A January move for Manchester City’s defensive prodigy Eric Garcia to Barcelona has been ruled out due to internal reasons within the club.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona are unlikely to pursue top target, Eric Garcia, in the ongoing January transfer window. The Manchester City youngster was desperately wanted by manager Ronald Koeman, who is running shallow in terms of depth in the defensive unit.
However, with the presidential election within the club looming large, Barca had checked for a consensus between the three candidates regarding the signing of Garcia. Unfortunately, only one of them has agreed to sign the youngster in January, with the two remaining candidates opting otherwise.
The Blaugrana have had difficulties negotiating a deal with Garcia in the past, with Manchester City notably persisting with their relatively hefty demand for the player, during the summer transfer window. And while recent reports did suggest that the Premier League giants were willing to offload the defender for a fee of just €5 million, a move, it seems, has been ruled out following the lack of consensus.
It means Garcia will now have to wait until the end of the season in order to seal a move back to Barcelona. His current contract at the Etihad expires in the summer, meaning Koeman could bag his services for free. The Dutchman, however, would have preferred an imminent move as he looks to deal with a shallow defensive department.
The injury of Gerard Pique, earlier in the campaign, had already gravely impacted the Catalans camp, especially with Samuel Umtiti and Clement Lenglet also struggling with form and injury. It has left Koeman to rely on the services of youngsters like Ronald Araujo and Oscar Mingueza, although both of them have done a solid job so far.
The potential arrival of Garcia in January could have added further depth in the defensive unit for FC Barcelona. The 20-year-old is already quite used to life in Catalonia, having been a former graduate in the famed La Masia academy. It essentially means that he was likely to settle in quickly at the club and its footballing philosophy.
From a sporting perspective, the Manchester City youngster has already shown a lot of potential. His ability to pass the ball out from the back combined with his positional knowledge would have made him an ideal long-term replacement for someone like Pique.
But, with the defender unlikely to move to Camp Nou this month, it will be interesting to see whether or not other clubs will join in his pursuit in the summer.