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#3: Eduardo Camavinga (Stade Rennais FC)
Sergio Busquets is, in all honesty, once-in-a-century kind of player, and finding a player who can be his out-and-out replacement can be a difficult proposition. If anything, though, Rennes sensation Eduardo Camavinga may prove to be an upgrade on the Spaniard.
The 17-year-old Angola-born midfielder possesses all the abilities to become one of the best pivots in world football. He displayed his composure in the Ligue 1 this season in midfield where he completed 88% of his passes while averaging 4.2 tackles a game.
As seen in the above heat-map, the player effectively patrols in front of his defenders while also making some runs into the opposition half from the left flank. Camavinga has the attributes in becoming a success at Barcelona and become the long term successor of Busquets.
#2: Marcelo Brozovic (Inter Milan)
Inter Milan have been in fine form in the Serie A this season. They have already secured Champions League qualification and will be aiming for a second-place finish on the last day of the Italian domestic season.
One of their best players during this campaign has been Croatian midfielder Marcelo Brozovic, who like Busquets, does not get enough credit for his performances.
In the current scenario, the 27-year-old represents one of the best options for Barcelona to take the place of Busquets in the short term.
Brozovic has consistently posted a pass success of close to 90% during the last few seasons. He also boasts a tremendous work rate that has made him the lynchpin in Antonio Conte's current system at Inter.
At Inter, Brozovic plays alongside creative midfielders like Nicolo Barella and Christian Eriksen and thus will fit in perfectly in the current Barcelona squad.
The only aspect that might be disconcerting is his tendency to drift into the final third, which leaves his defenders with a lot of work to do.
#1: Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City)
If Barcelona manage to sign Wilfred Ndidi from Leicester City, it could prove to be the signing of the decade for the Spanish outfit as the Nigerian international ticks all the boxes to succeed at the Nou Camp.
The highly-rated 23-year-old has already gained a lot of experience of playing at the top level with the Foxes and has been an integral part of their squad in the last three seasons. He passing accuracy has improved with every campaign as he finished the 2019-20 season with 85% completed passes.
One of Ndidi's biggest assets is his ability to recycle possession. He can win the ball back in his half and pass it forward to his attackers in no time. His prowess in aerial duels would also provide a much needed boost to Barcelona.
Ndidi's importance for his side can be assessed from this stat: starting from mid-January to February, he missed five of six league games due to an injury and Brendan Rodgers’ men couldn't win any of those fixtures Ndidi didn't feature in.
At 23, the Nigerian still has plenty of room to improve. To become the midfield general at Barcelona, the only aspect he probably needs to improve further is his passing accuracy.
