A GERMAN LEFT AWAY FROM BARÇA
FC Barcelona runs out of options to sign the centre-back that the club likes the most
FC Barcelona will not be able to sign the centre-back they liked the most in this summer transfer market. The Bayer Leverkusen board will not let one of their best defenders leave at the request of their star coach, Xabi Alonso
Jonathan Tah is leaving FC Barcelona. The 28-year-old German was the favourite of the Catalan team to sign this summer if they had enough 'fair play' margin, but it seems that he will stay at Bayer Leverkusen this season despite the fact that his contract ends in 2025. This was confirmed by his coach, Xabi Alonso, when asked about the player's future.
The Spanish coach spoke to the press and said that he does not expect Tah to leave, despite the information that has emerged in recent days. "We are calm and I do not expect so many changes," said Alonso in the preview of their DFB Pokal first round match this Wednesday, August 28, against Carl Zeiss Jena.
Alonso pointed out that Tah is "a mature player and totally focused." Speculation of a possible departure arose after the German was a substitute in the German Super Cup final against Stuttgart. The centre-back will play in the German Cup match and was a starter in the Bundesliga debut against Borussia Mönchengladbach, which means that he will not become a Barcelona or Bayern Munich player, who also wanted him, this season.
Barcelona will have to look for other options
Considering that the German will not be signed, who Hansi Flick likes very much from his time with the German national team, the Barça board will have to take another direction. Let's remember that the defence is a weak area of the team after the injuries of Ronald Araújo and Andreas Christensen. They would also be joined by Eric García, who is out against Rayo due to foot problems.
The club also said goodbye to Clement Lenglet and Mika Faye, so Flick only has Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez to cover this area of the field. The German coach is expected to bet on both centre-backs as a starter, but there could undoubtedly be problems if one of the two gets injured. The other option will be to move Jules Koundé from his natural position, although this would be more of a 'patch' than a long-term solution. The club has just under four days to make a decision on the future of the defence. What will they do? We will find out very soon.
