Spanish publication Marca experiences that 4 gamers are preventing to show their value to Barcelona supervisor Ronald Koeman forward of the upcoming January switch window.
It’s been a combined return to the Camp Nou for Koeman. He has gained 4 out of 4 within the Champions League, together with a powerful 2-Zero away victory in opposition to Italian giants Juventus. Nevertheless, their La Liga kind has not been so tidy, currently sitting in seventh place.
It was an extended summer season of chopping and altering at Barcelona, with the likes of Luis Suarez, Arturo Vidal, Ivan Rakitic, and Arthur all being let go.
And this January might see a number of extra depart, with Riqui Puig, Carles Alena, Junior Firpo, and Martin Braithwaite all supposedly nearing the exit door.
Puig made his breakthrough final season below Quique Setien and produced various dazzling shows on the coronary heart of midfield after the restart. The 21-year-old turned a well-liked determine among the many fans throughout this time.
Nevertheless, Koeman has not taken a lot of a liking to him, giving him simply three league minutes all season. The younger Spaniard has been linked with a mortgage transfer to Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United.
Alena spend the second half of the final marketing campaign on mortgage at Actual Betis. He has additionally struggled for sport time this time period, though he did begin within the Four-Zero away triumph in opposition to Dynamo Kyiv.
Equally, Firpo’s solely begin this season got here within the win in Ukraine. The Spain under-21 worldwide missed the opening phases of the season by damage and has not come near dislodging Jordi Alba from the beginning XI. Nevertheless, Firpo has age on his aspect, being seven years youthful than Alba.
In the meantime, Martin Braithwaite’s current kind might have given him a lifeline on the Catalan giants. From his two begins this season, he has scored three objectives and recorded an help.
The Danish ahead was controversially introduced in from Leganes exterior of the switch window, after Barcelona got permission to signal a brand new ahead following a number of accidents to their frontline.