How can Barcelona resolve the centre-back situation in the squad?

Barcelona are yet to find a long-term successor to Gerard Piqué

Even though he did not show it at all last season, Gerard Piqué is ageing. The 32-year old La Masia graduate may have surpassed Carles Puyol, but Barcelona cannot afford to assume that he will have his mentor’s longevity.

Last season, Samuel Umtiti’s knee injury and its subsequent recurrence caused a huge upheaval at the back for Barça. Clément Lenglet replaced his compatriot in the first-team with quiet ease, and formed a quick partnership with Piqué.

But the situation at the end of the season was a clear exhibition of one of the biggest defensive problems in the squad, absence of a right-footed centre-back. That meant that Piqué was unnecessarily stretched while Vermaelen could not back up Lenglet effectively.

The situation for most of last season will prevail at the beginning of the season too, with the squad having two left-footed defenders and a single right-footed centre-back in Piqué. Barça have tried to fix this by attempting to sign Matthijs de Ligt, but that has not worked out.

Now, the management has two options. Both are equally risky, though in different ways. Barça can either find an alternative to De Ligt and pursue the player with full manpower and financial resources, or award a call-up to Barcelona B centre-back Chumi.

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The first option can yield results, especially with the immense amounts of defensive talent sprouting up around Europe. Players like Rúben Dias and Ibrahima Konaté are the next big things in world football, and can even surpass some legends of the past.

But due to widespread interest in these players, Barça will probably have to focus solely on these signings. As a result, the chase for other targets could offer. The club has already lost out on two big targets, and cannot afford to miss out on further players.

For example, if Barça become totally consumed with signing a talented young centre-back and fail to bring in a new left-back, Ernesto Valverde’s side will suffer. Last season is a stark reminder of what can happen if all positions are not backed up adequately.

The other option is as risky, if not riskier. Chumi is a very talented player, but he failed to perform when he was called up for the Copa del Rey last season. Needless to say, the 20-year old Spain youth international has a lot of potential but the pressure simply got to him.

Chumi can work wonders if he is gradually eased into the first-team squad. But it will take a lot of time, time that Ernesto Valverde does not have. He needs to produce results this season, and needs a very strong bench in order to do that.

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The youngster has ‘Barça DNA’, and can become the long-term successor to Piqué. But he needs some time before he has his breakout season. So, Barça need to weigh up these options and pick judiciously, keeping in mind the priorities for this season and for the future.