This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…
A story that didn’t really get any attention at all during the 2019 summer transfer window is the one of Carles Alena possibly going to Real Betis on loan.
Canal Sur Radio were the first one to break out the news as they have suggested the Seville-based team tried hard to secure the deal.
And looking at that proposal now, maybe it was one Barcelona should’ve accepted.
What’s the word, then?
The Catalan press are usually all over every single story coming from Barcelona but strangely enough, it seems that this one was kept under the rug the whole time. The same source, (via Sport) however, emphasise that Real Betis desperately tried to secure the La Masia prodigy on loan for the remainder of the 2019/20 season but that Barcelona refused to go through with it.
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At first, it seems like they’ve dodged a bullet and made the right choice but upon further investigation, Alena could’ve really used a loan to an attractive club like Real Betis, especially considering both his current status and the situation at the club.
A win-win scenario
Sending La Masia talents on loan is generally a thought many would frown upon, especially among the Barcelona fanbase. And yes, the best place for Alena to develop is certainly Barcelona. It suits his style and it has been his home for the entirety of his career. But the Blaugrana already have an abundance of midfielders in the team.
As a matter of fact, they have a total of eight players fighting for three midfield spots in the team, and since the likes of Ivan Rakitić and Arturo Vidal had stayed in the squad this summer, Alena could be starved of any real game time at all. Unfortunately, there is proof that this might be happening already.
The 21-year-old has been completely left out of the squad in the last two games and hasn’t played any football since the curtain-raiser against Athletic Bilbao. And even if we take into account that Rakitic might be heading out of the club as early as January, Barcelona are reportedly still in the market for new midfielders.
This may well be a message to the current crop of young players that there might not be a clear spot for them in the team. For that reason, it’s rather peculiar that the Catalans declined the offer from Real Betis as it could’ve given Alena some much-needed game time and a chance to develop.
It sounded like a win-win scenario. Maybe, however, Alena is in their plans after all, and that’s why decided to keep him.
But only time will tell whether there is any validity in that notion.
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