Renowned for grooming top talents, Barcelona’s football Academy ‘La Masia’ has hit a roadblock with the current reality of the game. Despite having a successful track record of player development, reserve players find it difficult to make it to the first team, forcing them to look for opportunities elsewhere.
With the financial crisis rising, this summer was no exception. Even with challenges, Barcelona was only able to accumulate a considerable amount of funds through the sale of Barça Athletic players. So far, the club has managed to collect around €18 million, and could potentially reach €30 million from these deals.
Barcelona’s transfer business
Notably, Chelsea invested €6 million in Marc Guiu, while Sampdoria paid €3 million to acquire Estanis Pedrola. These deals have helped Barcelona gain a few margins in profit. Moreover, Chadi Riad’s moves to Real Betis and Crystal Palace, saw Betis paying €3 million for half of Riad’s transfer last summer.
Recently, Crystal Palace bought the Moroccan defender for €15 million, with the Catalan side getting a €6 million sum reaching up to € 9 million in total with the deal. They received €18 million and could grow with Rennes, who are paying an extra €12 million plus €4 million in bonuses for Mika Faye.
Although the transfers are yet to be finalised, Barcelona and Rennes have reached an agreement and the deal will be done soon. With only a week left in the transfer window, Barça Athletic’s sales have been crucial generating more income from the reserve players than the first team.
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