Barcelona: Lionel Messi and three contract renewals Joan Laporta will have on priority list

Oscar Mingueza

Oscar Mingueza’s contract has a clause of auto-renewal if that clause is exercised before May 31. The La Liga giants are happy with the metamorphosis of the Spaniard as he stabilized the defence in absence of Gerard Pique.

Mingueza has admirers form Real Betis, Sampdoria and Brighton but they’ll fail in their pursuit as its only a matter of time before Blaugrana exercise the deal extension option. The La Masia product has flexed his all-round abilities this season.

Defensively, Mingueza has a 64.5% tackle success rate against dribbles, while also registering 4.18 tackles+interceptions per game. Being a centre back at Barcelona is one of the hardest tasks because not only you have to have adept defending skills but also be comfortable carrying the ball and possess strong distribution skills. Mingueza has a pass completion of 91.2%, 6th in the % pass completion table.

When he is on the pitch, Barcelona have +/-90 of 1.64, meaning that when he’s on the pitch the team scores more goals and concedes less. Now, Mingueza doesn’t play a huge part in scoring goals but his presence at the back allows the team to venture forward with the assurance of him being alert at the back to block any opposition attacks. (stats via FBref)

This is just the start of his Barcelona career and with the future of Samuel Umtiti in doubt, Barca may have a reliable replacement within the ranks.