Barcelona are living out two seasons at once this month. While Hansi Flick led the first session of preseason at the club's training complex on Monday, a large slice of his first team remains thousands of miles away, still competing in the closing stages of the World Cup being staged across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The headline number is striking. Ten Barcelona players will feature in the tournament's semifinals, which the club reports as a record for a single side at this stage of a World Cup. That total reflects both the depth of the current squad and the international reach of a roster drawn from several of the countries still in contention for the trophy.

For an American coaching audience, the situation is a useful window into how the biggest European clubs actually operate in a summer with a major international tournament. The calendar does not pause for one squad. Flick has to run a functioning preseason, install ideas and build fitness with whoever is physically present, knowing his best players will filter back in waves and at different levels of match sharpness.

That means the opening sessions lean heavily on academy graduates and squad players who were not called up. It is the same challenge youth coaches face on a smaller scale when a chunk of a roster is away with a select team or a school program. The group that shows up gets the reps, the tactical detail and the early trust, and some of them use that window to change how the staff sees them.

The flip side is load management. Players who go deep into a World Cup arrive back late, often carrying accumulated fatigue and minimal rest. Clubs typically stagger their reintegration, giving returning internationals extended time off before easing them into training. Flick will not have anything close to a full squad until well into the preparation period, which shapes how much can realistically be locked in before the competitive season begins.

The record participation also underlines why Barcelona and Real Madrid dominate the transfer and tournament conversation for US fans. These clubs supply a huge proportion of the players lighting up the world's biggest games, and the talent pipeline runs directly through their academies. Following a club like Barcelona in July means tracking two stories in parallel, the one on the world stage and the quieter one taking shape back home.

For now, the practical takeaway is patience. The version of Barcelona that opened preseason this week is not the version that will start the season. Flick's real squad is still being decided on pitches far from Catalonia, and the coaching work at home is as much about managing absence as it is about building a team.