Barcelona searching for the new Sergio Busquets

Barcelona shortlist three potential Sergio Busquets replacements.

With Sergio Busquets nearing the latter stages of his career, Barcelona are well aware that the time is approaching where they will need to find a successor.

The club does not have a good record of long-term planning when it comes to replacing some of their more emblematic players. Simply take a look at how long it took them to find replacements for Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta.

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However, according to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona has identified Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino, Rennes’ Eduardo Camavinga, and Sassuolo’s Manuel Locatelli as players who can take over from the 32-year-old.

The Catalans would not be in pole position to sign any of the names mentioned for various reasons.

Real Madrid has been eyeing Camavinga for a while now and given their drab performance in their elimination at the hands of Chelsea, Florentino Perez is going to want to strengthen his team ahead of next season.

Locatelli is a player Barcelona has been scouting for a couple of seasons now. But his performances at Sassuolo have caught the attention of Manchester City, Juventus and both Milan sides. The Blaugranas would be in the middle of the pack.

Merino’s case is a bit different and here it goes back to the club’s dire financial situation. La Real are going to want the full release clause paid, which stands at €60 million and will go up to €65 million in 2022.

One of the reasons Barcelona is searching for a successor for Busquets is despite having a bit of a resurgence this season, he’s not getting any younger. He’s not often played the entire 90 minutes of a game.

Barcelona are studying a number of options but securing anyone is going to be difficult. At the moment, they believe the only route at their disposal involves player trades. In other words, deals similar to the one they pulled off for Juventus when they, in essence, swapped Arthur Melo for Miralem Pjanic.

Of course, there is another option. A “break in case of emergency” choice that is probably their Plan C or Plan D and that is looking internally toward the academy.

Garcia Pimienta has Barça rolling and they have a couple of midfielders who fit the Busquets profile and would cost nothing.

But with a new president, the plan may be to sign a star player in order to appease fans, which does not seem to be the most prudent one considering the club finances.