The announcement that FIFA have banned FC Barcelona from signing new players over the course of the next two transfer windows could have potentially huge implications for the club, not only in terms of who they had planned on bringing in, but also, who they were going to send out.
While a transfer ban is never easy to negotiate, Barcelona are probably one of the clubs best placed to do so thanks to their exceptional youth academy and large squad of players who, at the moment, aren’t in the starting eleven.
Young players in key positions who had previously struggled for regular minutes with the first team, and others on the fringes of the squad who had only yesterday looked like dead-certs for a transfer away from the Camp Nou could now be given a second chance to make their mark.
Then there are some of the players the Catalans have sent out on loan who had looked likely to extend their spells away, but will now almost certainly be on the first flight home this summer. The ripple effect could be huge, so it's worth dissecting.
The loanees
Barcelona have several players out on loan this season, though only two realistically look likely to return to the club. Bojan Krkic has long been considered a lost cause at the Camp Nou, and his four goals while on loan at Ajax won’t have done much to change minds.
In the case of Gerard Deulofeu and Rafinha Alcantara however, who both could well have spent an additional season on loan at Everton and Celta Vigo respectively next year, it looks likely that both players will return to their parent club in the summer, unless FIFA’s decision changes.
Deulofeu’s virtues are well known in England, and the youngster’s notable maturing at Everton will have helped his cause back home. Creative, direct, and programmed to play in Barcelona’s system, the Catalans aren’t likely to find a better ‘signing’ for their wide forward positions. Certainly not now.
Rafinha is a different case in that, at Celta he has largely played out wide, but Barcelona consider him very much a central player. The idea at the Camp Nou is that Thiago’s younger brother will assume a central midfield role when he returns to his parent club, and it will be fascinating to see how he copes with that challenge next season, particularly given Xavi’s age and the continued struggles of Cesc Fabregas.
The youngsters
Long considered a future first team talent, Jean Marie Dongou is a natural goal scorer and an out-and-out central striker, something Barcelona currently lack in their first team. Somewhat surprisingly the Cameroonian hasn’t exactly been prolific in the Spanish second division this season, but with Barcelona now in a ‘needs must’ scenario, he may find himself thrust into the first team ahead of time.
One Barca B player who certainly looks likely to see his first team chances increase is Sergi Gomez. A decorated youth international with Spain, Gomez has been a steady and impressive presence with Barcelona’s B team, and with Carles Puyol leaving the Camp Nou this summer, the first team have a gap to fill at the back. With Barcelona's inability to sign a new centre-back, Gomez is the obvious option to do a job for the squad.
A third player who could benefit is goalkeeper Jordi Masip. With it not yet clear if Barcelona can now go ahead and complete the registration of Ter Stegen this summer, Jose Manuel Pinto yet to be offered a new deal, and Victor Valdes not only out of contract but out of action for seven months, there is nothing short of a goalkeeping crisis at the Camp Nou.
Jordi Masip, 25, has been impressive with Barcelona B this season, and with rumbles that he could be getting frustrating at the lack of chances to play for the first team, the stopper is likely to finally get his chance in the forthcoming season. Whether he would deputise for Jose Manuel Pinto (if the Catalans tie the latter down to a new contract), or Pinto continues as the team’s ‘cup’ goalkeeper remains to be seen.
The fringe players
On Tuesday, Marc Bartra produced an impressive display against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League to go with a string of assured performances when given an opportunity this season, and with Barcelona now unable to sign a centre back this summer – a move president Josep Maria Bartomeu had confirmed publicly that they would make – Bartra’s chances of becoming a starting player have augmented. That is likely to be popular among supporters, who have long demanded that Bartra plays more regularly.
Bartra’s peer Martin Montoya is also likely to see his chances of playing regularly grow quite significantly, with the young full-back only recently putting pen to paper on a new deal. Perhaps the only potential complication for Montoya is Dani Alves, who the club previously looked likely to sell this summer, but could now prove to be a continued presence next season as a result of FIFA’s decision.
A third player currently playing occasionally with the first team who could benefit from the ban is Sergi Roberto. Gerardo Martino seems to like the young midfielder but doesn't necessarily trust him in big games, mostly using him as a late substitute to waste time. Now, given the shift in dynamic at the club, Roberto could see his minutes increase dramatically in an effort to help alleviate the pressure on Xavi, Iniesta and Cesc Fabregas.
Another fringe player who could potentially benefit is Jonathan dos Santos, though his case isn't as clear as Montoya's, Roberto's or Bartra's. The Mexican has missed most of this season through injury, and after previously proving stubborn in the face of attempts to loan him out, he had looked likely to finally leave the Camp Nou this summer. The young midfielder could yet be given an opportunity to play next season given the unforeseen circumstances faced by his club.
With two other fringe players things look more complicated. Despite looking promising under Pep Guardiola, Isaac Cuenca has become almost a forgotten figure at Barcelona, failing to even enter a match day squad this season. Ibrahim Afellay, meanwhile, who has returned to action this year, was due to be sold off this summer in an effort to raise funds. Neither player occupies positions that Barcelona are particularly short in, so the transfer ban doesn’t necessarily increase their possibilities of playing, particularly with the likely return of Deulofeu.
Finally, a revolution?
It is thought that one of the reasons Pep Guardiola chose to leave Barcelona was because the club's board were unable to commit to the host of dramatic changes to the first team the manager felt were necessary to maintain the same levels that had granted them unprecedented success.
Much like when he first took charge of Barcelona's seniors, Guardiola wanted to cull some of the big players who had helped Barcelona to win Champions Leagues and leagues, fearing that their motivation was in decline. He knew that would prove particularly difficult at the second time of asking as some of the players in question may well have been at the club for decades as products of the academy, making them different from the likes of Ronaldinho or Samuel Eto'o who weren't born and bred Barcelona players.
In the almost two years since his departure, that exodus of old favourites has yet to happen, and many hold up Bayern's 7-0 demolition of a slow and turgid Barcelona side last season as a proof of what Guardiola warned would happen. The irregularity of Barcelona's displays this season have only fuelled the fires, and once again there is talk of a 'revolution' at the club among the press and supporters alike, who have called for young, hungry players like Rafinha, Deulofeu, Bartra and Montoya to be given a place in the starting XI. Today's announcement may well grant them that wish, albeit in less than ideal circumstances.
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