Barcelona are going to take a long-time to recover from the turbulence caused as a result of the coronavirus, leading to greater pressure on them.
Lionel Messi’s contract with Barcelona expires in the summer of 2021. The Argentina international has vowed against extending his stay at the Camp Nou until he sees a marked change in the club matters and how things are run. Besides that, he is unhappy with the board’s failure in signing players that would benefit the club in every transfer window.
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While the player himself is interested in being at Spain, he doesn’t intend to play for a club that’s on a downward spiral in the last years of his career and wants a more relaxed and stress-free environment. In a bid to establish a better Barca squad as compared to the last few years, the captain has made a list of firm demands to the board, Don Balon has said.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s future at the club is under white lights and should he leave, Messi wants a quality goalkeeper signed. Unai Simon, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Andre Onana are the potential targets. If the Blaugrana get 100 million euros for ter Stegen, any of the shop-stoppers from world football would be within their reach.
Next, Messi believes that signing a left-back has to be given importance. Junior Firpo has been pathetic and the less said about Jordi Alba’s defending, the better. The Argentina international has recommended his compatriot Nicolas Tagliafico and former Barca product Marc Cucurella, but Paris Saint-Germain’s eventual free agent Layvin Kurzawa remains an option too.
On the right flank, Nelson Semedo has been extremely inconsistent and Sergi Roberto is visibly impeded from his natural position of a midfielder. The former is keen on heading to Manchester City and a swap deal involving Joao Cancelo beckons, however, the option of landing one of Hector Bellerin or Joshua Kimmich has been kept open as well.
Quique Setien’s engine room is going to have the highest amount of changes as the likes of Arthur Melo, Arturo Vidal and Ivan Rakitic are looking to leave. In a swap deal involving the Brazil international, Barca may be beneficiaries of Miralem Pjanic but their foremost objective is to land a defensive midfielder who can replace Sergio Busquets in he long run.
Finally, the attack would have the most ambitious and inflated remake but for that the Blaugrana will need to get rid of both, Ousmane Dembele and Philippe Coutinho. Lautaro Martinez and Neymar are objectives, but distant, and so some other striker could be signed and Portuguese wonderkid Francisco Trincao may be promoted to the first-team.
Do you think Barca can afford all of Messi’s listed targets if they manage to sell players?