Overview of Barcelona's transfers after Pep Guardiola's departure in 2012

Pep Guardiola amassed 14 cups in a span of four years with Barcelona and the list of titles he won includes three league titles and two UEFA Champions League trophies. His side played an eye-catching and free flowing brand of football that was very characteristic of them.The playing style termed as ‘Tiki Taka’, and with Lionel Messi spearheading their ranks, Barca looked invincible at times.So, when Pep Guardiola refused to renew his contract at the end of the 2012 season and decided to part ways with his boyhood club, many thought that his departure would signal the end of Barcelona’s brilliant run. However, as the world has witnessed since, that just wasn’t the case.Here we take a look at some of the transfer deals that the Cules have brokered since Guardiola’s departure, the impact some of the new faces have had and some that didn't quite leave their mark.Here is a quick glance at Barcelona’s League position and the transfer fee of their most expensive signing each season.SeasonLeague PositionPlayer with Highest Transfer FeeTransfer fee2012/131Alex Song€19 million2013/142Neymar€57 million2014/151Luis Suarez€81 million2015/162*Arda Turan€34 million*Updated as of the 2015-16 season

#1 2012-13

Jordi Alba has been an integral part of Barcelona's success after signing from Valencia

Season Overview

The season marked the managerial debut of Tito Villanova, long-time assistant of Pep Guardiola. Vilanova assumed management of the club after Guardiola refused to renew his contract at the Camp Nou.

Barca brought Alex Song and Jordi Alba into the team whereas Ibrahim Afellay & Seydou Keita were among the notable names to depart.

All things considered, the season was a successful one for Barcelona as the players adapted to the philosophy of their new coach and clinched the league title with a fifteen point cushion over second placed Real Madrid while amassing a record 100 points from a possible 114.

TheBlaugranawere knocked out in the semi-finals of their cup competitions namely the Copa Del Rey and the UEFA Champions League.

2012 FIFA Ballon d'Or winnerLionel Messi finished as the clubs top goal scorer registering 60 strikes in all competitions.

New signing Jordi Alba became a mainstay at the left side of defence whereas his colleague Alex Song failed to impress the Camp Nou and was hence shipped off to West Ham in the following season.

Notable Arrivals

Position	Player	Age	Moving From	Transfer Fee
Defensive Midfield	Alex Song	24	Arsenal FC (Premier League)	19 million
Left Back	Jordi Alba	23	Valencia CF (La Liga)	14 million

#2 2013-14

Neymar has combined really well with Lionel Messi after his 2013 move from Santos

Season Overview

Brazilian starlet Neymar was signed after fierce completion from the likes of Real Madrid and Chelsea as Barcelona looked to build on a promising 2012-13campaign under manager Tito Villanova.

Thiago Alcantara departed for Bayern Munich and David Villa left the Camp Nou to ply his trade with Atletico Madridat the Vicente Calderon.

However, owing to his poor health, Villanova had to vacate his positionon Jul 19th2013 to be replaced by former Paraguay national team manager Gerardo Martino.

Barcelona were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the quarterfinals by Atletico Madrid and lost the Copa Del Rey final to Real Madrid as they succumbed to Gareth Bales heroics.

The La Liga was a very tightly contested affair with the trio of Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona in the contention for the title till the very end. In the title decider match against Atletico Madrid, Barcelona needed a win to clinch the league but a Diego Godin header in the 49th minute ensured a draw for Los Rojiblancos and that meant Barca had lost out on all the three major competitions for the season.

In spite of challenging for major honours, having failed to secure any silverware other than the Spanish Super Cup was a rather poor showing by Barcelonas superlative standards.

Record signing Neymar scored 15 goals throughout the season.

On 2ndApril, Barcelona was sanctioned by FIFA for international transfers of minors over various periods between 2009 and 2013. The sanction consisted in a transfer ban at both national and international level for two complete and consecutive transfer periods, together with a fine of 450,000 Swiss francs.

Notable Arrivals

Position	Player	Age	Moving From	Transfer Fee
Left Wing	Neymar	21	Santos FC (Brasileiro Srie A)	86.2 million

#3 2014-15

Barcelona invested heavily in the 2014 summer window and were rewarded with a treble winning season

Season Overview

Barcelonas transfer ban was temporarily lifted until the appeal process, giving the club the chance to purchase players in the summer transfer window of 2014.

They wasted no time in signing controversial Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez while also shoringup their defence with the additions of Thomas Vermaelen and Jrmy Mathieu. Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic was also added to the squad to provide cover for the aging Xavi while keepersClaudio Bravio andMarc-Andr ter Stegen were signed to beef up competition for the goalkeeping spot after the departure of Victor Valdes.

Cesc Fabregas (Chelsea) and Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal) were among the notable names to depart.

Owing to Barcelonas poor performances in the previous campaign, the club parted ways with Tata Martino and appointed Luis Enrique in his stead.

Under Enriques tutelage, Barcelona made a very shaky start to the season but soon found their feet and began streamrolling past Spanish and European opposition alike.

The league was tightly contested affair throughout the season and Real Madrids dramatic collapse after the winter break ensured Barcelona sat atop La Liga at the end of the season with 94 points, a two point cushion over Los Blancos.

Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 31 in the finals to clinch the Copa Del Rey and completed their second-evertreble with a comfortable3-1 victory over Italian giants Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final. With the exception of Thomas Vermaelen, all other new signings had a considerable part in Barcas historic triumph.

Barcelona's success was majorly down to their formidable forward trio composed of Lionel Messi, Neymar and summer signing Luis Surez, who scored an unprecedented total of 122 goals in all competitions to become the trio with most goals in Spanish football history.

Notable Arrivals

Position	Player	Age	Moving From	Transfer Fee
Centre Forward	Luis Surez	27	Liverpool (English Premier League)	81 million
Centre Back	Jrmy Mathieu	30	Valencia CF (La Liga)	20 million
Centre Back	Thomas Vermaelen	28	Arsenal FC (English Premier League)	19 million
Central Midfield	Ivan Rakitic	26	Sevilla FC (La Liga)	18 million
Keeper	Marc-Andr ter Stegen	22	Bor. M'gladbach (Bundesliga)	12 million
Keeper	Claudio Bravo	31	Real Sociedad (La Liga)	12 million
Right-Back	Douglas	24	So Paulo (Brasileiro Srie A)	4 million

#4 2015-16

Arda Turan is eligible to play only after Barcelonas transfer ban is lifted in January 2016

Season Overview

Barcelona signed Arda Turan in a bid to replace the departing Pedro (Chelsea) and Barcelona talisman Xavi signed for Qatar-based Al Sadd to see out the twilight years of his career. Barcelona have made a somewhat shaky start to the season as compared to the previous season, and their main trouble seems to be the defence.

The Catalan club willneed to stop leaking in goals if they are to challenge for top honours throughout the season. With Barcelona facing serious contention for their La Liga title from the likes of Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and surprise package Celta Vigo,this years La Liga promises to be as mouth-watering a contest as ever.

Notable Arrivals

Position	Players	Age	Moving From	Transfer Fee
Attacking Midfield	Arda Turan	28	Atltico Madrid (La Liga)	34 million
Right-Back	Aleix Vidal	25	Sevilla FC (La Liga)	17 million