Samuel Umtiti reportedly has no future at Barcelona, who have deemed the French defensive misfit to be surplus to requirements at Camp Nou.
According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, Samuel Umtiti could well have played his final game for Barcelona. The Catalan giants are prepared to offload the French centre-back in the summer transfer window and have told him to look for a new club.
Umtiti arrived at Barcelona in the summer of 2016 following several promising displays for Lyon as well as the French national side. The 27-year-old initially showed just why he was regarded as one of the best young players in the world at the time, but after a superb debut campaign at Camp Nou, his career has gone completely pear-shaped.
Initially, a spate of injuries meant not only curtailed his game-time, but hampered his progress so considerably that he has been one of the most inconsistent defenders in the game in recent times. So, from a prospective long-term solution at the back, Umtiti has become a complete misfit for Barcelona, which is reflective in his numbers as well.
Solely in the 2020/21 campaign, Umtiti started just 8 of the 54 games that Barcelona played, and it has been clear for a while that he does not feature in Ronald Koeman’s plans. And, heading into the summer transfer window, the Frenchman has been told that he now needs to look for a new club.
Barcelona now have as many as six centre-backs following the arrival of Eric Garcia on a Bosman move. And, the report suggests that the Blaugrana opine that five central defenders are more than enough to keep them covered for 2021/22, which makes sense, considering Frenkie de Jong is an emergency option as well.
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However, there could be a case wherein Clement Lenglet is offloaded as well, with Barcelona in the market for a left-footed centre-back, which has seen them being linked with Aymeric Laporte, Inigo Martinez and several others. As far as Umtiti is concerned, he is set to be the first name on the chopping block.
Recent rumours suggest that there could be interest stemming from the Premier League, with the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United being linked with the player. As things stand, though, what remains certain is that Umtiti has been deemed surplus to requirements at Barcelona and could be set to join a new club this summer.
