A dynamo effect in the transfer window is not a new thing in football and FC Barcelona could find themselves in such a situation come January. The exit of one player from the current squad could see the Catalan club return for a summer target.
So far this season, Hansi Flick’s team has been blessed with a center-back pairing of Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez. The duo has marshaled the backline expertly so far and is crucial to the success of the high-line strategy that the club deploys.
Earlier today, we covered a story revealing that Barcelona has set the asking price for Eric Garcia, should the 23-year-old want to leave in January. An offer of around €10m would be sufficient for the player to leave, with many European clubs interested.
Now, as per SPORT, quoting Gerard Romero, Hansi Flick has personally asked Pini Zahavi, the agent of Jonathan Tah, if an operation would be possible in January. However, the report claims that this would be only if Eric Garcia leaves to be a starter elsewhere with Girona mentioned as a possible destination.
It is worth noting here Barcelona made an attempt to sign Jonathan Tah back in the summer, and submitted a €20m bid to sign the German center-back. Despite the defender’s intentions to leave, Bayer Leverkusen did not sanction a move.
Eric Garcia spent last season on loan at Girona where he emerged as a starter for Michel. He was one of the best players in La Liga. This season, under Hansi Flick, he has not been a regular starter and things don’t look set to improve for him going forward.
Tah on the other hand offers something very different to Eric. He is physically imposing, dominant in the air, and a threat from set-pieces, everything that the 23-year-old Spaniard is not. That said, the German is not as adept at breaking lines as Eric can.
Due to the presence of Pau Cubarsi and Andreas Christensen, Barcelona does not necessarily need another ball-playing defender. Thus, it makes sense to make the upgrade from Eric to Tah, and let’s wait and see how it plays out going forward.