Oh, how the mighty have fallen or, in this case, how the mighty are falling. After Barcelona won the league in 2010, Sergio Busquets was lauded for his subtle work in midfield and was touted to replace Marcos Senna in Spain’s squad for the 2010 World Cup.
The rest, as they say, is history. Whatever he touched, turned to gold – but the duck can only lay golden eggs for so long. Right now, the Barcelona man doesn’t look like the player that he once was. Or maybe, it’s just that he doesn’t have a peak Xavi and Iniesta to make the best use of his strength.
Whatever be the case, everyone needs a successor eventually. With the midfielder reaching 30 in two years’ time, he is entering the last phase of his career, so Barcelona will need to look for a replacement sooner or later.
And here are five options they should consider.
#1 Adrien Rabiot, PSG (Age: 22)
While Barcelona were heavily linked with Adrien Rabiot’s team-mate, Marco Verratti, they could actually turn their attention to the alternative that would come at a price lesser than that of the Italian. Rabiot is a midfielder in the Busquets mould: defensively strong while being a fluid passer.
The Frenchman is actually more mobile than the Spaniard and would seamlessly fit into Barca’s philosophy. The 22-year-old doesn’t get as many minutes as he would have liked, so he is one of those players that is constantly linked with a move away from the club.
A look at the stats reveals a story. Rabiot made 2.3 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 64 passes with 89.1% accuracy and 0.5 key passes (all per game) in the league last season. He beats the World Cup winner in all attributes, except for tackles and passes – Busquets made 2.5 tackles and 66.5 passes-per-game last term – while having the same passing accuracy as the Spaniard.
With age on his side, he would go on to dictate Barca’s midfield for a decade – should he be signed, that is.
#4 Amadou Diawara, Napoli (Age: 19)
Amadou who? You might not have heard much about him, if at all, but he is a rising young talent that plays in the Serie A for Napoli and has caught the eye of some of Europe’s top clubs.
Three years, ago the then 16-year-old was playing for his church team in Conakry, Guinea, where he was spotted by a Bologna scout who brought him to the club. Within two years, he became one of the mainstays of the first team and then moved to Napoli in the summer of 2016.
He might not have played as many games in Naples like he did at the Renato Dall’Ara, but he has matured under the tutelage of Maurizio Sarri. A midfielder who plays in front of the defence, he has shades of Yaya Toure in him but is a more defensive player than the Ivorian.
Like Busquets, he is someone that likes to break the play of the opposition by cleverly placing himself. He is also a cunning passer – he makes 50.2 passes-per-league-game with an accuracy of 89.2% – who can also dictate the tempo of his team’s play.
#3 Thiago Maia, Santos (Age: 20)
How Barcelona are signing his team-mate, Lucas Lima, ahead of him is a shocking thing in itself. The lack of a controlling midfielder is becoming increasingly apparent within the ranks of Barcelona – and it seems like they are hell bent on signing the wrong Brazilian.
Thiago Maia plays for Santos in the Brazilian league and at 20 years of age is already among the first-team players. And he is good. Very good, in fact. When it comes to disrupting the opponent’s attacks in the game he is perhaps the best in Brazil.
Stats might not show everything, but they do give a picture of what’s out there. Maia has, thus far, played in 11 league games this season. In every game, he makes 1.7 tackles and 2.5 interceptions – showcasing his astute defensive positioning skills.
He is also no jack when deprived of space as he makes 1.2 successful dribbles in every game, showing that he can find his way out of trouble when the need arises. With a passing accuracy of 86.5% while making 57.2 passes-per-game, he shows that he will fit in well in Barcelona’s pass-and-move system.
But, no, Barcelona want a Tottenham reject instead.
#2 Joshua Kimmich, Bayern Munich (Age: 22)
Let’s shift our focus to Germany right now. These folks know how to produce talents on a regular basis – and Joshua Kimmich is one among the many stars in the making. He is one of the players that is being linked to Barcelona to solve their right-back crisis, but it would be laughable to think that he would be restricted to doing just that.
In Bayern’s well-decked midfield, chances have been hard to come by – yet, with 15 starts in the Bundesliga last season, he did an admirable job whenever he got the chance. Kimmich can play in a variety of positions – a trait Barca love – and does very well in each of them.
However, for Barca, he could be used a long-term replacement for the man in question as he has the traits to do so. The German made 2 key passes, 61.3 average passes with an accuracy of 86.9% and 2.3 tackles (all per game) in the league last season – somewhat of a proof that he has what it takes to succeed Busquets.
Kimmich would like to play more games – and that is something he is certain to get at Barcelona. For the Catalans, it will be like killing two birds with one stone.
#1 Julian Weigl – 21-years-old
A look at the Dortmund team will make one realise that it is one of the most talented teams in the world. Filled with young stars, this team would have a lot of world class players by the next couple of years should they be groomed properly.
One of them is Julian Weigl. Some claim that he is already world class, however, he is still some way off of being branded with that tag. Nonetheless, when it comes to midfielders in his age group, he is perhaps the best.
The mix between defensive serenity and clever passes makes it feel like he is the natural successor to Busquets’ throne in Barcelona, who also has the same all-round qualities. However, what makes Weigl such an adequate replacement is that the young German doesn’t plunge into tackles and, instead, prefers to position himself carefully.
With 2.3 interceptions, 2.2 tackles and an 89.5% successful passing rate while making an average of 67.6 passes, he is already performing at the level required to succeed at the Camp Nou.
Barcelona’s midfield will have a steely base for the next 10 years should he be signed.
