Barcelona is in transfer talks with Getafe regarding a summer transfer for 23-year-old midfielder Carles Alena, according to club chief Angel Torres.
The Getafe president told reporters on Wednesday that he is confident a deal can be done to bring the 23-year-old to the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez ahead of the new La Liga season, as reported by Diario Sport.
“Aleñá’s operation is pending on Messi’s. The boy wants to come to Getafe and Barcelona knows it. I think it will have a happy ending,” he said. “I am negotiating directly with Barcelona and I hope Aleñá is here before we go to La Manga.”
Barca is desperate to offload players to trim the wage bill and Alena looks like the next player to leave. It would be no surprise to see the youngster sold given he has never managed to secure regular football at Barcelona and his current contract expires in 2022. The report suggests Barca could sell for a fee of around €8 million, and the deal could even include a buyback option.
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Farewell To Alena?
If Alena does leave he will become the latest academy product to depart the club in search of regular football. The midfielder joined the club at the age of seven and went rights through the ranks, making his first-team debut in November 2016 against Hercules in the Copa del Rey.
Yet Alena has been unable to go on and cement a place in the first team. The midfielder was sent out on loan to Real Betis for the second half of the 2019-20 season and spent half of the last campaign with Getafe.
Alena featured regularly for Los Azulones, making 22 appearances in La Liga, and now looks set to make his stay permanent. He will join Konrad de la Fuente, Jean-Clair Todibo, Francisco Trincao, Matheus Fernandes, and Junior Firpo in leaving the club this summer.
Pjanic Also Set to Leave?
Barcelona may also wave goodbye to fellow midfielder Miralem Pjanic before the start of the new campaign after just one season with the Catalan giants. The 31-year-old spent most of last season on the bench and admitted he had been left with a “bitter taste” in a post on socia media after the campaign.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona has offered Pjanic the chance to leave for free in a bid to get the veteran off the wage bill. Barca must cut costs to be able to renew Lionel Messi’s contract and still comply with La Liga’s salary cap.
Premier League clubs Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are thought to be keen on signing Pjanic, as reported by Marca. However, the midfielder is said to be in “no rush” to decide his future.
Yet a decision will need to be made soon with Barcelona players due back for medical checks ahead of the start of pre-season on July 9 and 10. The team then has a little over a month to prepare for the team’s first game of the season on August 15 against Real Sociedad.
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