5 players Barcelona should sell in January
1. Arda Turan
Perhaps the best example of a big-money player who hasn’t performed as expected at the Camp Nou in recent times, the Turkish international could be set for the exit door sooner rather than later.
Whether that happens in January remains to be seen, but there wouldn’t be a lot of surprise should that occur. Signed from Atletico Madrid, where the 29-year-old established himself as one of the best attacking midfielders in Europe, he arrived in Catalonia in 2015 at the height of a FIFA transfer ban.
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As a result, Arda couldn’t play for the first six months of his new career, and by the time he was eligible, he had to force his way into a midfield which already included Busquets, Rakitic and Iniesta.
This summer saw the arrival of both Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez, yet more competition for a player who has not found his feet, and time is running out for Turan to stake his claim to coach Luis Enrique.
The early stages of Gomes’ career are following similar parallels, but his style of play is more conjunctive to Barcelona than Turan’s, who is more physical and direct than most of his teammates.
Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool were reportedly keen on him while at Atleti, and a switch to China has also been mooted. Either way, Arda Turan’s Barcelona days appear to be numbered.