The situation
The time for planning has arrived at Barça . Xavi promised a leisurely meeting this week with Joan Laporta , Jordi Cruyff and Mateu Alemany to rethink the second part of the season that he will now face without Gerard Piqué , retired from football. This means that, with the definitive additions of Iñaki Peña , Gavi and Balde to the first team, the Barça club will have 22 players until June unless there is a departure ( Memphis ). Xavi Wants to be careful. The calendar until June 4, when the last day of the League is played, is terrible. If Barça were able to advance in all competitions, they would have to play up to 40 games in six months. Xavi does not want to fall short. In the theoretical list of preferences, the first is the right side. He considers Bellerín and Sergi Roberto valid players , but not ‘top’. The big question is whether there is someone on the market who meets the requirements requested by the technician. The objective in the summer, after Azpilicueta’s no, was Juan Foyth but Villarreal referred to his clause. The priorities in the central position have indeed changed after the departure of Gerard Piqué . Barça has four central defenders left ( Eric , Koundé , Christensen and Araújo), but all four have had injuries and some of them will have to play games at right back if no one arrives. Although Marcos has adapted well to the position, Barça could make an attempt for Iñigo Martínez , for whom Mateu already asked Athletic ‘s general manager , Jon Berasategui , this summer . The operation stopped when the signing of Koundé was activated , but Xavi told the central defender that his name would be written in red if Piqué left in June 2023. The central defender’s goodbye was anticipated and Barça could make an offer to the lower side by Ondarroa.
The details
In midfield, the big issue is the future replacement of Busquets . Zubimendi is the chosen name, but for the 2023-24 season. Meanwhile, he has left the door open for a possible return of Nico . The lead will only get stronger if Memphis leaves in January. In the background, also the financial fair play. Pique released his salary, but Barca raised their dough a lot this summer and could struggle to maintain one-one status in the 2023-24 season. Hence, one of the options is to save Piqué’s salary so as not to be able to achieve the one-one status. This year, the wage bill has skyrocketed to 656 million. The goal is for it to stabilize at about 500 in 2025.