After a busy summer transfer market, Barcelona are reportedly set to now focus on players already at their disposal to tie up contract renewals.
The Catalan giants brought in Arthur, Arturo Vidal, Malcom and Clement Lenglet as part of their recruitment drive to strengthen Ernesto Valverde’s squad further.
SEE MORE: ADORABLE photos show Lionel Messi doing dad duties as he takes sons to school
Having delivered a domestic double in his first season in charge, the Spanish tactician will hope to sustain that level of success while also making a bigger impression in the Champions League. With the quality and depth now at his disposal, few would back against Barcelona doing so.
Nevertheless, it appears as though there is still work to do as Mundo Deportivo claim that Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic, Jordi Alba, Rafinha, Munir and Thomas Vermaelen could all be in line to receive contract renewals.
It’s added though, that while the first three fundamental figures will be offered new deals with the intention that they will continue to be crucial to Barcelona’s success moving forward, in contrast, the latter three will be signed to new agreements in order to strengthen the club’s position if sales materialise.
All six named above will likely play a part this season to help Barca compete on multiple fronts, but time will tell if it’s just Busquets, Rakitic and Alba who establish themselves as indispensable and therefore will actually see out their renewals.
In order to protect their long-term push for success, it’s an important strategy from the La Liga champions to keep their stalwarts in place while they perhaps look to add younger options to eventually replace them.
With that in mind, it remains to be seen if new deals are signed off, as the last thing they’ll want is for the respective situations to become distractions off the pitch.