Only Barcelona succumbs to the charm of Asian gold .

The Catalan giants are the only team in La Liga to insist on a tour of China and Japan, even at the cost of a controversy between players and club officials.

The Real Madrid of the "Galacticos," designed by former president

Florentino Perez, set a trend that other Spanish clubs were to follow.

The idea was to add a commercial vision to pre-season training and to use the club name as a brand seeking new markets. And tours of China and Japan became a must.

The important thing was not income per game, but promotion that allowed the club to sell merchandise with its brand, and clubs like Barcelona, Zaragoza, Atletico Madrid or Espanyol followed on Real Madrid's footsteps.

But those day are gone, and now almost no one in Spain believes in Asian gold - starting with Real Madrid, which this season decided to stay in Europe.

The only Spanish club that remains faithful to the commercial vision is Barcelona, who admittedly joins representatives of other powerful leagues like the Premiership.

Indeed, Liverpool and Manchester United, for example, have already visited cities like Saitama, Seoul, Macao, Hong Kong or Shanghai.

Although English clubs are those who traditionally draw most Asian fans, Bayern Munich or Olympique Lyon have also tried their luck in the Far East this year.

Barcelona left Thursday on a tour of China and Japan in which they are set to play three games. But the club's decision to travel has caused controversy, especially in the wake of what happened last season.

Barcelona ended last season without any titles of significance when it seemed in a position to win many trophies.

A large portion of the blame was put on an alleged bad planning of the pre-season, which included a tour of the United States and Mexico.

Players complained of fitness problems throughout the year, with obvious examples like Ronaldinho, Rafael Marquez or Deco.

However, club officials insisted on the concept of tours and now return to Asia. Rain and high humidity are expected to welcome the team in Beijing, spurring on the controversy.

Players have complained, making it clear that there is a rift between officials and the changing room.

French veteran Liliam Thuram was the first to raise his voice on the matter, claiming that "the tour is not good for the team's preparation," and Italian Gianluca Zambrotta agreed.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta, however, defended the club's position.

"We have a heritage of 150,000 members and we have to take the greatest advantage of it. There are sports-related, economic and positioning reasons to go on a tour of Asia," Laporta said.

The club president also recalled that in 2005 there was a tour and Barcelona ended up winning both the Liga and the Champions League.

Sevilla appears to agree with Laporta. This year, the Andalusian club returned to the United States, repeating a routine that favoured it last year since it won both the UEFA Cup and the King's Cup.

However, not even Laporta can ignore the generalized criticisms, and on Thursday, he made some concessions.

"Of course it would be better for the team to stay and work in Barcelona during the pre-season," he said.

But he asked players to be professional.

Only time will tell how the nine-day tour is to affect the preparation of the team. Barcelona is currently the only club in La Liga who thinks Asian gold is compatible with triumphs on the pitch.

 dpa