Barcelona reportedly consider four players untransferable within the current squad as they will seemingly not entertain talks for any of the four in question.
Things were seemingly on track for the Catalan giants prior to the campaign being suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, as they have a two-point lead at the top of the La Liga table over nearest rivals Real Madrid and are in a strong position to advance from the round-of-16 in the Champions League.
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Nevertheless, they have had their slip-ups along the way, while former coach Ernesto Valverde was sacked in January as Quique Setien came in to replace him.
Time will tell when the current boss is given the chance to stamp his mark on the squad as the pandemic is expected to have a negative financial impact on clubs moving forward given the revenue hit that they’ve suffered, but it’s suggested that four players in his current squad are not for sale.
As noted by Mundo Deportivo, defender Clement Lenglet is not available and will not be included in any player exchange deals either as the 24-year-old is a key figure in the club’s plans moving forward it seems.
Given how heavily he has featured since arriving from Sevilla in 2018, with 74 appearances to his name already, coupled with the lack of defensive options available as it stands with Samuel Umtiti’s injury troubles in mind too, it shouldn’t necessarily come as much of a surprise that that is their stance on the Frenchman.
Meanwhile, Mundo Deportivo also note that Lionel Messi, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Frenkie de Jong are also considered untransferable, while there are perhaps question marks that can be raised over the others.
That should come as no surprise to Barcelona fans given club legend Messi continues to lead their charge for more trophies, while Ter Stegen continues to be decisive at the other end of the pitch on a regular basis and De Jong is undoubtedly a long-term solution in midfield to step in when stalwarts Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic and Arturo Vidal are ready to move on.
Perhaps it will be reassuring for the Barca faithful to know that offers will likely be rebuffed for the four players in question, but time will tell if reinforcements are added around them to strengthen the squad moving forward as that is a top-class core to work off.