A recent report from Diario SPORT has offered a detailed update on Barcelona’s plans for the upcoming summer transfer window.
It appears coach Xavi Hernandez has asked the board to at least have two players available for every position. And in light of that, the club are expected to bring in new faces in the market while getting rid of others in order to adhere to the FFP rules.
Barcelona’s spending limit was reduced to a negative figure at the start of March, so it will be imperative for the club to offload some of the unwanted players in the team.
The report has listed Sergino Dest, Clement Lenglet, Riqui Puig, Memphis Depay, Oscar Mingueza, Samuel Umtiti and Martin Braithwaite as among the players destined to leave Camp Nou in the summer.
Meanwhile, there are players who could return from their loan assignments, for a more detailed assessment regarding their future.
Philippe Coutinho tops the list, which is quite interesting given the fact that Barcelona are desperate to get rid of the Brazilian, who has a €40 million buy-out clause embedded in his loan contract at Aston Villa.
After a promising return to the Premier League, Coutinho has struggled with form in recent weeks. But it appears Xavi could be open to trying his luck with the former Liverpool starlet, having already turned around the fortunes of multiple Barcelona stars this season.
The other players on this list include Miralem Pjanic, Francisco Trincao, and Alex Collado. It won’t be surprising to see all four of them, including Coutinho, eventually depart Camp Nou, but some of them certainly have the quality to become a key player under Xavi.
Many predict Collado to enjoy unprecedented success in the first team due to his technical ability and dynamism, which could be useful for the Catalans, especially if they end up losing Ousmane Dembele in the summer.
However, the fate of youngsters like him could depend a lot on how they fare in the pre-season whereas experienced stars like Pjanic and Coutinho could be forced to continue if the club fail to find a proper suitor.
I hope Collado and Trincao eventually make it at the Camp Nou