Pau Prim: Qatar could leave FC Barcelona without another of its 'gems'

Pau Prim, player of Barça Atlètic, is in advanced negotiations to join Al Sadd of Qatar for the next season. Although he initially gave his approval for a renewal with FC Barcelona, the millions from Al Sadd have changed his plans for the upcoming season.

The 19-year-old midfielder has a couple of assists in 30 official matches with Barça Atlètic, but is set to leave for free at the end of the 2024-25 season. So far, the player has ruled out meeting with the management to renew his contract, which expires on June 30. With no chance of earning a spot in the first team due to the presence of Marc Casadó, Marc Bernal, and Frenkie de Jong, the '6' of the reserve team seems clear about his departure from the club.

Al Sadd was close to signing Pau Prim in January

The interest from Al Sadd in Pau is not new, as the Qataris tried to sign him last summer transfer window. However, there was no agreement between the parties and Unai Hernández was the one who finalized his departure from the reserve team. The 20-year-old packed his bags for Arabia, signing with Al-Ittihad for 4.5 million euros. In Prim's case, it seems that Barça will lose one of its 'gems' at 'zero cost'.

This week, Barça finalized the renewals of Jan Virgili and Álvaro Pérez 'Trilli' until 2027 and 2026, respectively. The reserve team has had a disappointing 2024-25 season, even struggling to avoid relegation to the Segunda RFEF (fourth category). The proposal from Al Sadd is considered irresistible for Prim, which has halted his renewal with Barça.

Additionally, the midfielder has received interest from other clubs. Among them is Al-Qadisiya from Saudi Arabia, along with the approach of some other Belgian team. However, it seems that Al Sadd's interest has been the most persistent and attractive for the 19-year-old player, who made the jump to the Barça reserve team this season.