Barcelona are reportedly considering making a move to bring back former left-back Alejandro Grimaldo from Portuguese outfit SL Benfica.
According to a report from Fichajes, Barcelona are considering the possibility of a reunion with former academy product Alejandro Grimaldo, who plays for SL Benfica, in the summer of 2022.
Grimaldo joined Barcelona’s famed La Masia youth setup from the Valencia academy. The left-back rose through the ranks within the Catalan outfit and featured close to 100 times for their B team. However, he never made a first-team appearance for the Blaugrana and left for Benfica in January 2016 in search of regular game-time.
Since joining the Portuguese heavyweights, Grimaldo has taken his game up a notch, establishing himself as a regular in the starting XI for years now, making over 220 appearances in the process while contributing 16 goals and 45 assists in the process.
Grimaldo recently revealed that he wished to return to Barcelona someday in his career, and as per the report, the club are now seriously mulling over the prospect of re-signing him next year.
Barcelona have Jordi Alba as their undisputed starter at left-back. But the Spanish international is 32 years old and will need to be slowly phased out of the first team. Beyond the veteran star, the Catalans have no experienced cover, with 18-year-old Barca B starlet Alejandro Balde the only natural backup at manager Xavi Hernandez’s disposal.
So, it makes sense for the club to bring in a new left-back to compete with and eventually take over from Alba in the long run. More so, with the Spaniard being linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Jose Gaya has been Barcelona’s favoured option for quite some time now, but the Valencia captain is unlikely to come cheap in the summer. So, Grimaldo would be a viable alternative for the Catalan giants to consider signing.
The 26-year-old will be entering the final year of his contract with Benfica at the end of the ongoing campaign. It would mean that there is a chance that Barcelona can land him in a cut-price deal. With the player also willing to make the switch, there could be some steam to these speculations, but only time will tell if the La Liga giants do make a push to re-sign Grimaldo.
