5 positions which Barcelona need to strengthen this summer
Barcelona endured one of their worst seasons in recent years with their Copa del Rey triumph over Deportivo Alaves the only saving grace in what was an utterly disappointing season for the Camp Nou outfit. The Blaugrana finished 3-points behind arch-rivals Real Madrid in La Liga, which stopped them from lifting their third consecutive league title.
That was not all, the Catalan giants were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by eventual runners-up Juventus in the quarter-final, however, it was the manner in which they succumbed to the Italian champions and before them against Paris Saint-Germain that had the alarm bells ringing.
Barcelona were humiliated 4-0 by PSG in the first leg of their round of 16 clash at the Parc des Princes and if not for the memorable comeback at Camp Nou, the Blaugrana would have been knocked out of the prestigious tournament in the first knockout round for the first time in over a decade.
A similar story repeated in the next round, as Luis Enrique’s side were handed a 3-0 thumping by the Old Lady in Turin and unlike against PSG, there was no memorable comeback this time around and Barcelona were left to rue their mistakes.
The Catalan giants are due a squad overhaul under new manager Ernesto Valverde, which should ideally begin with a massive clearout of all the dead wood. Barcelona also need to address certain glaring shortcomings in their squad and with that in mind, here are 5 positions which they need to strengthen this summer:
#1 Right-back
Barcelona bizarrely allowed Dani Alves to leave for Juventus on a free ahead of last season and they have regretted the decision ever since. Not only did they fail to sign an able replacement for the Brazilian, the 34-year-old came back to haunt his former club in the UEFA Champions League as he produced a stellar performance over the two legs down the right wing and shackled the likes of Neymar and Jordi Alba.
Sergi Roberto has done his best to fill the void left by the departure of Alves but, without any disrespect to him, he simply isn’t cut out for the position having grown up as a midfielder and struggles against trickier opponents. Addressing the right-back position should probably be the highest priority for Barcelona in this transfer window and although they have been linked with a few names including Hector Bellerin, Sergi Aurier, no concrete developments have been made.