Barcelona prepares squad revolution for 2020/21
Despite leading La Liga Espanhola and still being in the Champions League, Barcelona’s season has been highly irregular and those in charge are already working to operate a small revolution this summer. Check it out …
Eight players at the exit …
The Blaugrana club seems determined to inject new blood into their squad, but for that they will need to put in some money from sales as well as ease their wage burden. In this sense, eight players are referred to as transferable and the club will work to find a solution for all of them with a view to making room for new entries.
In the range of potential departures are Ivan Rakitic, who has been in dispute with the club since the end of last season and his destiny may even involve a return to his original club, Sevilla, where he won several titles before leaving for Barcelona . Another of the advanced names is Arturo Vidal, who never really took a stake in the Blaugrana team, perhaps because of his style of play that does not suit the club properly.
The Chilean veteran could be included in an eventual deal aimed at hiring Lautaro Martínez from Inter Milan and the Italians should welcome the arrival of a very interesting player in their ranks. Other less used players such as Neto, Martin Braitwhaite or Júnior may have short and little noticed passages by Catalonia as the Blaugrana club can release them at the end of the season.
A luxury trio that will please many clubs
But the three names that make the most of this list of eight players are Samuel Umtiti, Phillippe Coutinho and Antoine Griezmann.
The French central defender has dealt with several problems with injuries this season and was never exactly an example of consistency and defensive security at all, so it will not be a major casualty at a time when the club even looks for another central defender who can give the guarantees that the Frenchman has not given.
Then there is the case of Coutinho who will not sign for Bayern Munich at the end of the season after a modest campaign with the Bavarians’ jersey, so Barcelona should look for a new loan with payment by the Brazilian player, trying to get him to rehabilitate in a another club before a final sale that allows to recover much of the investment made in the player.
To conclude, Antoine Griezmann may be at the exit door just one season after signing for Barcelona and this decision may be due to two factors: first, the Frenchman has had a somewhat modest debut season for the scrolls with which he arrived to the condal city, and secondly because Barcelona may be on the verge of advancing through Neymar and it doesn’t seem to make any sense to have a player of Griezmann’s quality as a substitute. In addition, its sale should allow a good amount of money to be placed, which may assist in the maneuver of charm with Neymar and PSG.
Five market targets with Neymar at the head
With the probable departures of Griezmann and Braitwhaite, Barcelona must move towards the acquisition of two strikers who must pass through Neymar and a striker who can act as a complement to Luis Suárez. In addition to these two targets, Barcelona should also look for another midfielder as they can lose Rakitic and Vidal at the same time.
Without knowing exactly what profile is desired for the midfield, I believe Quique Setien should be looking for an all-terrain midfielder who can make the defense-offense link. To the left side of the defense, a player with Alex Telles from FC Porto should also be the most talked about name these days. The Porto defender could be an excellent complement to Jordi Alba, providing the Blaugrana squad with two excellent options for the position, something that does not currently happen.
Finally, and as I mentioned above, Barcelona will try to hire a proven central defender who can add the defensive security and solidity factor that has been lacking in the club, namely Gerard Pique’s partner.
Ousmane Dembélé will have a new opportunity …
Another of Barcelona’s recent millionaire signings that has not achieved the expected success – along the lines of Coutinho and Griezmann – is Ousmane Dembéle, but the virtuous French winger benefits from the fact that he is younger and has a greater margin of progression.
In addition, it cost 125 million euros and has not been properly valued since arriving in Catalonia, with many disciplinary problems and also with many injuries. The club needs to rehabilitate it before even thinking about selling it for a price that allows it to recover part of the investment in the player.
