Barcelona is in the middle of a crisis. With journalistic reports that speak of a debt of almost € 1,200 million (of which € 730 million is short-term debt); no president, sports director, not even a board of directors to make decisions; with the future of Lionel Messi, his star player, who remains undefined, despite the fact that his contract expires during the summer; and is currently 10 points behind leader Atletico de Madrid, last year was downright chaotic for the Catalans. Despite all the pessimism that can be at Camp Nou, there is a feeling that the tide in the sport is slowly turning.
Despite the Spanish La Liga title appearing out of reach for the Catalans, there are reasons for optimism. Barça is in third place in the standings, despite a cycle of poor results; apart from remaining in the fight for the Copa del Rey and the Champions League; which compares favorably with its arch rivals Real Madrid, who are presumably crisis free and have only three units ahead of Barça; aside from a shameful defeat to Alcoyano de Segunda B recently to be eliminated from the cup.
While the 3-0 setback that Juventus suffered at home in the final Champions League group match didn’t inspire much confidence in the face of the upcoming round of 16 matches against Paris Saint-Germain, there are signs that DT Ronald Koeman ( despite being a very unpopular recruit) has started to put the ship on course.
The Dutchman deserves credit for the way he has behaved and his emergence as a leading presence in a traumatic period for the club; especially considering that few believed he was capable of success. Koeman has stood his ground, justified his decisions for logical reasons and never attempted to attribute the losses to the bigger problems facing the club. Now, how can he keep the team on track in the midst of such economic uncertainty?
Transmission problems
Many coaches would find perfect excuses in the absence of new acquisitions. For his part, Koeman accepted that there were no options to allow an incorporation to change the game of Barcelona in the January transfer market after the presidential election was postponed to March 7. Rather than waiting for a contract that wouldn’t materialize, Koeman went to work to get the most of his resources.
The coach has managed to regain the level of the falling numbers, such as the cases of Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembélé (and to some extent those of Frenkie de Jong, although the midfielder is only 23 years old), while retaining a receptive attitude towards conferences. press. “My position is known: we lack people, but the economic situation of FC Barcelona does have an influence,” he said last week during the performance before the match against Elche. ‘I think we all think the same. If no one arrives, I accept and we move on; but if we want more, we have to sign autographs ”.
If money were not an issue, it is certain that Koeman would be happy with the € 100 million passes of Borussia Dortmund’s Norwegian striker Erling Haaland or Argentina’s Lautaro Martinez, Inter Milan’s current tab, which have come to light in journalistic information. However, the availability of money is a problem. Due to Barça’s current financial situation, the club can only consider the possibility of receiving free transfers or assignments: several sources have informed ESPN that Livepool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum is at the top of Koeman’s wish list; while Barça has repeatedly been plunged into rumors of an attempted surgery by Lyon winger Memphis Depay.
The Dutch duo is available for free during the summer season. Various sources for their part have indicated that the club has long been interested in Manchester City defender Eric Garcia, who started his career at the Nou Camp and insists on his refusal to sign a new contract before the expiration of his current pact. scheduled for 2021. García, however, could be the only signing necessary as it is a natural replacement for veteran center-back Gerard Piqué.
In recent years, the club has been criticized for the reduction of talents graduated from the famous La Masía quarry and, while it is true that it is difficult to prolong a golden age that spawned figures of Messi’s status, Andrés Iniesta, Xavi Hernández and Sergio Busquets; Many believe that Barça sacrificed the production of promising young people in order to give preference to high caliber signings. After investments in the four-year period between 2016 and 2020, almost € 980 million in football players such as Philippe Coutinho (€ 145 million), Griezmann (€ 120 million), Dembélé (€ 105 million) and Malcom (€ 40 million), Gaat Barça again pay attention to his youth, with encouraging results.
Young pigeons leave their mark on the first team
Since joining the coaching, Koeman has deployed a fleet of young people who are stirring emotions and in the middle of their respective processes to establish themselves within the senior team. Despite not being graduates of La Masía, Ronald Araújo and Pedri turned out to be two emerging figures.
Araújo came to Barça in 2018 from Uruguay’s Boston River, and the 21-year-old’s progress as a center-back (though he can still be compared to Piqué in possession) was encouraging: Impressively, the Uruguayan has won more than 80 % of his defensive and aerial duels since he was promoted from team B this year. For his part, Pedri, an 18-year-old winger, from the Las Palmas club for € 5 million in the summer season, has adapted to life at Camp Nou without major inconveniences, to the extent that he currently appears as a regular. the absolute payroll.
Óscar Mingueza, 21, is another young center-back (aside from La Masía’s youth side) who has also recently been successful with the first team; while Ricard “Riqui” Puig (another 21-year-old La Masía graduate who had the best credentials) scored his first goal last weekend with Barcelona’s first team in his engagement. Puig, who is an elegant central midfielder with sublime talent, shows a pedigree of such a category that has motivated fans to ask for more minutes for him (probably at the expense of figures who have shown poor performances, as was the case with Miralem Pjanic and Coutinho).
The jewel in Barcelona’s crown is, of course, Ansu Fati, the club’s undisputed child prodigy and the best contender to become Messi’s long-term replacement. Unfortunately, a meniscal injury will keep you out of action for a few more months; However, the 18-year-old striker, who is already a full-fledged international with the Spanish national team, has shown that he feels utterly calm in senior football, repeating the dazzling accomplishments that made him a youth-level star.
However, not everything went perfectly: two relatively expensive summer acquisitions, such as the American right back Sergiño Dest (20 years, who signed for Barcelona for € 21 million from Ajax) and the winger Francisco Trincao (21, from Braga) for € 31 million) , have yet to reach the level of consistency necessary to justify their heavy passing, despite showing some potential.
In a turbulent season, Koeman has managed to bring Barcelona into a transition phase, which in the coming years can be seen as the start of a much needed and successful construction. The big numbers probably won’t come; However, the Catalan fans can cheer up thanks to the fact that the La Masía production line will continue to give good results.
Who will be the next La Masía graduates to stand out?
Ilaix Moriba
He is a back-and-forth midfielder who made his debut for the first team in last week’s Copa del Rey victory; however, he was substituted in the second half, after a performance in which he showed confidence on the field. Born in Guinea, the 18-year-old is endowed with technical skills, tactical intelligence and likes to combine both elements, both in the air and on the field. He passes the ball with precision, although his casual style can make him seem overconfident in his abilities at times. Moriba has the potential to become a high-level ‘8’, or even a containment midfielder.
Konrad from the source
Despite not appearing for the first time in a match with the senior squad, the 19-year-old American forward is one of La Masía’s graduates who has received the most encouraging signals from the senior team’s coaching staff. From the start, Koeman witnessed the extreme, characterized by his unpredictability, speed and cunning; allowing him to train with the first team in the preseason and give him minutes in friendly matches. Some appearances as a substitute in the closing minutes of Champions League games and his start with the United States team in their game against Wales last November are good dividends after spending his first semester at an all-time high as part of a of the most important clubs in the world.
Alex Collado
The left-hander who plays as a winger is one of the most prominent members of the squad that won the 2018 UEFA Youth Cup title, but his development has been hampered by ongoing injuries. Aside from making two fleeting games in the first team, Collado mainly played with team B. He can move on both wings, although he relies too much on his wonderful left foot at times. It’s hard to get a player with a more elegant touch and when he’s at his best he has enough attributes to make his rivals dizzy. The 21-year-old is currently injury-free and, after some excellent months with the B-team, was finally able to take the next step.
Ilias Akhomach
He is the first player of the promising 2004 promotion to add playing time with Team B. It is likely that the attacking midfielder or fluid forward will need some more time to make his debut with the first team; Despite this, his raw talent sets him apart from the crowd. The 16-year-old uses his left-handedness to grab the ball with his right hand; however, his ability to become unbalanced with his change of pace, his ability to overwhelm rival defenders and his powerful shot make him a threat from anywhere in the final third.