Samuel Umtiti has been linked with a Barcelona exit consistently over the past few years, while it also looked like several managerial changes made absolutely no difference to his situation.
There have been suggestions that his attitude hasn’t been good enough and perhaps he didn’t take his fitness seriously enough, while there was also some controversy in the summer over suggestions that he hadn’t told the truth about his covid-19 situation either.
That didn’t help his cause at all and it probably led to a lack of interest from any other clubs in the summer, but he’s slowly been working to turn things around and it looks like he’s finally set to get a chance.
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He’s credited a vegan diet as the main reason for him feeling healthier and fitter than before, while he’s forced his way back into the first team picture with a relentless work ethic and a desire to win Ronald Koeman over.
It’s possible that he would still be out in the cold if it weren’t for a ton of injuries in the Barca defence, but he’s started to get some chances to play and a recent injury to Ronald Araujo has opened the door for an extended run of games.
Umtiti came on to replace him and it looks like Araujo will be out for a few games, so this should finally give Umtiti a chance to shine.
He’s also boosted by the club’s financial situation which means they are struggling to add any new faces in January, so it would be brilliant if he does get a proper opportunity to play.