"Both the club and I are on the same line" - Barcelona handed boost as La Masia graduate confirms contract extension with the club
Spanish giants Barcelona have been handed a massive boost with La Masia graduate Marc Casado confirming that he has agreed on a contract extension with the club. The 20-year-old has been plying his trade for the Catalan giants B side, Barca Atletic, over the last two seasons.
Primarily a defensive midfielder, Casado has also shown proficiency when deployed as a right-back or centre-back. He has made 65 appearances for the Atletic side, showcasing his intelligent movements and impeccable passing vision. Aside from his technical ability, he also possesses incredible maturity and leadership, having led the Atletic side as captain throughout the 2023-24 campaign.
Casado made his senior debut in the 2022-23 Champions League, being subbed on for the last 23 minutes during Barca's final group stage game against Viktoria Plzen. He also made four senior appearances off the bench in the recently concluded season - two in La Liga and two in the UCL.
He has been labelled as the Catalans' defensive midfielder of the future, a potential replacement for Sergio Busquets who left to join Lionel Messi at Inter Miami. However, his contract was set to expire at the end of the 2023-24 season, which had generated concern among Barcelona fans.
Fortunately for the Catalan giants' supporters, Casado confirmed that he had signed a contract extension with the club in a recent media interaction. He said (via Diario SPORT and Barca Universal):
“Both the club and I are on the same line, we are just talking about four things that are not important. We believe that the best thing for me and what both parties want is to continue wearing this shirt for a long time and I hope that is the case."
Aside from Marc Casado, 19-year-old academy graduate could also be integrated into Barcelona's senior side
Besides the ever-impressive Barca Atletic captain Marc Casado, 19-year-old midfielder Unai Hernandez could be integrated into Barcelona's senior side.
The youngster has delivered a string of impressive performances throughout the 2023-24 campaign for Barcelona's B side in the third division of Spanish football. He has racked up 10 goals and seven assists in 36 league games, playing in a variety of positions including central midfield, attacking midfield and the left wing.
Erstwhile manager Xavi called him up eight times to the senior side. However, he has yet to make his senior debut for the Catalan giants.
Just 10 days after Hansi Flick's appointment (May 29) as Barca manager, Hernandez scored a four-minute hattrick in the second leg of the promotion playoff semifinal against UD Ibiza. After going down 2-0, he set up Marc Guiu (45+2') before the forward set him up twice (58', 60') before sweeping home a rebound (62').
It was the fastest hattrick recorded in the Primera RFEF and inspired Barca Atletic to a 5-3 victory on the night and a 7-4 win on aggregate. His performances will surely have made Flick sit up and take note, with a first-team debut looming on the horizon.