Barcelona selling a senior defender in the summer dependent on how teenage prodigy evolves

The summer transfer window promises to be a crucial one at Barcelona with several changes expected in the squad while the whole coaching staff will be replaced as Xavi has decided to leave.

Given the Financial Fair Play situation, Barcelona will need to make sales in the summer in order to achieve the 1:1 rule, with the club targeting a revenue of €200 million from player exits.

Pau Cubarsi’s development could impact transfer plans

Due to the overbooking of central defenders in the squad, there is a strong chance that at least one of the centre-halves could be axed in the summer.

However, nothing is set in stone at this point though, with MARCA reporting that any sale of a central defender could depend on the development and evolution of teenage prodigy Pau Cubarsi.

At the moment, Barcelona have Ronald Araujo, Jules Kounde, Andreas Christensen, and Inigo Martinez as the senior centre-backs with Cubarsi breaking into the first-team setup in recent weeks as the fifth central defender.

The teenage prodigy has impressed in the handful of matches he has played, with the club seeing him as the long-term partner for Araujo, with the belief that they can emulate the legendary pairing of Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique.

As such, Barcelona will keep a close eye on how Cubarsi performs and develops between now and the end of the season. And if the La Masia graduate continues to evolve at the current rate, the club might decide to offload a senior defender.

Who could be sold?

One of Kounde or Christensen could be sold. (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

As things stand, Ronald Araujo is seen as an untouchable in the squad while Inigo Martinez’s sale would not generate much in terms of revenue.

It leaves Andreas Christensen and Jules Kounde as the likeliest options to be sacrificed if Barcelona do decide to sell a central defender come summer.

Christensen arrived on a free transfer in 2022 and any fee from his sale can be written down as total profit in the books. As for Kounde, amortisation costs worth €30 million are still pending, which could make his sale a less profitable operation.