As this summer transfer window reaches its conclusion, the FC Barcelona squad is expected to be significantly different from the one that traveled to the USA for the pre-season tour. A number of departures have already taken place from this squad since the pre-season ended, and two new players are also expected to be included in the remaining transfer time.
FC Barcelona lost one of their most lethal forwards, Ousmane Dembele, in this window, and have also loaned out Ansu Fati to Brighton and Hove Albion on the deadline day. However, these departures are still not enough for all players to be given enough game time, especially the forwards.
Abde getting closer to Real Betis
While some of the forwards have been willing to fight for a spot, others are not that patient. One player that falls into this latter category is Abde, who has not been satisfied with the minutes he has gotten in competitive games up to now, and is pushing to leave the club.
Real Betis look like his most likely destination. Betis are highly committed to getting Abde this summer, and their President is also willing to give personal guarantees to La Liga to allow his club to sign Abde.
Xavi’s preferences made Abde look for a departure
However, leaving Barcelona was not always the plan for Abde this summer. The player returned to Barcelona from his Osasuna loan with the clear aim to impress Xavi and get a clear role in the squad for this season. He performed well in the pre-season and was actually able to convince Xavi, who also wanted Abde to stay.
However, the journalist, Achraf ben Ayad, now reports that Xavi has a clear preference for his forward line, in which Yamal was the first priority, followed by Raphinha, who in turn is followed by Torres. In such a scenario, Abde was too low in the pecking order for him to get enough minutes this season.
Ben Ayad thus reports that this is the actual reason why Abde wants to leave the club. His move to Real Betis is quite advanced, but with the highly limited time left in the transfer window, it remains to be seen whether Abde will be able to leave Barcelona this summer.
