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Barcelona manager, Xavi, was never shy about asking for Lionel Messi's return to the club. He believed Messi would have been the perfect catalyst for a team that lacked spark in the final third, even though they won LaLiga at a canter.
Despite obvious on and off-field issues, Xavi was probably right about bringing the World Cup winner back to Camp Nou. Barcelona's LaLiga title win was down to a stubborn defense that only conceded 20 goals and kept 26 clean sheets throughout the season.
However, Messi's decision to join Inter Miami, coupled with Sergio Busquets' departure, has made matters worse for Barcelona. Last year, the club sold assets such as future earnings from television rights to land players like Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, and Jules Kounde. But this season, LaLiga has changed its financial fair play rules, which won't allow them to revisit the same approach.
So, without any further ado, let's analyze Barcelona's transfer strategy for the 2023-24 season:
Barcelona's financial standing
To comply with LaLiga's financial fair play rules, the Catalans had to declutter their squad and find new revenue streams to raise money. Since they sold valuable club assets last summer, the Catalans had a spending limit of around €656m for the 2022-23 season, as reported by The Guardian.
However, as per a LaLiga update in January 2023, the club can only have a €400 million limit based on their income. If a club exceeds its cap, as Barcelona has, it may still invest in signings but can only spend 40% of any funds it raises or saves. The departures of Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba have freed up some space, and the closure of Barca TV has saved some money too.
However, the club still needs to raise close to €200m via salary reductions, outgoing transfer fees, and new sponsorship deals to register new contracts of existing players and new signings.
Possible departures
In order to raise money, Barcelona desperately needs big names like Clement Lenglet, Samuel Umtiti, and Sergino Dest off their books. The club should also look to raise some revenue from the sale of these players. Besides, the club will also be looking to offload first-team players who have not been able to play regularly. Players like Franck Kessie, Ferran Torres, and Ansu Fati are among those Barcelona should be looking to offload if they get a fair price.
The rest of the squad is almost untouchable. The likes of Ter Stegen, Ronald Araujo, Pedri, and Gavi are likely to stay. However, things can change if the club receives a big offer for any of those players and if the conditions favor the transfer.
Possible arrivals & final outlook
The first order of business for Xavi is to replace Sergio Busquets. Real Sociedad's Zubimendi would have been an ideal replacement for the Catalans, but he has a release clause of €60m, and he is not pushing for a move either.
The Blaugrana can opt for various cheap alternatives such as Fiorentina's Sofyan Amrabat, Fulham's Joao Palhinha, and Benfica's Florentino Luiz. However, these players are not the first-choice alternatives for Xavi and company.
The club also needs a creative spark in the middle of the park, and they are looking to add Manchester City's Bernardo Silva to the mix. But City is keen to keep hold of their prized asset, and even if a deal is on the table, there is no guarantee that the club will be able to afford him.
Elsewhere, the club looks settled in positions such as goalkeeper, central defense, and anywhere across the forward line. However, they can prioritize signing a right-back to shift Jules Kounde to central defense and bring more depth to their midfield. And that is entirely dependent on how much money the club can raise.
So far, the club has only managed to bring in one high-profile name: Ilkay Gundogan. Besides that, there has been no substantial progress regarding other summer targets.
Given their finances, the situation looks bleak at the moment for the Catalans. Besides, progress to sign big-name players has also stalled.
Right now, the club doesn’t look close enough to land a major target this season. And it would be a big surprise if the club manages to find replacements for the departing players, let alone bolster their squad.
