One of the most promising talents that FC Barcelona academy has turned out in recent seasons is the forward Alex Collado. Having spent the current season on loan at Elche, the club will now have to make a decision about his future this summer.
Alex Collado came through the ranks at FC Barcelona and attracted the attention of the First team coaches with his performances in the Barcelona B team. After a few appearances with the first team, the club concluded that the player would benefit the most if he could get more playing time, and with this objective in mind, he was sent on loan to Elche.
However, this loan stint and his development at large has not been in line with the growth trajectory he showed in the beginning of his senior career. For Elche, the player made only 14 appearances, getting 658 minutes on the pitch, and scoring one goal, while also assisting another. With this meager output, the player has not been able to establish himself as a regular starter in the team.
This failure to retain his developmental trajectory can be attributed to some extent to the injuries that he has faced. While on loan, the player was sidelined with an injury for three months, which kept him from having a real opportunity to showcase his talent.
The player has recovered from this injury now and has been making appearances, albeit mostly as a substitute, in recent matches. As his loan term expires at the end of this season, he will be returning to his parent club, FC Barcelona.
According to SPORT, the player will spend this preseason with the Blaugrana first team. However, his future beyond the preseason is less clear, as the club would be actively looking to offload the player, either on loan or on a transfer, to help the player continue his development, while also shedding some of its highly burdensome wage bill.
