Three years after swapping Spain for Italy, Estanis Pedrola is back. The young winger joined Serie B side Sampdoria in a €3 million deal in 2023, with Barcelona keeping a 50% sell-on clause and a €7 million buy-back option that expired in 2025. However, the Catalan giants won't profit much from his return to Spain, with Real Oviedo paying a fee widely reported to be under €1 million.
Pedrola, a La Masia product, was long touted as an exciting prospect. In January 2022, the then-18-year-old debuted for Barcelona's first team, replacing Ilias Akhomach off the bench in a 1-0 win over RCD Mallorca. That would be his only appearance for the first team, as he spent the following season as a key player for Barça Atlètic in the Primera Federación.
In the summer of 2023, Pedrola, looking for first-team action, headed to recently relegated Serie B side Sampdoria, then coached by Andrea Pirlo. Barcelona, believing in his potential, included both a buy-back and a sell-on fee in the deal should he emerge as a star in Italy. However, after a bright start where he scored three goals in his first six games, injuries disrupted his season.
Pedrola started none of Sampdoria's final thirty games as the club missed out on promotion. His second season was further disrupted by injuries, with Sampdoria also cycling through managers. In February 2025, with Pedrola struggling for minutes and Sampdoria sitting in the bottom half of Serie B, the forward was loaned out to Serie A side Bologna.
However, after making just two appearances for Bologna, Pedrola returned to Sampdoria the following summer. Once again, injuries limited his availability, and he started only one Serie B match before the forward was loaned away in January. This time, he headed back to Spain, joining Segunda División side Las Palmas.
The move was a success from the start. On his debut, Pedrola came off the bench to score a late winner against Real Zaragoza, giving Las Palmas a crucial three points. Over the final half of the season, Pedrola scored four goals, three of which were winners, and recorded one assist as Las Palmas finished fifth in the league, earning a spot in the promotion playoffs.
Ultimately, Las Palmas were thwarted in the playoffs, losing over two legs to Málaga CF in the semi-finals. Still, Las Palmas planned to make the signing of the forward permanent, with club president Miguel Ángel Ramírez saying that the club were "finalizing the purchase of Estanis Pedrola," with Sampdoria ready to move on.
Instead, it's Real Oviedo that have secured his signing. The Asturian club returned to La Liga last summer after a 24-year absence, but their spell in the top flight was short. Oviedo recorded just 29 points, finishing last in La Liga despite some early promising results. Now back in the Segunda, the club have to rebuild and return to Spain's top flight, and Pedrola could be an important player.
Although Pedrola has struggled for consistency, he is still a player you'd expect Barcelona to keep tabs on. A skilled dribbler, Pedrola is still only 22, can play anywhere in attack, and, after a rough spell in Italy, showed glimpses back in Spain with Las Palmas. For Oviedo, this is exactly the kind of low-risk, high-upside move that makes sense as they chase a return to La Liga.
He is not the only Barcelona connection for the Asturians. Pedrola will partner Joaquín Delgado in attack after the 24-year-old's successful loan spell with Barça Atlètic last season. Oviedo center-back David Costas, now 31, also had a loan spell with Barça B in 2017 and featured for the first team in the Copa del Rey.
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