Barcelona have for many years had their left flank within the defensive structure covered by the immense talents of Jordi Alba. The Spanish fullback’s connection with Lionel Messi in particular was always an absolute joy to watch and an effective partnership in front of goal. But time has passed the Catalan club, so has Lionel Messi, and now gradually, so will Jordi Alba.
However, in the midst of this gradual devaluation of the club’s coveted veteran fullback, the emergence of a particular youngster from La Masia has attracted the attention of scouts all over Europe. Young Alejandro Balde, the 19-year-old left back from Barcelona’s own youth academy, has showcased his talents and raw physical attributes to the rest of the world in fine fashion.
Now, as vultures come to snatch away his services from the Catalan club, La Blaugrana have made it an absolute priority to ensure his continuation. With a recent update on Transfermarkt elevating his estimated transfer value to be at €30 million already at this tender age, Barcelona believe it best to tie down the fullback to the club for the foreseeable future.
Their current expectations are to have him sign an extension until at least 2027 and similar to contracts that the club has given to their other coveted gems, including a €1 billion release clause within his contract as well.
The Barcelona board and sporting staff have also assured his agent, Jorge Mendes, of their own intentions of having Balde be the undisputed starter next season as well. The objective remains to complete an agreement of his renewal promptly and have it announced publicly at the end of the season as per the reports from SPORT.
Balde’s entourage believes in ensuring the player’s new salary is in compliance with others in his age and “category”. The salary given to the likes of Gavi and Ronald Araujo is set as the comparative demand in this case, with Barcelona wanting a further focus on improvement in the terms over the years.
The club wants to guarantee a contractual agreement that allows them to register the player’s new terms without any emerging issues as they have faced previously due to the ongoing complications caused by financial fair play.
While the player has publicly left his future open-ended, it could more or less be a tactic instructed by his agency to tempt Barcelona into speeding up negotiations, as the player himself wants to stay at Barca under any circumstances. Ensuring Balde’s continuation would be a huge step for the Catalan giants in the right direction, one that they should try to wrap up as soon as possible.
