Barcelona did not make any expensive signing last summer with their only investment being Oriol Romeu from Girona. Ilkay Gundogan and Inigo Martinez arrived on free transfers whilst Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix arrived on loan.
The two Joaos had middling impacts through the course of the campaign with Cancelo having the better run out of the two. Regardless, Felix had his moments in a Barcelona shirt, especially against his parent club Atletico Madrid.
Chelsea are set to complete the signing of Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid. That effectively puts an end to Barcelona’s chances of signing him this summer. The 2019 Golden Boy winner now looks to start a new chapter in his career.
Reliable Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has delved into the details of this deal and explained why Barcelona chose not to make an offer for him this summer. Here is what he had to say as quoted by Caught Offside
“One final point on Felix after he spent last season on loan at Barcelona as I’ve had some questions about why Barca didn’t keep him. In the end, they preferred to move for Dani Olmo, also because Atletico Madrid were only selling Felix this summer and not considering another loan. Deco is big fan of Olmo and decided to proceed with him as priority target, just a technical choice by the club. Felix is very happy to go to Chelsea, I can guarantee that.”
There is no questioning Felix’s talent but one thing that has deserted him throughout his career since the move from Benfica is consistency. The Portuguese forward can be unplayable on his day but completely anonymous on another.
The 24-year-old had a chance to impress the Barcelona board and make a case for being retained permanently last season when he was here on loan but his contribution only came in moments and not consistently through the season.
Barcelona have made the right call to look at Dani Olmo over Joao Felix. The Spaniard suits Hansi Flick’s system better than the Portuguese international and let’s see how the 24-year-old’s career pans out at Stamford Bridge.
