Barcelona have reportedly scouted 20-year-old midfielder Benat Turrientes who plays for fellow La Liga club Real Sociedad.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have set their sights on Real Sociedad midfield prodigy Benat Turrientes and have been scouting the 20-year-old prospect.
Benat Turrientes is a product of the Real Sociedad youth setup. The central midfielder broke into the club’s B team in January last year. He made a solid impression to prompt first-team manager Imanol Alguacil to hand him his debut in September 2021. He has featured 13 times for La Real, scoring one goal while also racking up 28 appearances for the B team under Xabi Alonso’s tutelage.
Turrientes has represented the Spanish national team across various youth levels and is currently part of the Under-21 setup. His progress with the Basque outfit has not gone unnoticed as Barcelona have cast their admiring glances towards the 20-year-old midfielder.
As per the report, Barcelona have been keeping tabs on Turrientes, with scout Jon Andoni Goikoetxea monitoring the Real Sociedad starlet for a while now.
Barcelona have refocused their recruitment strategy to sign young players with great potential after enjoying a lot of success with the likes of Pedri, Gavi and Nico Gonzalez at the first-team level. They recently agreed a deal to recruit another Spanish prodigy in the form of Pablo Torre, with the Racing Santander ace set to arrive at Camp Nou at the end of the season.
While they continue to be linked with marquee signings like Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, Barcelona will continue to look for young gems within Spain and outside to bolster their ranks. To that end, Benat Turrientes has now popped up on the radars of the La Liga heavyweights.
However, the report states that Barcelona are aware that signing the 20-year-old from Real Sociedad will be difficult. The Basque outfit handed the young midfielder a new long-term contract until the summer of 2025 and embedded a release clause worth €50 million, making it difficult for any suitor to lure him away from Anoeta.
So, it remains to be seen if Barcelona decide to act on their interest in Benat Turrientes. As things stand, though, the midfield prospect is very much on the club’s radars.