Barcelona are reportedly planning to announce the capture of Eric Garcia from Manchester City in January while midfielder Carles Alena is a target for Getafe.
According to Marta Carreras of Catalunya Radio, Barcelona are planning on announcing the signing of Manchester City defender Eric Garcia in January, though he won’t arrive at Camp Nou until the summer.
The 19-year-old left the Barcelona youth setup in 2017 to join Manchester City and enjoyed his breakthrough season last time out, going on to make 20 appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side. However, with the Spaniard’s contract set to expire at the end of the ongoing season, it was revealed that he had refused to put pen to paper on a new deal.
Alerted by the development, Barcelona made no secret of wanting to take the defender back to Camp Nou in the summer window. However, a refusal to meet Manchester City’s transfer fee demands meant that the teenage centre-back ended up staying in England and has since featured seven times in all competitions this season.
With his deal running out in a little over six months, Garcia will be able to negotiate with clubs from abroad over a free transfer at the end of the season from January.
And, it seems like Barcelona already have things in place to secure his signing on a pre-contract agreement and are planning to announce the Spaniard’s signing next month, although, he would only be joining him when the season runs out.
Defensive reinforcements are a necessity at Camp Nou with Gerard Pique not getting any younger and struggling with injuries this season. That, coupled with Samuel Umtiti’s unreliability, has meant manager Ronald Koeman has had to rely on youngsters Oscar Mingueza and Ronald Araujo alongside Clement Lenglet in defence this term.
Furthermore, with Umtiti emerging as a target for Everton, Barcelona will need to bolster their ranks should the Frenchman end up leaving in January or at the end of the season, making Garcia a viable target for the club. And if the aforementioned report is something to go by, then it would seem like the Blaugrana will be bringing Garcia back home in six months.
Barcelona midfielder Carles Alena wanted by Getafe
While one La Masia trainee could be heading back to Barcelona in the near future, another could be on his way out of the club in January. Midfielder Carles Alena, who is regarded as one of the brightest prospects to have come through the youth ranks at Barcelona in recent years, is a loan target for fellow La Liga club Getafe.
The 22-year-old’s career has failed to take off at Camp Nou. Despite having made his senior debut way back in 2016, Alena has made just 44 first-team appearances till date.
The Spaniard has struggled to get meaningful game time under new boss Koeman in the current campaign. Indeed, Alena has featured just five times across all competitions so far, totalling up to just 170 minutes of on-field action.
With his situation not improving, the academy product could be allowed to leave on loan in January, much like he was in the last winter transfer window when he had joined Real Betis for the second half of the 2019/20 campaign.
Alena had enjoyed a fairly successful spell with Los Verdiblancos, scoring one goal and setting up two more in 19 games. And he would be hoping to improve on that if he ends up signing for Jose Bordalas’ men in the upcoming window.
The 22-year-old might not be the only player headed for a winter exit from Camp Nou, with Philippe Coutinho also touted to leave the club next month, but on a permanent basis, unlike Alena. Looks like Barcelona could be in for a busy January transfer window.
