Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig reportedly has no desire to leave Camp Nou for La Liga rivals Getafe in the ongoing transfer window.
According to a report from El Nacional, Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig is not interested in leaving the club in the ongoing transfer window amidst interest from La Liga club Getafe.
Puig is a product of Barcelona’s famed La Masia youth setup. The 22-year-old was widely regarded as one of the brightest prospects to have emerged through the ranks at Camp Nou in recent years, but his first-team career has failed to take off as expected. Be it under Ernesto Valverde, Quique Setien, Ronald Koeman, or Xavi Hernandez, the midfielder has struggled to make an impression.
Koeman had pretty much frozen out Puig in the first half of the ongoing campaign. The Spaniard did get some chances once Xavi took over due to the injuries suffered by Pedri and Frenkie de Jong at the time. However, he failed to make the most of his opportunities and finds himself on the periphery of the first team again.
Pedri’s return to fitness, coupled with the emergence of Nico Gonzalez and Gavi, means Puig’s game-time is unlikely to improve at Barcelona. As a result, he has been linked with an exit from the club in the ongoing transfer window. There has been interest from the likes of AS Roma, Real Betis, and now Getafe, too, have joined the race for his signing.
As per the report, Getafe manager Quique Sanchez Flores wants to improve his roster in the mid-season trading period and sees the Barcelona academy graduate as a player who can add a lot of value to the team for the second half of the campaign and beyond.
It is claimed that the Azulones are even ready to hand him a key role in the senior team, much like they did with another Barcelona academy graduate in Carles Alena. However, just like he rejected Real Betis, Puig is set to turn down Getafe as well. The 22-year-old midfielder has no intentions of leaving Camp Nou at the moment, despite his bit-part role in Xavi’s side.
But, the report does add that the midfielder could consider his future at the end of the season. For now, though, it seems like Puig will stay put in Catalonia and fight to revive his stuttering career.