The current FC Barcelona midfield is oozing with technical quality, with the trio of Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, and Ilkay Gundogan, all excellent players in this regard.
However, with these three players in the center of the pitch, the team sometimes feels the effects of the lack of a more physical player, especially since the departure of Franck Kessie last summer.
Having such a physical midfielder can add another dimension to the team’s midfield and overall style of play, and one can argue this was one of the changes in Deco’s mind when he talked about a new direction for the team in his recent interview which has gone viral because of the radicalness of Deco’s comments.
This was also clear from one part of the interview, where the Barcelona Sporting Director clearly admitted that: “The team didn’t display, in many matches, a physical and athletic capacity to overcome the opponents.”
Furthermore, another hint that Deco gave in regards to the club’s direction in the market was on a lesser emphasis on academy players, and greater emphasis on the market, as he commented: “You can’t just take a group of kids, dress them in the Barcelona jersey, and expect them to win titles overnight.”
With these hints, one can infer that Barcelona will be looking to go into the market for a physical midfielder, and according to SPORT, the top official already has such a target in his sights, i.e., the Everton midfielder, Amadou Onana.
The 22-year-old Senegal-born midfielder of Belgian nationality has a towering presence on the pitch with his 1.95 meters of height and his highly physical style of play. He excels in positional play, but can also move up the pitch to get into dangerous attacking areas.
His current side, Everton, is facing a potential relegation as they had some points deducted for breach of league rules, and can face an even harsher penalty in the coming days. This can help Barcelona in their pursuit of the player, but the Blaugranes are not planning to pay more than €40 million for him.
