The entanglement of the nine in the Barça

That Barça needs a scorer is evidence. The dripped marches of Suárez, Messi and Griezmann in the last two seasons they have left him naked in the rival area. And that giant problem has linked the injuries of Ansu, the player with the most goals in the squad; plus the fall of Braithwaite, who is also not a consummate scorer, and the unexpected heart problems of Omen. What’s more, Luke de Jong It will count very little for Xavi, who has given the green light to his departure, although this will have to have the approval of Sevilla.

The Barça, then, will try to sign a scorer in January. But it has several problems. First, there is not too much supply. But the main handicap is the economic one. Suffocated by LaLiga, which scrupulously monitors its economic movements, has pending the registration of Daniel Alves, which will not cause problems. But, as Mateu Alemany admitted in Xavi’s presentation, with the dismissal of Koeman and the signing of Terrassa’s coach, they are at the limit. The Barça, therefore, needs to make a magic market operation that allows it to incorporate a striker, either with a transfer with a compulsory purchase option or with a simple transfer.

The option of Raheem Sterling (26 years, contract until June 2023), which is not a nine in itself, has lost strength these days, in addition, from England it is speculated that City would now have stepped forward to renew him. Dani Olmo (23 years old, contract until June 2024) is also a player who fills Alemany’s eye. But Leipzig does not seem willing to let go, not even in the uncomfortable situation they are in Europe.

In the past few hours, two names have joined the list. The first is Timo Werner, 25-year-old German striker with a contract until 2025. A profile that Xavi likes because of his ease of moving through different attack profiles, not only as a center forward but also turned to the left, although there they tend to like too Ansu and Memphis. The other name that has appeared is that of Arthur Cabral, 23-year-old Brazilian who plays for Basel, with a contract until 2023, and has scored 23 goals (this Thursday he scored in a 2-3 victory against Kairat, in the Europa League) in 14 games this season in the Swiss iga . Olympic International with Brazil. A forward with power who does have more of a spiker profile but whose performance in a big league is unknown.

It should also be remembered that Barça has budgeted 20 million to reach the quarterfinals of the Champions League, something that today is not at all clear and a figure that in the Europa League could only aspire with the title. But, in addition, the Barça club has planned 25 million for new sponsors and 50 million for Barça Studios that are yet to be guaranteed. Signing a striker may be a legitimate goal for Xavi and Mateu Alemany, but it is a tremendous mess. And, basically, Barça does not want to rush either. One of his main goals for next summer is Karim Adeyemi, which except for surprise will not leave the Salzburg this winter market.