![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="439" width="780" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
Barcelona youngster Nico Gonzalez, who is currently out on loan at Valencia, is set to undergo surgery on a metatarsal injury and will be out of action for three months.
Valencia boss Gennaro Gattuso confirmed Gonzalez’s injury at a pre-match press conference on Monday, January 2. The midfielder sustained the problem during Valencia’s defeat to Villarreal in La Liga on New Year’s Eve.
“Nico has to have surgery. He will be operated on this Tuesday or Wednesday in Barcelona,” he told reporters. “He is sure to be out for three months with the injury that he has. We have to look for a profile like that of Nico, because in this position we only have Guillamón.”
Gonzalez’s injury will be a blow for the youngster as well as Valencia and Barcelona. The midfielder swapped the Camp Nou in the summer for Mestalla in a bid to play regularly and continue his development.
The 20-year-old has featured 13 times for Los Che in La Liga this season but now faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines. Gonzalez’s loan deal expires at the end of the 2022-23 campaign and does not contain a purchase option, meaning he will return to Barcelona in the summer.
Follow the Heavy on Barcelona Facebook page for the latest breaking news, rumors and content!
Does Nico Have a Future at Barcelona?
Nico signed a new contract with Barcelona before heading out on loan to Valencia. The midfielder put pen to paper on a deal that runs until 2026 and contains a buyout clause set at a billion euros.
Barcelona’s decision not to include a purchase option in his loan deal and to add such an enormous buyout clause to his contract suggests he is still very much in Xavi’s plans for the future.
Gonzalez’s agent has already revealed the club did have offers for him last summer but did not want to sell. Meanwhile, former Barcelona B coach Francisco Javier García Pimienta has told Xavi the youngster is the perfect successor to club captain Sergio Busquets.
The skipper is facing an uncertain future at the club as he is out of contract in the summer and yet to extend. If Busquets were to leave, then it could open up a first-team opportunity for Gonzalez.
Xavi has confirmed Busquets will not leave in the January transfer window but has admitted a final decision on his future has not yet been made.
Nico & Abde To Get Barcelona Chance?
Gonzalez and fellow loanee Ez Abde should both be in the Barcelona first-team squad next season. Abde is currently on loan with Osasuna but also signed a contract extension until 2026 before he left.
Barcelona’s financial limitations will make signings difficult in the summer transfer window which means the two youngsters will be given chances in 2023-24, according to Diario Sport.
Both players will face intense competition for a place in the starting XI, but Xavi has shown a commitment to youth since taking over as first-team coach in November 2022.
Young midfielders Pedri and Gavi are regulars for the Catalan giants, while teenage defender Alejandro Balde has broken into the first team this season and the coach has admitted he already has a plan in place for 15-year-old starlet Lamine Yamal.
READ NEXT: Barca Star to Leave For €20M After Impressive World Cup: Report
0 Comments