Elche, and achieved their best league start in the last five years, achieving 16 points out of a possible 18 from the first six matches. Robert Lewandowski scored a brace and the other goal came from Memphis Depay.
On 1 October, Barcelona continued their good form after the international break with another win, this time a 1–0 away win against Mallorca. Robert Lewandowski scored the only goal of the match.
On 4 October, Barcelona suffered a narrow 1–0 defeat against Inter Milan under controversial circumstances after Pedri had scored in the 67th minute, but it was ruled out by Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for a controversial handball by Ansu Fati. It was a night of controversy at the San Siro from VAR decisions, with another notable incident coming towards the end of the match when Denzel Dumfries appeared to handle the ball in the penalty area while trying to redirect a cross, however it was controversially ruled he had not conclusively knocked a cross away from Ansu Fati with his wrist.
On 9 October, the team got their seventh league win in a row after winning 1–0 against Celta Vigo, with the only goal of the match coming from Pedri.
On 12 October, Barça were held to a dramatic 3–3 draw in the return fixture against Inter Milan at Camp Nou. Two goals from Robert Lewandowski and another goal from Ousmane Dembélé were not enough to give the team a much needed win in the Champions League, which left them in the risky position of not making it out of the group for the second consecutive season.
On 16 October, Barcelona suffered their first league defeat of the season, after losing 3–1 against Real Madrid in the first El Clásico of the season. Ferran Torres scored the only goal for the team.
On 20 October, Barcelona defeated Villarreal 3–0, thanks to a brace from Robert Lewandowski and a goal from Ansu Fati.
Three days later, the team crushed Athletic Bilbao 4–0, with Ousmane Dembélé, Sergi Roberto, Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres getting on the scoresheet with a goal each.
On 26 October, Barça suffered a 3–0 defeat against Bayern Munich in the return fixture. The defeat meant that Barcelona were eliminated from the Champions League and couldn't advance from the group stages for the second season in a row, and were relegated to the UEFA Europa League knockout stage for the second consecutive season. It was the first time since 1999 that the Catalan club failed to advance to the knockout stage of the Champions League in consecutive years, coinciding with the departure of Lionel Messi to Paris Saint-Germain two seasons ago.
On 29 October, Barcelona ended the month with a narrow 1–0 away victory against Valencia, with Robert Lewandowski scoring the only goal of the match.
On 1 November, Barcelona ended their Champions League campaign with a 4–2 away win against Viktoria Plzeň. Ferran Torres scored twice, while both Marcos Alonso and Pablo Torre both scored their first goals for the club.
On 3 November, Barça's legend Gerard Piqué announced his retirement from football by releasing a heartfelt video on his social media accounts, having enjoyed a trophy-laden 14 years at the club since returning from Manchester United in 2008, during which he played 615 games for the team.
On 5 November, the team beat Almería 2–0 with the goals coming from Ousmane Dembélé and Frenkie de Jong. Gerard Piqué played his final match for FC Barcelona in front of 92,605 fans who were gathered at Camp Nou to bid farewell to the club legend who was given an emotional standing ovation. There was a huge banner on the pitch that said 'Sempr3' (For3ver) and a video celebrating Piqué's career was played on the big screen to the fans as well. On the same day, Robert Lewandowski was awarded La Liga Player of the Month award for the month of October 2022.
On 8 November, Barcelona finished the first half of the season with a 2–1 away victory against Osasuna, with the goals coming from Pedri and Raphinha. This was the last match for the team before the mid-season break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
After the mid-season break for the World Cup, Barcelona returned to action on the last day of the year, when they played Espanyol in the Barcelona derby. The hard-fought, tense and fiery derby ended in a 1–1 draw, with Marcos Alonso scoring the only goal for the team and the last goal of the year for the Blaugrana.
On 4 January 2023, Barcelona started the new year with a 4–3 away win after extra-time against third-division side Intercity in their first match in the 2022–23 Copa del Rey. Ronald Araújo, Ousmane Dembélé, Raphinha and Ansu Fati contributed a goal each to help the team advance to the next round.
On 8 January, the team got a hard-fought 1–0 away win against Atlético Madrid in the league. Ousmane Dembélé scored the only goal of the match.
On 12 January, Barcelona advanced to the Supercopa de España final after they beat Real Betis 4–2 on penalties in the semi-finals, after the match had ended in a 2–2 draw after extra-time.
On 15 January, Barcelona clinched their first trophy since 2021 by beating Real Madrid 3–1 in the Supercopa de España final. Gavi, Robert Lewandowski and Pedri scored a goal each.
On 19 January, the team got a dominant away win against third-division side Ceuta, beating them 5–0 thanks to goals from Raphinha, Ansu Fati, Franck Kessié and a brace from Robert Lewandowski, and advancing to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey.
A day later, Barcelona announced that they had reached an agreement for the transfer of Memphis Depay to Atlético Madrid for €3,000,000 plus one million in variables. During his time at the club, Memphis Depay scored 14 goals and provided 2 assists in 42 appearances.
On 22 January, the team got a 1–0 win in the league against Getafe, thanks to a goal scored by Pedri.
On 25 January, Barcelona advanced to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey after they beat Real Sociedad 1–0 in the quarter-finals, thanks to an Ousmane Dembélé goal.
On 28 January, Barcelona got a narrow 1–0 away win in the league against Girona, with Pedri scoring the only goal of the match.
On 31 January, Barcelona announced that they had reached an agreement for the transfer of Héctor Bellerín to Sporting Lisbon. Héctor Bellerín made 7 appearances for Barcelona.
On 1 February, Barcelona got a 2–1 away win against Real Betis, with Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski scoring a goal each.
On 5 February, the team defeated Sevilla 3–0 to move eight points clear at the top of the league table. Jordi Alba, Gavi and Raphinha got on the scoresheet with a goal each.
On 12 February, Barcelona beat Villarreal 1–0 away, thanks to a goal from Pedri.
On 16 February, Barcelona drew 2–2 against Manchester United at the Camp Nou in the first leg of the Europa League knockout round play-offs, with Marcos Alonso and Raphinha scoring for the team.
On 19 February, the team won 2–0 against Cádiz, thanks to goals from Sergi Roberto and Robert Lewandowski.
On the away leg of the Europa League knockout round play-offs at Old Trafford on 23 February, Barcelona suffered a 2–1 loss against Manchester United and exited the tournament with a 4–3 aggregate score. Robert Lewandowski scored the only goal for the team.
Barcelona ended the month with a shock 1–0 defeat away to Almería on 26 February.
On 2 March, Barcelona got a narrow 1–0 away win against Real Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals thanks to an own goal from Éder Militão. In this match, Sergio Busquets made his 46th appearance in the El Clásico breaking the record for the most El Clásico appearances ever by a player, previously held by Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos, both of whom had made 45 appearances.
On 5 March, Barcelona defeated Valencia 1–0, getting their 20th win of the season in La Liga. Raphinha scored the only goal of the match, extending the team's lead at the top of the league table to 9 points. Ferran Torres also missed a penalty in the 55th minute and in the 59th minute, Ronald Araújo got sent-off after committing a last-man foul, for which he was suspended for the next league match against Athletic Bilbao.
On 12 March, Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 1–0 away, with Raphinha scoring the only goal of the match. The win helped keep the 9 point lead at the top of the table ahead of the El Clásico. This was Barcelona's 19th clean sheet in the league in which they have conceded only eight goals in 25 matches, breaking the record for fewest goals conceded after 25 matches, held jointly by Deportivo La Coruña in the 1993–94 season and Atlético Madrid in the 1990–91 season, both teams conceding 10 goals in 25 games.
On 19 March, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 2–1 in the El Clásico. This win put the team 12 points in front at the top of the table and was also Barcelona's 100th competitive El Clásico win, and third consecutive win against Real Madrid across all competitions. Franck Kessié scored the winning goal in the 92nd minute, aside from getting the team closer to winning the league title, the goal had another special significance as it was Barcelona's 3,000th goal scored in La Liga at the Camp Nou.
After the international break, the team continued where they left off, winning against Elche 4–0 away on the first day of the month. Robert Lewandowski scored a brace, while Ansu Fati and Ferran Torres scored one goal each. Goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen also recorded his 150th clean sheet since joining the club in 2014.
On 5 April, Barcelona got eliminated from the Copa del Rey after they suffered a 0–4 home loss (1–4 on aggregate) against Real Madrid in the return leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals.
On 10 April, the team got held to a goalless draw against Girona at home, and maintained their unbeaten home league record, extending the lead to 13 points at the top of the league table.
On 16 April, Barcelona got held to another scoreless draw, this time against Getafe away.
On 23 April, Barcelona took a narrow 1–0 victory against Atlético Madrid with the only goal of the match coming from Ferran Torres at the end of the first half. Marc-André ter Stegen equalled the club record for most clean sheets in the league in a season, previously achieved by Claudio Bravo in the 2014–15 season, in which he kept 23 clean sheets in the league.
On 26 April, Barcelona suffered their third defeat of the season, losing against Rayo Vallecano 2–1 away. Robert Lewandowski scored the only goal for the team.
Barcelona ended the month with a 4–0 win against Real Betis on 29 April. The match featured the returns from injuries of Ousmane Dembélé and Andreas Christensen, who scored his first goal for the club. Aside from Christensen's goal, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha also contributed to the win with a goal each, and the last goal was an own goal scored by Real Betis' midfielder Guido Rodríguez. The match also had a special significance because 15-year-old La Masia graduate Lamine Yamal became the youngest ever appearance maker for Barça smashing the record which had been held by Armand Martinez Sagi since 2 April 1922. Martinez Sagi was aged 15 years, 11 months and five days when he appeared in a 1–1 draw against Sporting de Gijón.
On 2 May, Barça got a hard-fought 1–0 victory against Osasuna. Jordi Alba was the hero after coming on as a substitute in the 76th minute and scoring with an astonishing volley in 85th minute to give the team the win in epic fashion. Marc-André ter Stegen broke the club all-time record for most league clean sheets in a single season by achieving 25 league clean sheets this season, beating the 24 clean sheets record previously achieved by Andoni Zubizarreta in the 1986–87 season, and the most league clean sheets kept in a season in the 21st century, 23 clean sheets previously achieved by Claudio Bravo in the 2014–15 season. If Barcelona defeat city rivals Espanyol they could win La Liga.
On 10 May, Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets announced he would be leaving the club after 18 years and 722 appearances, the third highest in the club's history after Leo Messi and Xavi. During that time he has scored 18 goals and provided 40 assists. He has won 32 trophies with the club.
On 14 May, Barcelona won their 27th La Liga title and the first since the 2018–19 season, after they beat Espanyol 4–2 away from home. Robert Lewandowski scored twice and both Alejandro Balde and Jules Koundé scored their first goals for the club.
On 20 May, Barcelona were defeated 1–2 by Real Sociedad in what was their first and only league home defeat of the season, with Robert Lewandowski scoring the only goal for the team. After the match finished, captain Sergio Busquets lifted the La Liga trophy in front of 88,049 fans present at Camp Nou.
On 23 May, the team lost 3–1 away to Real Valladolid. Robert Lewandowski was the only one on the scoresheet for the Blaugrana.
On the next day, Barcelona defender Jordi Alba announced that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season after reaching a mutual agreement with the club to terminate his contract one year before it was due to expire. Jordi Alba will be leaving the club after 11 years. During that time he has scored 26 goals and provided 91 assists. He has won 18 trophies with the club.
On 28 May, Barcelona played their last home match of the season at the Camp Nou, where 88,775 fans were gathered to bid farewell to the iconic stadium and its special and unique open plan look, which it has had for 66 years, since its opening in 1957; before renovations of the stadium as part of the plan "Espai Barça" ("Barça Space") begin in the summer. Barcelona will play their home games next season at the 56,000 capacity Olympic Stadium (Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys) on Montjuïc, aiming for a return to the rebuilt Camp Nou in November 2024 if construction goes to plan. The new Camp Nou will have a retractable roof covered in 30,000 square metres of solar panels and will have 105,000 seating capacity.
Barcelona marked the special occasion with a 3–0 win over Mallorca, with Ansu Fati scoring twice and Gavi scoring once. It was also a special occasion since it was the last match at the Camp Nou for both club legends Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, both of whom played for 80 minutes and came off the pitch to a long and emotional standing ovation and applause from the spectators. Marc-André ter Stegen earned his 26th clean sheet of the season, equalling the all-time record in the league, set by Deportivo La Coruña's Francisco Liaño in the 1993–94 season.
Tributes were made before and after the match to honor Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and the Camp Nou.
On 4 June, Barcelona suffered a 2–1 away defeat against Celta Vigo in their last competitive match of the season. The only goal for the team came from Ansu Fati. Robert Lewandowski secured the Pichichi Trophy after ending the league campaign with 23 goals – the most in the league. Marc-André ter Stegen was aiming to secure two historic records in this match: the most league clean sheets in a season in history (top 5 leagues) and the least league goals conceded in a season; although he didn't manage to secure neither, he now holds both records alongside Francisco Liaño, both having kept 26 clean sheets and having conceded 18 goals in a league season. Ter Stegen also secured the Zamora Trophy for having the lowest goals-to-games ratio in the league (0.49).
On 6 June, Barcelona ended the season with a friendly match in Japan against Japanese side Vissel Kobe, in honor of Barcelona legend Andrés Iniesta who played his last match for Vissel Kobe after five years at the Japanese club. Barcelona got a comfortable 2–0 win in front of 47,335 fans at the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo. Franck Kessié and Eric García got on the scoresheet with a goal each. It was a match of debuts, with Barcelona B youngsters Dani Rodríguez, Pau Prim, Héctor Fort, Marc Guiu, Unai Hernández, and new signing Julián Araujo, making their debuts for the first team.
Andrés Iniesta left the pitch in the 80th minute to warm applause before being given a hug on the touchline from Barcelona manager and former midfield partner Xavi. Iniesta made 674 appearances for Barcelona from 2002 to 2018, winning 30 trophies.
Undisclosed fees are not included in the transfer totals.
Win Draw Loss Fixtures
The league fixtures were announced on 23 June 2022.
The draw for the group stage was held on 25 August 2022.
The draw for the knockout round play-offs was held on 7 November 2022.
(H) – Home; (A) – Away
Source: FCBarcelona.comOrdered by , and = Number of bookings; = Number of sending offs after a second yellow card; = Number of sending offs by a direct red card.