5 La Masia players that are ready for promotion to the first team
Ever since the Dutch maestro, Johan Cruyff laid the foundations of the famed academy at Barcelona, he had only one goal in mind, to make Barcelona self-sufficient by breeding a class of players that can take the club forward by instilling in them the very virtues that make Barça "Mes Que Un Club" or more than a club.
The students of La Masia are taught the skills that every Barça player is obliged to have; being comfortable on the ball, always looking for a pass and the most important of all, being a part of the culture of the club and understanding what "Mes Que Un Club" stands for.
La Masia is the only football academy that can boast of producing the top three players in contention for the Ballon d'Or in a single season namely Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez and Lionel Messi.
It has produced a golden generation of players that dominated world football for close to a decade which includes the likes of Victor Valdes, Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro and many more.
Over the last few years, however, Barça has strayed far from its own principles of incorporating the youth regularly into the first team.
Only Sergi Roberto has made himself a regular over these past few years making young, prodigious talent look for greener pastures elsewhere and leaving the club for regular playing time.
We look at five players that are ready to be promoted to the first team to bring back the good old days.
#5 Marc Cucurella
Born in Alella, Cucurella started playing Futsal before joining Barça's local rival Espanyol's youth team in 2006. In 2012, he moved to FC Barcelona.
Cucurella made 17 appearances for the Barcelona B side in domestic competitions in the 2016-17 season and helped achieve promotion to the Segunda División. Cucurella made his debut for Barça's first team in October 2017, coming on as a substitute for an injured Lucas Digne in the 3–0 Copa del Rey win against minnows Real Murcia.
Already tipped by Culés to be a natural successor of Jordi Alba, having the same blistering pace down the flank and ability to combine with the players on the inside he would do well if incorporated into the first team.
Ernesto Valverde's lack of confidence in Lucas Digne and the absence of any other left-back in the team makes Cucurella a certain contender to win promotion to the first team.
Cucurella has scored 1 goal for the reserve side this season.
Video: He can effectively replace an aging Jordi Alba