Barcelona demand €8 million for 23-year-old academy player

Barcelona have reportedly slapped a price tag of €8 million on academy product Carles Alena, with loan club Getafe keen on signing him permanently in the summer.

According to a report from Catalan outlet Sport, La Liga heavyweights Barcelona have set an asking price of €8 million on midfielder Carles Alena, who is currently out on loan at Getafe, ahead of the upcoming transfer window.

Alena is a product of Barcelona’s famed La Masia youth academy. The 23-year-old had been tipped for a bright future at Camp Nou when he burst through into the first-team way back in 2016. However, the midfielder has not been able to fulfil his immense potential at the club as of yet, having struggled to get a look-in into the starting lineup under each manager he has worked with, racking up just 44 appearances so far.

Alena spent the second half of the 2019/20 season on loan with Real Betis where he got a decent run of games, but back at Barcelona at the onset of the current campaign, he was once again deprived of playing time under Ronald Koeman. As a result, the Spaniard left on another temporary spell in January, signing for Getafe.

Alena has shown signs of promise during his stint with the Madrilenian outfit, racking up 21 appearances over the second half of the 2020/21 term in which he has produced a return of two goals and two assists each. Getafe president Angel Torres confirmed the club’s intention to sign the 23-year-old on a permanent basis in an interview with Sport last month.

“We are very happy with the performance of Carles Alena. If he won’t be used at Barca next season, we will try and get him to stay here,” Torres had said. And it seems like Getafe are, indeed, ready to act on their interest once the season is over. As per the aforementioned report, Barcelona are not averse to offloading the academy product, given as his contract expires in a year and he is unlikely to feature much next season.

Indeed, Barcelona already have the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Sergio Busquets, Ilaix Moriba as well as Miralem Pjanic as options in midfield, along with Alena’s fellow academy prospect Riqui Puig. Pjanic and Puig, though, are already staring at uncertain futures, with Pjanic being offered to clubs in La Liga as well as Europe while Puig is also likely to be offloaded either on loan or permanently.

And with Barcelona targeting new midfielders like Leicester City mainstay Youri Tielemans ahead of the summer window, it is hard to see Alena get a look-in at Camp Nou next term. So, the Blaugrana are ready to cash in on the 23-year-old and have slapped a valuation of €8 million on him.

It now remains to be seen if Getafe are willing to match that asking price or try to negotiate a lower fee, while there is also the chance of a different club altogether making a swoop for the midfielder. But as things stand, it seems like Alena’s time at Barcelona is certainly coming to an end.