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Known for producing world-class players, the fabled La Masia youth academy seems to have significantly lost steam in the productivity department. With a host of talented players graduating from the academy and being sent away to lower division leagues of minor countries, the Barcelona board has been under-fire for misusing the world-class academy.
The Barcelona board has been reported to impose more physical training upon Masia students instead of the traditional Barca style.
"Technique is not being able to juggle a ball 1000 times. Anyone can do that by practicing. Then you can work in the circus." - Johan Cruyff
Instead of shipping off major academy prospects to different leagues, FC Barcelona must look to integrate these homegrown players into the first team or the reserves in the future.
However, what is done is done and now they can only rectify it by calling back some of their better talents to the club - and here are 5 of them.
Also read: 5 Barcelona youth academy players who should play for the first team
#1 Munir El Haddadi
The Spanish forward started his career at the youth academy of Atletico Madrid, but moved to Barcelona's youth system at a tender age. After winning the UEFA Youth League with the Blaugrana, Munir was picked for the first team by Luis Enrique.
Making 26 appearances for the Catalan giants and scoring four goals, El Haddadi became a natural off-the-bench replacement for Luis Suarez. A key element in Luis Enrique's rotation policy, Haddadi was loaned off to Valencia after Paco Alcacer took his place.
While the former had a lackluster season for Barcelona, Munir grew during his year at Valencia, but the board decided to keep the talented youngster away from the Camp Nou for another year and he was subsequently loaned to Alaves.
With Suarez's form being a source of worry and signs of his age catching up with him complemented by disastrous performances by Alcacer, Munir could be a cost-effective attacking replacement for the Blaugrana, who are on the hunt to improve their already deadly bench strength.
#2 Juan Camara
A natural left winger, the Spanish sensation graduated through the ranks of the Villarreal youth squad and broke into the Barcelona B team in 2014.
The Spaniard made 61 appearances for the Blaugrana and scored 12 goals. Making his debut for the first team in a Champions League clash against Bayer, Camara proved to be a prospect for the future.
Juan Camara made one significant contribution to the Catalan club, coming off the bench to assist the winning goal in 2016 Copa del Rey semi-final second leg game, which extended Barcelona's record-shattering unbeaten run to 29 games, breaking the previous record set by their famed manager, Pep Guardiola.
The winger was loaned to fellow Catalan club Girona for a year followed by another loan spell for Reus Deportiu, where he currently plays. Following Neymar's departure and rumors of Denis Suarez and Gerard Deulofeu being linked to moves away from the Camp Nou, Camara could be a cost-effective rotational player for the Catalans as big-names like Denis Suarez don't prefer to occupy the rotational spot.
#3 Marlon Santos
A loanee from Fluminense, Brazilian centre-back Marlon Santos proved to be an effective defensive replacement for Barcelona. Making his professional debut for the Catalans in a UEFA Champions League clash, the Brazilian is known for his composed defending and control over the ball.
Amidst Barcelona's efforts to sign OGC Nice midfielder, Seri, in the summer, they ended up loaning Marlon Santos to the French club.
Ernesto Valverde's promises - about the development of Barcelona's youth under the wings of the first team - haven't materialized yet and Marlon's untimely departure added to the worries of Barcelona fans in an already tragic transfer window in the summer of 2017.
With Valverde's lack of reliance on Vermaelen and age-related problems of the latter, Marlon has been predicted to lead the Barcelona defense in near future. Valverde also made sure that he knew all about Marlon as the former was instrumental in Barcelona's pre-season.
#4 Douglas
Ridiculed by fans and sidelined for the majority of his career at Barcelona, Douglas, the Brazilian right-back is currently on loan at Benfica.
While Sergi Roberto has made his intentions clear of midfield being his position of priority and Valverde's lack of reliance on Aleix Vidal, Douglas can provide the necessary bench strength for Barcelona.
While Valverde likes to play it safe with his rotational policy, Douglas reintroduction in the squad could prove useful in tightly congested fixtures and will also complement Semedo's insane work-rate.
The Brazilian showed vital signs of improvement during his loan spell with Sporting Gijon. It would be up to Ernesto Valverde to recall the Brazilian or rely upon Sergi Roberto and play him out of his natural position.
#5 Sergi Samper
The natural replacement to Sergio Busquets at the defensive midfielder position, Samper's career for Barcelona has been plagued by poor decisions from the administrative board.
Samper had an impressive preseason in the USA with the first team. After rising through the ranks of the Barcelona youth system, the club's decision to keep Samper away from his home for two consecutive seasons was not well received by the fans, who were keenly monitoring Samper's progress to replace Busquets in the future.
"I hoped to stay at Barça, I was Busquets' natural backup." - Sergi Samper
The holding midfielder also made his opinions vocal by stating how he was disheartened by the board's decision regarding his future when his dream was always to make his mark on the first team.
