Even as the official season has kicked off for FC Barcelona, the Catalan giants remain restless when it comes to preparing for the future even beyond it. More than two weeks have already gone by since the closure of the summer transfer window, yet news surrounding Barca never seems to stop.
The Catalan giants faced off their most recent clash against Real Betis at the Montjuic Stadium with definite confidence in their performance. Capitalizing on every chance they could get their hands on, Barcelona managed to thrash Betis 5-0 at home.
However, the Sports management of Barcelona still believes that further depth would never be an unwelcome thing at a team as competitive as Barcelona. Given that Oriol Romeu is seen as the only natural defensive pivot in the team, the Catalans have set their eyes on a player who currently stars for Betis themselves.
According to Spanish outlet SPORT, FC Barcelona are still quite attentive to the situation of 29-year-old Argentinean midfielder Guido Rodriguez. With his contract set to expire in June of next year, Barcelona consider him a great outlet to pursue.
Already a World Cup winner with Argentina in Qatar last year, he only has a year left on his contract with Real Betis and negotiations for a renewal are still uncertain. Betis would even be reportedly willing to sell him in January if a renewal is not agreed.
Possibility in January
Barcelona, on the other hand, would be quite open to the prospect of signing Rodriguez in January if they can generate adequate Financial Fairplay, given that, the Argentine’s arrival would be quite low in terms of a transfer fee keeping in mind that he would go out for free in a couple of months if that lowered fee is not taken by Betis.
Consensus within Barcelona
Among the various targets that Barcelona has to provide depth to the pivot position, Guido Rodriguez’s name is considered to be one of the primary options and one that Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez takes a great liking to.
The player even featured as a substitute in the 66th minute against FC Barcelona in his own side’s recent loss to La Blaugrana at the Montjuic Stadium. The result now sees Betis tumble down to 9th while La Blaugrana shoots upwards and reaches the top spot in La Liga for the time being.
