Playing for 90
Fansided

Barcelona will purchase replacement for injured midfielder

By Rucker Haringey

Barcelona's midfielder Sergio Busquets is stretched out during the Spanish league football match SD Eibar vs FC Barcelona at the Ipurua stadium in Eibar on January 22, 2017. / AFP / ANDER GILLENEA (Photo credit should read ANDER GILLENEA/AFP/Getty Images)
Barcelona's midfielder Sergio Busquets is stretched out during the Spanish league football match SD Eibar vs FC Barcelona at the Ipurua stadium in Eibar on January 22, 2017. / AFP / ANDER GILLENEA (Photo credit should read ANDER GILLENEA/AFP/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Barcelona can’t afford to play without Sergio Busquets

Sergio Busquets isn’t Barcelona’s most talented player, but he is among their most indispensable squad members. His ankle injury is a huge concern for Luis Enrique and company. If he’s out for an extended period of time, the La Liga giants will have to purchase a replacement in the January transfer window.

That isn’t something that Barcelona club officials want to hear, but it’s the stark truth. As soon as Busquets was carted off after just eight minutes against Eibar on Sunday, alarm bells should have sounded for the Catalan giants.

After the match, Enrique did his best to quell concerns about his defensive midfielder. He told the press that the injury didn’t seem to be as serious as first feared, but did admit that further tests will be required. If Barcelona want to catch Real Madrid to win the league, they can’t afford for Busquets to miss more than a match or two.

When you list off the top players at Barcelona, it would take a while to get to Busquets’ name. He certainly doesn’t have the star quality of luminaries like Messi, Suarez and Neymar. Ironically, Barcelona might be able to absorb the absence of one of those star attackers than that of Busquets.

More from Playing for 90

When you look up and down the Barcelona squad you notice that Busquets is the club’s only true defensive midfielder. Players like Andre Gomes and Ivan Rakitic will try to claim his role in the middle of the pitch, but they lack his defensive talent. No other midfielder at Barcelona has the talent or discipline to serve as a shield for the club’s back four.

His absence won’t matter against La Liga bottom feeders. Per usual, Barcelona will dominate possession and their midfield trio will have full license to bomb forward. Instead, his loss will be acutely felt against top competition. The club need to deploy at least one defensive-minded midfielder against the likes of Real Madrid and Sevilla.

In truth, Barcelona should have already purchased cover for Busquets. Going into the season with only one real defensive midfielder is inexcusable for a club with their financial resources. At the very least, they should have purchased a young option to learn from Busquets this season.

Now, purchasing cover for him is going to become a lot more expensive. Other clubs know that they’re going to be desperate to find a short-term solution in January. It’s very likely they’ll be forced to overpay for an imperfect replacement.

Next: Barcelona ace right to be concerned

Barcelona fans need to hope that Sergio Busquets’ injury isn’t serious. If he’s out for an extended period of time, their club will need to spend big to replace him in January.

Home/FC Barcelona