The term improvement is not one that is heard too often (if at all) these days around FC Barcelona’s Nou Camp. For the club that has won thirteen of their last fourteen matches, including the 5-0 shellacking of bitter rivals Real Madrid last week as well as a 19-0 combined score line over their last four opponents, amelioration, whenever it was initially sought after, has effectively been achieved by the Catalans, their newest goal being that of maintaining their recently attained two-point advantage over José Mourinho’s Blancos.
As they demonstrated in last Monday’s massacre of Real, which some are already calling the club’s best performance ever, Pep Guardiola’s squad cannot get much better. But as the old adage goes, there is always room for improvement, and with the winter transfer window looming, even the indomitable FC Barcelona may find themselves shelling out a few million more Euros on reinforcements to send an already impregnable team’s level of collective talent through the roof. They are, as follows, the top ten transfer targets that could improve Barcelona in January.
10. Emmanuel Adebayor
The wantaway striker has made only two Premier League starts this season for Manchester City and has been restricted primarily to Europa League appearances throughout the first half of this season; it has become almost a foregone conclusion that the Togolese will be sold this coming January.
While mercurial and sometimes difficult to manage, when on, Adebayor is one of the most menacing attackers around with his lightning pace and impressive finishing. Unfortunately, both of these qualities from which his name first began to grow have gone missing at Eastlands.
Therefore, a change of scenery could seriously benefit the troubled forward, and having been a former member or Arsenal, suiting up for Barcelona and playing the beautiful game in a way that Gunners manager Arsène Wenger can only dream of his team one day playing might ultimately rejuvenate Adebayor and give him an re-appreciation of football.
It’s unlikely that Barcelona will be heavy bidders (if bidders at all) for EA9, with Juventus looking like the striker’s most probable destination, but could you imagine a front line of Messi, Villa and a reinvigorated Adebayor? The rest of La Liga (and the world for that matter) will be wishing against its materialization.
9. Landon Donovan
The Los Angeles Galaxy center-forward finally made his mark on European soil last January during a 13-game loan spell at Everton that saw him bag two goals and spark to life a then dormant Toffees club.
Barcelona certainly doesn’t need any kind of a spark right now, but adding Donovan in January on-loan could make sense for the reigning La Liga champs. He is one of the smarter players around with a deft touch and an eye for the back of the net, playing with more a palpable passion than your average overpaid footballers (here’s looking at you, Cheslea).
The greatest American footballer in history is also a superb passer and would excel in the overly-possessive tactical system with which Barcelona torments its opponents. He is also far more intelligent and experienced than Pedro Rodríguez—whom Donovan would likely replace (at least as a substitute at times) in the starting XI—and would thrive in an exciting environment like the Nou Camp, where, just as at the U.S. National Team’s camp, winning, no matter how it’s achieved, is always emphasized over flair.
8. Wesley Sneijder
There was perhaps no human being (other than José Mourinho) more instrumental than the versatile Dutchman in guiding Inter past Barcelona in last year’s 3-2 aggregate Champions League semifinal victory (not to mention their historic treble). With a seemingly clairvoyant eye for the pass and the goal as well as a unique creativity that separates him from most attacking midfielders, the acquisition of the 26-year-old would immediately boost the likes of almost any club.
But the chief reason Sneijder would improve Barcelona is his missile of a right foot. If there was anything the second leg of last year’s UCL semifinal proved, it was that Barça were too dependent on their intricate passing game when it was repeatedly thwarted by the impermeable Inter backline. What became even more evident was that the Catalans lacked someone who could put the ball on target from distance; Sneijder could be that guy.
Although, watching Barcelona tear apart Real Madrid as they did on Monday night suggests their dearth of an outside sharpshooter is one of little to no concern nowadays at the Nou Camp. Sneijder also recently put pen to paper on a new five-year contract to keep him at the San Siro until 2015, so a move anywhere seems unlikely for Inter’s talisman. But you know he’d still love to stick it to Real Madrid—the team that wrote him off and let him go before his breakout campaign last year—and how best to do that than with Los Blancos’ biggest rivals?
7. Gareth Bale
Despite several clubs’ frequent inquiries about procuring his services, Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has made explicit the fact that Bale is not for sale, and Spurs have reportedly slapped a £55 million price tag on the Welsh left-winger.
Ignoring his potential cost, Barcelona still seems like an unlikely destination for the man Redknapp has called the best player in English football, even if he became available, as a number Serie A clubs are rumored to be interested in securing his signature.
However, Bale is as industrious and workmanlike as they come and can finish with the best of them. Playing as a traditional left-footed player on the left wing has allowed him to maximize his talents and terrorize right backs across the globe—most notably Inter’s Maicon—in this year’s Champions League, and is a big reason why Tottenham have already punched their ticket to the knockout rounds.
On paper, he would undoubtedly be an upgrade over Pedro Rodríguez (who, thanks to my slideshow, is quickly becoming one of the most dispensable players at Barcelona) in the starting XI, but it’s impossible to predict how adapting to the Spanish game might effect Bale in the long run. Would he find the adjustment challenging and then see his fine form debilitate as a result? Or—an even scarier thought—would he become even better than he already is?
6. Ashley Cole
The only Barça player in the starting XI more dispensable than Pedro Rodríguez? How about left back Éric Abidal? The Frenchman who has scored just one goal (and not for Barcelona) at club level during his entire 12-year professional career, has been with the Catalans now since 2007 and has shared defensive duties with his backup Maxwell in recent months as he continues to age a little bit faster than some of his teammates. That’s not to take anything away from Abidal, as the former Lyon defender has been superb ever since joining Barcelona four years ago. The age factor is still difficult to ignore.
Abidal is now 31-years-old, and after succumbing to a muscle injury last February that kept him out nearly two months, it is becoming more and more evident that a permanent replacement for him may soon be in the cards.
Insert Cole.
At 29, though still not young by any means, the English international is a full two years younger than Abidal and, more significantly, is considered by many to be the best left back in the world. His current club Chelsea is presently enduring their worst run of form in recent memory but are still in the thick of things. So it isn’t likely the Blues would part with their dynamic flanker. But if they did, and Barcelona pounced, not only would the Catalans get a considerable defensive upgrade, but also simultaneously, they would stamp out Real Madrid and Mourinho who had been (and possibly still are) after Cole’s services this past summer.
5. David Luiz
A relative unknown in the grand scheme of things, Luiz would make a fantastic addition to the Barcelona backline, if only initially as a substitute.
A physical and imposing figure (6’ 2”) who features primarily as a center back, Luiz contributed significantly to his current club Benfica’s title-winning campaign in Portugal last season and has been the subject of many a transfer rumor these past few months.
While the defensive partnership of Gerard Piqué and Carles Puyol at center back looks set in stone for the time being, the latter is due to turn 33 this April. Barça may want to start considering its future in that department with talent more guaranteed than that of present backups Gabriel Milito, Maxwell or Adriano. David Luiz just might be the answer.
4. Edin Džeko
If you type his moniker into Google, the first thing to appear on the dropdown menu other than his full name is “Edin Džeko Transfer.”
The 24-year-old striker is still hanging around his current club Wolfsburg, but the feeling is that a move away from the German outfit is (and has been) imminent for the Bosnia and Herzegovina international. He has already bagged nine league goals for Wolfsburg this season, which is tied for third-best in the Bundesliga and would almost definitely play a big role wherever he might end up come January.
For the most part, Barcelona appear to be set up front with Villa and Messi, but adding Džeko and his near 6’4” frame to mix would supply the Blaugranes with another fiery attacking option as well as a viable aerial threat to help out Carles Puyol on corners. Barça should be wary of acquiring him, however, as this could be yet another Balkan cognomen whose promise fails to come to fruition.
Remember Zlatan Ibrahimović?
3. Fernando Llorente
Like Džeko, the Athletic Bilbao striker has been the subject of much transfer speculation in recent months. The only difference being that Llorente’s move away from the Basque Country is likely to take place within Spain as opposed to the rest of Europe. And that can only mean one thing—a transfer to Barcelona or Real Madrid.
The Pamplona-born forward has reportedly been linked with an eventual move to Real, and with Gonzalo Higuaín having recently suffered a back injury that will keep him out for several months, Llorente could find himself playing alongside CR7 much sooner than expected.
What a coup (and giant slap in the face, I might add) it would be for the Catalans if Barcelona were to swoop in and steal away the 25-year-old’s services, not to mention his towering 6’ 5” physique with which he has already begun to make his mark for the Spanish National Team as well as Athletic, having already bagged nine goals for the club this season.
2. Javier Pastore
Of all the players on this list, Pastore is without question the one most likely to join Barcelona via transfer this January.
The slender but explosive attacking midfielder has burst onto the scene this year for Palermo and has the Eagles within a point of Champions League qualification for next season, thanks to his seven goals and untouchable run of play.
At just 21-years-of-age, Pastore is only at the start of what looks to be an ever-bourgeoning, successful career, and it is only a matter of time before he is plucked from Palermo by a more lucrative club. The Argentina International has already been linked with a move to Barça, and only time will tell if Guardiola feels the need to reel in the youngster who exudes energy, zest and gusto—three essential qualities to being a member of the world’s greatest club.
1. Cesc Fàbregas
Any conversation about Barcelona transfer targets will invariably involve Cesc Fàbregas.
If you paid any kind of attention whatsoever to football this past summer, you would have heard his last name and Barcelona mentioned in the same sentence at least a hundred times—and that’s after hearing just ten sentences.
During the World Cup, it seemed like everyone but Fàbregas’s dentist was keen on his transfer to the club at which he grew up before he moved to Arsenal back in 2003. And, to be sure, the end result seems inevitable—Fàbregas will in fact at some point down the road move back to Barcelona.
The only question is when that will happen. But more importantly, in a midfield that consists of Xavier Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, Sergio Busquets, where will he play? The club reportedly wants him back, but finding a spot for him in the starting XI may prove to be more difficult than actually reacquiring his services.
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