Barcelona have swapped the Mediterranean for the Midlands, flying a 30-man squad into Birmingham on Monday for a pre-season camp at St George's Park — the English FA's national training base, and a pitch normally reserved for the England senior team.

The choice of location is unusual for a club of Barcelona's reach, but the schedule is serious. Hansi Flick's side trained on Monday evening, ran a double session on Tuesday, and will stay in Birmingham until 3 August. The camp mixes senior pros with Barcelona B and under-19 players, giving the next generation a taste of first-team life alongside the established names.

Two of those names are racing the clock to be ready. Frenkie de Jong travelled despite damaging the medial collateral ligament — a band of tissue that stabilises the inside of the knee — in his right knee at the World Cup. Fermín López is further along in his recovery from a broken foot, suffered against Real Betis in May, and took part in some of the first training session on 27 July. The injury cost López his place in Spain's World Cup-winning squad.

One familiar face whose future seemed settled is still in the picture. Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen was expected to join Ajax on loan, but no deal was struck, and he travelled to England with the squad.

The squad also includes 17-year-old forward Orian Goren, who turned 17 in March — the kind of teenager Barcelona have built their identity around promoting from within. Among the new arrivals, though, is a very different profile: Karim Adeyemi, officially unveiled as a Barcelona player on 23 July after joining from Borussia Dortmund. Born in Munich to a Nigerian father and Romanian mother, Adeyemi can clock sprint speeds above 36 km/h. Flick handed him his Germany debut during his time as national coach. He had his first Barcelona training session on 24 July.

On the pitch, Barcelona beat Europa 4-1 in a training match that same day, with 17 players from Barça Atlètic and the under-19s involved.

The friendlies come thick and fast. Barcelona face Birmingham City at St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park on Friday, 31 July, kick-off 7.45pm. Birmingham announced the fixture on 17 June and tickets sold out by 22 July. The club is also hosting a free fan event in Victoria Square from 11am to 3pm on matchday. A behind-closed-doors match against Preston North End follows at St George's Park on Monday. Preston, who beat Bamber Bridge 4-1 to open their own pre-season, will hold a six-day camp in south-east Spain beforehand and face Cambridge United there.

Barcelona then head to Italy for the Friuli Venezia Giulia tournament on 8 August, where they will play two 45-minute matches against Nottingham Forest and Udinese. The pre-season wraps with the Joan Gamper Trophy — Barcelona's annual showcase match — against Egyptian side Al Ahly on 19 August at 8pm CEST. It will be the first Gamper played at the Spotify Camp Nou since the stadium's reopening.

For Flick, these weeks are about building rhythm. For the teenagers in the squad, they are a chance to be noticed. And for the fans who snapped up every ticket at St Andrew's, Friday night is a rare chance to see one of the world's biggest clubs on their doorstep.