Top 5 Players Barcelona Should Sell ft. Raphinha, de Jong, etc.

As rivals Real Madrid continue strengthening their already formidable squad, most recently with the addition of Kylian Mbappe, there is not much that Barcelona could look up to, given their financial troubles. However, they will be optimistic about a gradual revival under new manager Hansi Flick, who won 7 titles with Bayern Munich.

Let us have a look at the 5 players Barcelona should sell in this transfer window:

#5 Inigo Martinez

Inigo Martinez joined Barcelona on a free transfer signing a two-year deal after a long stint with Athletic Bilbao. But given the current financial troubles of the club, which have been widely reported everywhere, Martinez could only be registered for one year. As of recent reports, Barcelona have so far not been able to register Martinez for the next season.

Amid all of this, he has received an offer from Athletic Bilbao to rejoin the club he spent six years at, while there also is a clause in his contract which will allow him to walk away if Barcelona ultimately are unsuccessful in registering him.

Because of injury troubles to other defenders, the 33-year-old central defender did play 25 matches for the Catalans last season. But with Ronald Araujo now completely fit and having recently played at the Copa America, and academy graduates like Pau Cubarsi coming up, Barcelona could be well off selling Martinez and using that fee to register other players. 

#4 Eric Garcia

Girona wants to re-sign Eric Garcia after a successful loan deal

When Eric Garcia signed for Barcelona in 2021, the club might have considered they sealed a real steal. Firstly, Garcia had already played 35 matches in a star-studded Manchester City team of Pep Guardiola. 

Moreover, he had already made his senior debut for the Spain national team and was considered as one of the shining prospects for the future. But with time, Garcia unfortunately lost his shine. He played 68 matches in his first two seasons with Barcelona but never could make himself a mainstay in the Catalans’ backline.

Finding him surplus to requirements, the Barcelona board loaned Garcia to the City Football Group-owned Girona last season, and it resulted in somewhat of a revival of his career. The 23-year-old central defender played 33 matches scored 5 goals and is among the reasons why Girona will be playing in the upcoming UEFA Champions League season.

Garcia might not have a future in Barcelona amid the Araujos and Cubarsis. It could hence be a better option to sell him to Girona and raise funds to be used elsewhere.

#3 Vitor Roque

Like Martinez, Vitor Roque is another player whom Barcelona signed only last season, but his stay with the club might not last more than a year. After a sensational season with Athletico Paraneanse, where El Tigre scored 21 goals in 45 matches, Barcelona won a bidding war against many teams to sign Roque for €31m, with €30m more in various performance-related bonuses, despite not being in a great position financially.

But Roque had a season to forget last time out, where he played 16 matches and scored just 2 goals, without getting any assists to better his overall stats. Importantly, Roque played over an hour in only one of those 16 matches, infuriating his camp. A battle with a disgruntled player and his agent is something Barcelona would want to avoid now.

#2 Frenkie de Jong

Barcelona reportedly rushed the return of Frenkie de Jong, aggravating his injury

Frenkie de Jong’s case is somewhat similar to Roque, although it is more of an issue of subtle disgruntlement than an outrageous one. Firstly, de Jong too was a mega-money signing, costing the team €75 million in 2019.

Since then, he has played 213 matches every season but has never really settled in the Catalans’ club, which leads to rumours about his move elsewhere in every window.

But things took a worse turn last season when de Jong was reportedly rushed from an ankle injury recovery to play in the important Champions League quarter-final matches against Paris Saint-Germain. Not only did Barcelona lose that tie, but it also aggravated de Jong’s problems.

So, he remains another player on the list of names Barcelona could sell before they enter a new era.

#1 Raphinha

Barcelona’s primary target, which could be their only target given their low budget, is Spanish youngster Nico Williams who was a sensation in the Euro 2024. But according to current reports, Barcelona do not have enough funds as it stands to sign the 22-year-old and might need to offload some players.

One of those could be Raphinha, who was signed from Premier League club Leeds United for a £50 million fee. He has since scored 20 goals in 87 matches, including 10 goals in 37 matches last season.

But under Flick’s guidance, the team seems to be lured by the promise of Williams. Premier League clubs like Arsenal and Newcastle United are monitoring the situation and it is believed that Barcelona will be open to sell him if they recover the signing amount of £50 million.