Barcelona have three targets on left-back shortlist

Barcelona have a shortlist of potential targets for the summer window as they look for a back up for Jordi Alba.

Jordi Alba is an integral part of Barcelona’s attacking play due to his rampaging forward runs that get in behind and stretch the opposition. Without him in the side teams can play narrower as they currently lack a player who offers his attacking threat from a deep position. There is also the danger of Barcelona’s play becoming predictable due to how much of it is in central areas without him in the side. Lionel Messi is particularly skilled at combining with him to open up defences and create chances.

Mundo Deportivo are reporting that Barcelona are looking at Ferland Mendy, Filipe Luis and Junior Firpo in their search for a left-back. Eric Abidal is supposed to be a big fan of Mendy, so this could play a big role in who they bring in. His time as director of football has been successful so far with a number of astute signings such as Clement Lenglet and Arturo Vidal.

Mendy has made the left-back position his own since he joined Les Gones from Le Havre in 2017 as a 22-year-old, although it’s not uncommon at the club due to the trust Lyon place in their youngsters as part of their club philosophy. If he is anything like Samuel Umtiti, who also joined the club from Lyon, then this could be an excellent move by the club in a key area.

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The 23-year-old only has two goals and two assists across all competitions, but he averages 1.5 key passes and 2 dribbles per league game, according to WhoScored. He is only dribbled past 0.1 times per league game and averages 1.4 tackles so he is adept in 1v1 situations. His pass accuracy of 84.1% is promising as well. Therefore, he has the necessary tools to play as a full-back in Barcelona’s system and these numbers are only likely to improve playing alongside such talented teammates. A large fee would be required to pry him away, but he could be the long-term replacement the club needs for Jordi Alba

Luis’ contract at Atletico Madrid runs out in the summer so he would be a cheap experienced option to add depth in that area. Out of the three options, he would the best for Marc Cucurella and Juan Miranda because he would only be on a short contract due to being 33-years-old. However, he would still block their route into the first team like the other options and one of Cucurella or Miranda is likely to leave in the summer as the club doesn’t need four left-backs.

Injuries are Luis’ main problem, though, as he has already had two this season which have seen him miss 10 games. There is a real danger that he could end up being like Thomas Vermaelen who hasn’t been an effective back-up due to mostly being injured during his spell at the club.

Firpo is another exciting option as the 22-year-old has thrived in Quique Setien’s system after being promoted from the B team. He has played as a wing-back rather than a full-back so there is additional defensive security which gives him the licence to roam forwards as he did to devastating effect in Betis’ 4-3 win over Barca at Camp Nou.

He averages 0.8 key passes and 1.6 dribbles per game, per WhoScored, which is less impressive than Mendy but he is in a harder league and he has scored three and assisted two goals in all competitions. Similar to Mendy he would require a large fee, so it depends how much the club is willing to spend especially after the outlay on Frenkie de Jong and the need for another striker to replace Luis Suarez.

Juan Miranda has plenty of potential, but he has struggled at times this season such as against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey quarter-final first leg. He is only 19-years-old so he has age on his side, although the club is unlikely to take risks with such an inexperienced option in a key area, which is why they are looking at bolstering this position. Therefore, he could end up being loaned out like Cucurella in order to gain experience in the top flight.