FC Barcelona have an overbooking of central defenders in the squad that Hansi Flick needs to address. Jules Kounde, Andreas Christensen, Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, and Eric Garcia are all center-backs by trade although the former two play mostly at right-back and defensive midfield, respectively.
This list does not include Barca Athletic prospects like Mikayil Faye and pre-season starlet Sergi Dominguez. The former is already 20 and has shown last season that he is ready to play at the senior level.
Sacrifices have to be made this summer. With Araujo out injured until January, Flick might be keen on retaining the senior roster as is, considering he might need Kounde as a right-back for the majority of the season.
However, one defender who could leave the club this summer is Mikayil Faye. As per SPORT, Ligue 1 club Rennes has submitted an improved €10m bid to sign the Senegalese international which would also include a sell-on clause of around 20-25%.
This information has been revealed by reliable Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano. He goes on to add that Barcelona are insistent on a buy-back clause for the player to hold control over his future depending on how he develops.
The SPORT report mentions that this isn’t the first bid Rennes have made. Their previous bid of around €7m was not entertained by the Spanish club. This revised bid however is much closer to the player’s market value of €10m, as per Transfermarkt.
At any other time, Faye might have already been given an opportunity in the Barcelona first-team. However, the sheer presence of so many options ahead of him means that he is unlikely to get a chance this season.
That said, the Senegalese defender has a huge future in the game which is why Barcelona want a buy-back clause included. If he can go to Rennes or any other club and develop his game, a return to the Catalan club might be a realistic possibility in the future.
