Following last season’s success, FC Barcelona appear adamant about orchestrating an equally accomplished transfer window. With Joan Garcia’s signing wrapped up, Nico Williams looks to be next on the agenda.
Further reinforcements cannot be ruled out either as the Catalans continue to be linked with an abundance of exciting names like Marcus Rashford and Roony Bardghji.
However, as is the case nearly every summer, Barcelona faces troubles abiding by La Liga’s strict Financial Fair Play laws. Even though the club’s monetary standing has improved considerably this year, they must still trim their roster to ensure registering new players is a seamless process.
In this article, we take a look at the reported names on Barcelona’s exit list to release fair play.
Ansu Fati
After an underwhelming loan spell at Brighton, Fati failed to make a compelling case for himself during what was meant to be his redemption season.
The youngster spent a large chunk of the campaign omitted from the squad, particularly after he refused to leave in the winter transfer window.
Although Hansi Flick gave Fati a handful of appearances towards the end of the season, the youngster was unable to make the most of them, despite showing promising traits like intelligent movement and sharp link-up play.
Now, with a future at Barcelona looking increasingly bleak, an exit to AS Monaco is being seen as the most likely scenario.
The French club highly admires Fati, but it remains to be seen how much of his salary they are willing to pay, as that has been the primary cause for stalled negotiations. Barcelona are open to selling the youngster permanently with an affordable buy-back clause.
Pau Victor
After an incredible pre-season tour in the United States where he scored against Real Madrid and Manchester City, it came as a surprise to see Pau Victor play sparingly throughout the campaign.
Still, in the limited opportunities he was granted, the disparity in quality between him and Barcelona’s first-choice front line was apparent, which led him to a measly 378 minutes.
Although tied down until 2028, Pau Victor understands that a move is necessary to secure more playing time, and a return to his former club, Girona, is a possibility.
Barcelona recognize his potential, though, and are leaning towards a loan deal or a buy-back clause. Afterall, the striker’s success with Barcelona Atletic in 2023, where he was the club’s top scorer, is prompting the club to have some control over his future.
Pablo Torre
Pablo Torre bore the brunt of Barcelona’s incredibly competitive midfield department last season.
Despite impressing as an attacking midfielder with nifty turns between the lines and creative poise, he was unable to string consistent play time due to the overwhelming quality of his peers (Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Casado).
More recently, Torre even expressed concerns about his limited game time, saying, “I respect Flick’s decisions, but I think he hasn’t been fair to me.”
Given the situation around him, it is likely that he sees his future away from the Catalan giants and Barcelona are well-aware of the interest Torre garners from Spanish sides, notably Sevilla. The midfielder personally prefers a permanent exit, but Barcelona still desires to have some control over his future.
Inaki Pena
Pena was entrusted with the responsibility of guarding the sticks when Ter Stegen picked up an injury early in the season.
While he held his own extremely well, especially with some big performances against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, the goalkeeper’s shortcomings in playing out from the back and inexperience were an obvious hurdle.
Eventually, he lost his place to Wojciech Szczesny and spent most of the second half of the season out on the sidelines, except for the final game of the campaign, where he stepped up remarkably.
Now, with Joan Garcia’s arrival and Szczesny’s expected continuity, Pena is unlikely to stay put at the club.
Andreas Christensen
Christensen is the one who arguably makes the least sense being on this list. Still, Barcelona’s financial situation means even one of their most astute defensive stalwarts is not safe from the chopping block.
Despite his immense composure and high level of performance under Xavi, Christensen’s injury issues have been a serious concern since he joined the club as a free agent in 2022.
Andreas Christensen is sure that he will be able to compete with Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martnez, and Ronald Araujo in contesting playing time at Barcelona next season.
However, in the event that Christensen has to relocate, he has already settled on the next destination to go. He had already been a player in the Premier League before and it would not be against him to go back to a league where he and his family are comfortable and settled.
Teams in Saudi Arabia have shown interest although he is not planning to make a transfer to Middle East yet.
Ter Stegen
Christensen is the one who arguably makes the least sense being on this list. Still, Barcelona’s financial situation means even one of their most astute defensive stalwarts is not safe from the chopping block.
Despite his immense composure and high level of performance under Xavi, Christensen’s injury issues have been a serious concern since he joined the club as a free agent in 2022.
Andreas Christensen is sure that he will be able to compete with Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martnez, and Ronald Araujo in contesting playing time at Barcelona next season.
However, in the event that Christensen has to relocate, he has already settled on the next destination to go. He had already been a player in the Premier League before and it would not be against him to go back to a league where he and his family are comfortable and settled.
Teams in Saudi Arabia have shown interest although he is not planning to make a transfer to Middle East yet.
