I believe that fans still clearly remember that bartomeu's late Barca "aging" situation is very serious. Especially after exchanging young Artur for the 30-year-old Pianić, Barca has as many as 9 players over the age of 30, and most of them are core players, and 2 are 29 years old. Such an "old" Barca team is difficult to give fans the hope of a re-emergence. Seeing the steady progress of the work of replacing the old and new at Real Madrid next door, barca fans have a sour taste in their hearts.
After Koeman joined the team, he began to vigorously promote young players. Now that Harvey has taken office, the promotion of young players has increased unabated, and it has paid off handsomely. In addition, to the surprise of fans, Barca's reinforcement strategy in the transfer market has also begun to transform significantly.
I believe Barca fans already know that Manchester City's striker Ferran Torres is about to become Xavi's first signing after taking charge of Barca. The 21-year-old Spanish winger is expected to join Camp Nou for a floating transfer fee of €55 million + 10 million. His arrival will greatly enhance the attacking power of Barca's forward line, and also find a player for the team who can form a main framework with young players such as Fati, Garvey and Pedri for at least the next 10 years.
The centre-back positions are Araujo and Eric Garcia, the midfielders are Garvey, Pedri and Nico, the wingers are Aboud and Fati, and now that Ferran Torres is coming, what other positions do Barca need to inject fresh blood? The first thing that comes to the minds of fans is the two full-backs on the left and right.
Barca have been looking for Alba's successor for many years, and the bartomeu period has not been resolved, and it still plagues Harvey today. The meritorious left-back who witnessed the glory of the "Dream Three Dynasties" is now 32 years old, and his role is still irreplaceable. But there is no denying that Alba's athletics have declined significantly compared to their peak, and injuries have begun to increase in recent years, and it is time for Barca to seriously consider and solve the problem of succession.
But left-backs still have Balder to rotate, and the situation at right-back is much more urgent. Koeman brought in Dest during his time in charge, but he was not in Harvey's plan and was already on the way out. According to Barca and team reporter Romero, Dest is getting closer and closer to joining Bayern. Now Harvey can only play right-back with Araujo, and Alves will only play when he has to.
Sure enough, as it was close to getting Ferran Torres, the media reported that Barca were eyeing the defender. According to Toni Juanmarti, a collection of Barca mouthpieces in the Daily Sport, Barca are focusing on Zaragoza's 19-year-old defender Alejandro Frances. The local teenager's contract is about to expire in 2024 with a termination fee of 8 million euros. At present, the giants including Real Madrid, Sevilla and Juve are paying attention to Frances, but the players themselves prefer to stay in Spain.
Fans who often play FM probably know that Frances is a famous little demon in Spain. He is currently the main defender of Spain's U21, and what is even more rare is that Frances is a defensive all-rounder, in addition to playing at right-back, he can also play as a center-back and left-back, and even make cameo appearances at the back. Although Frances is not tall, he has excellent bouncing power, speed and strength, and excellent technology, and has a certain ability to play the ball. Currently worth €5 million, even if you need to pay a €8 million termination fee, it's definitely worth a try.
After Xavi took over, Barca's mental outlook and lineup building are steadily advancing. If the renewal of the defensive line can be successfully completed, Barca's revival is just around the corner.