Alejandro Grimaldo and his umpteenth declaration of love for Barça: Is he a viable option for the left-back position?

Talking about Alejandro Grimaldo is to discuss one of those many players who are footballingly developed in the academy of FC Barcelona, but who, for one reason or another, did not end up succeeding in the first team. Instead, they had to change environments and showcase their talent in other teams to establish themselves in the elite of football.

The left-back left FC Barcelona in 2016. At the time, it was argued that there were differences between Grimaldo and the first team's coach at that time, Luis Enrique, who did not fully trust him in the highest category of the club, and he did not speak very well of him, as reported by 'RAC1', where the following statement was leaked:

"He has never said anything to me. I have had no contact with him (Luis Enrique). I also have nothing to discuss with him. I work with my coach. I get along very well with him, he helps me in everything and helps me to be better. Let the one above be with his players and I will be with my team"

Apparently, those statements, along with an alleged misconduct (as pointed out in 'SPORT') and the outstanding level shown by Jordi Alba as the starting left-back of the first team, seemed to be the right ingredients for him to decide to leave the Barcelona club and face a new adventure at SL Benfica. Since then, his story has been truly positive, as the former Barça academy player has exploded as a lethal left wing-back, especially during his time at Bayer Leverkusen, where under the guidance of Xabi Alonso, he has transformed into a lethal offensive player and one of the best in the world in his position.

ALEJANDRO GRIMALDO STATISTICS - 2024-25 SEASON

• Matches 🥅: 39
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• Minutes ⌚: 3,140'
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• Goals ⚽: 4
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• Assists 👟: 11

Alejandro Grimaldo once again expresses his desire to play for Barcelona

It is not surprising that, being a product of the FC Barcelona academy and one of the best in the world in his position, he is linked with the blaugrana club whenever possible. Especially when Grimaldo does not hesitate to show his desire to wear the Catalan team's jersey again, like the prodigal son returning home, just as Dani Olmo did recently.

In fact, his name is once again on everyone's lips right now, precisely because he has once again expressed his love for FC Barcelona. In an interview with 'El Periódico de España', he admitted that he would like to play in Spain again, specifically with the team from the City of Condal. "Indeed, it is a goal I have (to play for Barça). I have it very clear in my mind, even the club knows it. I want to return to Spain in the medium and short term and I would like to experience being in Spain because in the end, it is my country. It is where I want to play and enjoy this experience and it is one of my goals," he acknowledged.

"Indeed, it is a goal I have (to play for Barça). I have it very clear in my mind, even the club knows it"

Grimaldo has also made it clear that, should the option arise to join Real Madrid if Xabi Alonso becomes the coach of the white team, it is likely that he would not join the white squad, out of respect for his past as a blaugrana. "In the end, I don’t know what Xabi is going to do. It is a decision that only concerns him. As for me, I grew up in La Masía, it is the club where I have grown as a player and as a person and it is the club I dreamed of playing for since I was a child. I remember some interviews from when I was little where I already said that my dream was to reach the first team of Barça and that has always been my dream," he recalled.

"My dream was to reach the first team of Barça and that has always been my dream"

Finally, when pressed about whether he would sign for another team that was not FC Barcelona in Spain, Grimaldo reaffirmed his desire to wear the Barça jersey, although he did not completely rule out joining other clubs like Real Madrid or Atlético. "It is something I also don’t want to get into because football has many twists and turns and you never know what can happen. But it is clear, as I told you before, that I grew up in Can Barça and in the end when you spend seven or eight years in La Masía, you carry that with you always. That’s what I can tell you right now," he concluded.

"I grew up in Can Barça and in the end when you spend seven or eight years in La Masía, you carry that with you always"

Will the blaugrana club be interested in signing Grimaldo?

A clear declaration of intentions from Alejandro Grimaldo, who has not expressed his love for FC Barcelona for the first time. However, in the past, the blaugrana club did not show intentions to repatriate him, even having at some point the opportunity to sign him for free. Now that Alejandro Balde is at a great level, will they bet on him? That does not seem very clear.