So Barcelona's golden generation gets yet another coach, tasked with adding more trophies to the already overflowing cabinet.
His name is Valverde, and with most people not jumping with excitement at his arrival; the man is confident he can take Barcelona into another gear and even make the already incredible Lionel Messi...better.
All good things come to an end, and there will come a time when Iniesta, Pique and Messi will no longer be part of this special Barcelona team. Pedro, Puyol, Xavi and Alves have moved on and you have seen the very slow decline.
Maybe decline is too harsh a word because they only lost the league by a few points while also clinching the Copa Del Rey this past season. But I am only comparing this team to the heights of the one that Pep Guardiola took control of.
Somehow, Valverde feels he can either get this current crop to the level of Guardiola's era, or perhaps even better. I think the first job he will have is looking at the midfield and improving it.
This season, that has been the one area in which Barcelona have struggled. Because let's be fair, Barcelona have never been an impenetrable defensive force. It has been their dominance in midfield and their ability to keep the ball under pressure, which is the foundation to their success.
I'm not sure Valverde can find another Xavi, who was the orchestrator of that philosophy. He was the hearbeat, and was able to set the tone of any match. Iniesta and Rakitic are quality players in their own right, but that's not their game.
What you've seen happen is Iniesta being forced back into that midfield area that does not come as natural to him. Iniesta is really an attacking midfielder who likes to bring the ball forward, and create danger in the final third.
Rakitic is a quality player but he does not have the command of the midfield the way Xavi did. And just like Iniesta, Rakitic's strenght is in the attacking area which you have seen by the goals he has scored and the passes he makes to the forwards.
So Valverde will have to go out into the market and find himself a midfield general to maybe get Iniesta back further up the pitch where he can do the most damage, and also get the most out of his aging legs.
As for Messi, that is something I am really intrigued to see Valverde improve upon. Because can Messi get any better?
Despite Barcelona struggling this season, this has arguably been one of Messi's greatest seasons; finishing as the top scorer. But there are different ways players can evolve their game.
This is just me speculating, but maybe Valverde will bring a more defined structure to Barcelona and get Messi playing as a creative number 10, behind the Cannibal and Neymar.
Then we would see more of Messi's creative game, rather than seeing him all over the pitch having to do way more than he has to do.
But Messi runs the club and I get a feeling that he enjoys having a free role that allows him to wander wherever he wants. That may be all well and good but does it really helpt the team? Does it take away from the damage he can do if he has less running to do on the field?
It's a discussion that needs to be had with himself and Valverde and I will be impressed if the manager can rein Messi in and remind our Argentine friend that he is still the player...not the coach.
Is there one final hurrah for this great Barcelona generation?
You can't bet against it. Quality is quality and if Valverde can get a great central midfielder, marauding wing backs and can get the front three working better together and on the same wavelength then they can conquer Europe again.
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