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The position is not folded, as only Romeu is in it, and the sports management is already looking at different profiles to try to strengthen it. Players like Guido Rodríguez, Palhinha, Jorginho, and Florentino Luis are being monitored by the department led by Deco.
FC Barcelona doesn’t rest in its sports planning. Even though the summer transfer window has just closed, the Blaugrana club continues to focus on improving the squad. One area that needs attention is the defensive midfield position. The club signed Oriol Romeu (31 years old) from Girona this summer, and he has been performing very well. However, the Ulldecona native doesn’t have a clear backup. Frenkie de Jong can play in that position, but neither Xavi Hernández nor Deco believe that it’s his ideal role. Another option would be to use Ilkay Gündogan there, but only in emergencies, not as a long-term solution.
For this reason, the new sporting director of Barça and his team are already analyzing this situation with the intention of trying to strengthen the defensive midfield position in the winter transfer market. In fact, Xavi admitted in Saturday’s press conference that the defensive midfield position was not yet fully covered. That’s also why he’s preserving Oriol Romeu, the only player in that position.
FC Barcelona doesn’t rest in its sports planning. Even though the summer transfer window has just closed, the Blaugrana club continues to focus on improving the squad. One area that requires attention is the defensive midfield position. The club signed Oriol Romeu (31 years old) from Girona this summer, and he has been performing very well. However, the Ulldecona native doesn’t have a clear backup. Frenkie de Jong can play in that position, but neither Xavi Hernández nor Deco believe it’s his ideal role. Another option would be to use Ilkay Gündogan there, but only in emergencies, not as a long-term solution.
For this reason, the new sporting director of Barça and his team are already analyzing this situation with the intention of trying to strengthen the defensive midfield position in the winter transfer market. In fact, Xavi admitted in Saturday’s press conference that the defensive midfield position was not yet fully covered. That’s also why he’s keeping Oriol Romeu, the only player in that position.
A player that Barcelona values highly is the Portuguese Joao Palhinha (28 years old), who came close to changing clubs this summer, moving from Fulham to Bayern Munich. He even underwent a medical examination with the German club, but in the end, the deal fell through, leaving the player devastated. He is a tall, powerful defensive midfielder with good ball distribution. It remains to be seen if his move to Bayern will be revived in January or if he will explore other opportunities, but he is very unhappy with Fulham, with whom he has a contract until 2027.
Another player that Deco has on his radar is Florentino Luis (24 years old) from Benfica. After a less notable spell at Getafe, he has made a name for himself at the Portuguese club, with a contract in place until 2027. FC Barcelona is also monitoring players who are having difficulties getting playing time at their current teams. One of them is Jorginho (31 years old) from Arsenal, who has been relegated to the bench due to the arrival of Declan Rice. His contract also expires in 2024.
