Sergiño Dest of FC Barcelona runs with the ball during the La Liga match against Real Betis at the Camp Nou on Dec. 4, 2021. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
Barcelona turn attention to fixing a leaky defense
With Barcelona all but landing Manchester City’s Ferran Torres, the focus now shifts to fixing a defense which for too long has been a problem.
The right back position is one the club has struggled to fill since the departure Dani Alves. Sergi Roberto, Nelson Semedo and Sergiño Dest have all tried to be the Brazilian’s heir apparent. All three have had limited success with Roberto arguably being the best of the three.
The failure to find a replacement for Alves led Barcelona to re-sign him at the age of 38. His performance against Boca Juniors in a friendly showed he is going to be the starter once he is officially registered with the league.
Because of his age, however, the Catalans know he is only a short-term solution. They know they need to go into the market and find someone who can be their right back long term. They also know they must be diligent because they cannot afford, almost literally, to miss on a signing.
According to Sport, Barcelona has identified three possible signings for next season, all of whom could join the Spanish giants on a free transfer. The three are Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta, Ajax’s Noussair Mazraoui and Monaco’s Djibril Sidibe.
All three are under contracts that end at the conclusion of this season meaning they would be free to negotiate with other teams come the start of the winter transfer window.
Mazraoui seems to be the frontrunner. The fact that Mino Raiola is his agent favors Barcelona given the good relationship the agent has with Joan Laporta. Signing him could also go some way toward landing Erling Haaland. At 24 years old, Mazraoui is entering the prime of his career and could become a fixture at the Camp Nou.
Azpilicueta is on the older side and would most likely only be a stopgap which could mean Dest would not be sold and could be given another chance by Xavi to prove he has the quality to play at Barcelona. Azpilicueta is well-liked by Xavi and while he could bring plenty of experience, he seems to more inclined to reach a new deal with Chelsea.
Sidibe is an option that intrigues the club but he is likely to draw interest from Premier League sides as well. He’s a starter at Monaco and a France international. What could dissuade them is he did have a less than successful stint at Everton.
The elephant in the room is these three options are only viable if the decision to sell Dest is made. Like Mazraoui, he is a former Ajax product and a lot was made when Barcelona signed him as he could have gone to Bayern Munich.
However, his lack of defensive awareness is a weakness and he seems hesitant when going forward. In other words, the qualities he showed at Ajax that got Barcelona interested in the first place, he’s been unable to display.
It hasn’t helped that he seemed to draw the ire of former manager Ronald Koeman and that he’s been used as a winger of late. A back injury has plagued him this season and he’s missed a handful of games as a result.
Dest’s future is up in the air but he is determined to rehab his injury and impress Xavi. It will be up to Xavi if he is given an opportunity in the New Year. If not, there are a couple of teams interested in him and at the very least, the club know who they can possibly replace him with ahead of next season.
