Alex Collado is on the verge of leaving Barcelona to sign for Elche on loan while Mika Marmol could be on his way out amid interest from five clubs.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Barcelona and Elche have reached a total agreement over a loan deal for Alex Collado, who is set to leave Camp Nou imminently on yet another temporary stint.
A product of Barcelona’s La Masia youth setup, Collado looked set for a big role in the first-team setup after he enjoyed an impressive 2020/21 campaign with the club’s B team. However, he was not given a shot by then-manager Ronald Koeman and he spent the first half of the last season not playing any form of professional football as he was not registered with the senior team or the second team.
Collado left Barcelona on loan in January, signing for Granada, where he played regularly and did reasonably well before returning to Camp Nou this summer. The 23-year-old looked likely to stay at Camp Nou as Xavi Hernandez wanted to include him in his plans for the new season.
However, with Barcelona making multiple additions in the attacking and midfield departments, Collado grew concerned about the game-time he would receive and requested the club to sanction a loan move. Several teams, such as Celtic, Olympiacos and Girona, among others, were interested in services, but Elche emerged as the favourites to sign him up.
And as per the update from Romano, the La Liga club have reached an agreement with Barcelona to sign Collado on loan for the remainder of the 2022/23 season. Elche will be paying 50% of the versatile attacking midfielder’s wages, and it will only be a dry loan with no purchase option included. The report adds that the deal will be completed and made official in the next 24 hours or so.
Collado will become the second Barcelona youngster to leave the club on loan, following in the footsteps of Nico Gonzalez, who has signed for Valencia on a temporary deal for the rest of the season. The duo could soon be followed by Ez Abde, who is also a loan target for Elche.
?| Elche will cover 50% of Álex Collado's salary. There is no buy option included. DONE DEAL. [@FabrizioRomano] #fcblive ??✅ pic.twitter.com/qHCAWmBCss
— BarçaTimes (@BarcaTimes) August 12, 2022
Mika Marmol wanted by five clubs across Europe
While Alex Collado closes in on an exit from Barcelona, another exciting La Masia talent could soon be on his way out on a temporary stint as well, as defender Mika Marmol seeks to secure a move away from Camp Nou. And, according to Gerard Romero, the academy product has no shortage of suitors, with Valencia, Girona, Levante, Las Palmas and Hertha Berlin all looking to sign him.
A product of the La Masia academy, Marmol has been a mainstay in the defence for Barcelona Atletic in the previous couple of seasons and even made his senior debut for the Blaugrana towards the end of the last season.
Following the banishing of Samuel Umtiti and the loan exit of Clement Lenglet, it was expected that the 21-year-old could become a part of the senior team as Xavi did not have a left-footed centre-back at his disposal. However, with Barcelona signing Jules Kounde and Andreas Christensen this summer, there is no room for the youngster on the roster, and a loan stint away makes sense.
While the interest from Germany is certainly appealing, Marmol might look to stay closer to home and continue his development in Spain. It will be interesting to see where the Spanish centre-half ends up, as he nears an exit from Barcelona.
