Barcelona looking to swap Sergino Dest with Ajax star

Sergino Dest arrived at Catalunya just a season ago however, his time with Barcelona could already be up and he could find himself on a plane back to his former club in this transfer window. The American right-back was brought into the club by a former manager, Ronald Koeman, due to his amazing speed and dribbling abilities. Although he was a defender, his attacking instincts and ability to play in an advanced position, made him the perfect choice for Koeman who wanted to implement a formation with wing-backs. However, Dest underperformed in his first season and was not impactful in the second either. He hardly plays under Xavi Hernandez and new reports suggest that Dest is one of the players on the top of the transfer list.

Ironically, the person whom Barca wants to replace dest with is also from Ajax. Noussair Mazraoui is a 24-year-old right-back who has been in the Ajax family since his childhood days. He is an Ajax player through and through, however, he also knows that he needs to play in one of the elite clubs in Europe to truly mark his presence in world football. Currently, Arsenal and Leeds United are planning on acquiring the player, however, Barcelona have also been scouting him and have decided that he is the player to replace Dest.

Sergino Dest is being heavily linked with a Barcelona exit

The main problem now is monetary. Arsenal and Leeds are financially more stable than Barca however, the Catalans have a good relationship with the Dutch side and Joan Laporta also has a good relationship with Mazraoui’s agent. According to Diario AS, the way things might pan out is by Mazraoui going to Barca and Dest going back to Ajax. This will be a good deal for the Amsterdam side since they would lose out Mazraoui in a free transfer anyway but Dest on the other hand has 3 years left with the Catalans and is worth significantly more. Selling Dest and using Dani Alves as the right-back would be economically more sensible however if the Barca board wants to hasten the move, then a direct swap with Dest is also acceptable.

Should Barca replace Dest with Mazraoui?