Barcelona are reportedly lining up a January loan move for 28-year-old Borussia Dortmund defender Raphael Guerreiro.
According to reputed Spanish journalist Gerard Romero, Raphael Guerreiro has emerged as a target for Barcelona in the ongoing transfer window. The 28-year-old Borussia Dortmund defender is one of five left-backs on the Blaugrana’s radar over a possible loan move this month.
Raphael Guerreiro spent most of his formative years in France and first burst onto the limelight when he was at FC Lorient before joining Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund in July 2016. In the last five and a half years, the Portuguese international has come leaps and bounds, becoming a mainstay at the back for club and country.
Widely regarded as one of the best full-backs in Bundesliga, the 28-year-old has featured 174 times for Dortmund, chipping in with 32 goals and 34 assists along the way. And despite his fitness issues over the years, Guerreiro remains one of the most highly sought-after left-backs in Europe, with Barcelona the latest club to be linked with him.
For years, Jordi Alba has been a stalwart for Barcelona, having gone from strength to strength since returning to the club from Valencia nearly a decade ago. However, the decline in the Spanish international’s performance levels has been starkly clear in the last few years.
With Alejandro Balde yet to properly establish a foothold in the first-team setup at Camp Nou, Barcelona will have to enter the transfer market for a left-back in the ongoing transfer window to find a competitor for Alba’s spot. To that end, the Catalan giants have created a shortlist of left-sided full-backs to target over a loan move this month, with Alex Sandro among those on their radar.
Guerreiro also features on Barcelona’s wishlist of left-backs, with Nicolas Tagliafico, Alex Telles and Alfonso Pedraza also being targetted. Gerard Romero has also added that of these five left-backs, two are admired greatly by Barcelona, which suggests that duo will be the priority targets for a loan move.
Whether Guerreiro is one of those two left-backs is unclear. But even if the 28-year-old did feature among Barcelona’s priority target, one would imagine Borussia Dortmund will be unwilling to part with him midway through a season wherein they remain in contention to win the Bundesliga title. Barcelona will thus have to concentrate on the other four left-backs, with Guerreiro unlikely to leave Dortmund.
