Barcelona veteran set to join La Liga rivals Atletico Madrid on free transfer at the end of the season - Reports

Barcelona left-back Marcos Alonso is reportedly set to join fellow La Liga side Atletico Madrid this summer.

Alonso, 33, hasn't be a regular in Xavi's first XI this season, making seven appearances - four off the bench - across competitions, without a goal contribution. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, the Blaugrana are all set to let the veteran defender leave for free.

Since arriving from Chelsea in the summer of 2022, Alonso has scored thrice in 44 games across competitions as Barca won the La Liga and Supercopa Espana double. However, in a 2023-24 season beset by injuries, Alonso has fallen down the pecking order, and things are unlikely to change anytime soon.

As per Cadena SER (via Barca Universal), the Spaniard is set to join the Rojiblancos on a free transfer. He was also on their radar before joining Barca two years ago from Chelsea.

Luis Suarez and Memphis Depay are two players who recently moved from Barca to Atletico. Alonso is all set to follow suit as he looks for a different challenge, with talks between club and player said to be progressing well.

What's next for Barcelona?

Barcelona are in the midst of an inconsistent campaign, suffering a series of defeats since the turn of the year.

After losing to Real Madrid in the Supercopa Espana final, Barca were dumped out of the Copa del Rey quarterfinals by Athletic Bilbao. In their very next next game, they slumped to a 5-3 La Liga home loss to Villarreal, prompting Xavi to announce his departure at the end of the season.

That seems to have galvanised the side, as Barca have gone 11 games across competitions without defeat, winning eight, beating 10-man Las Palmas 1-0 at home in La Liga at the weekend.

The defending Spanish champions next travel to PSG for the first leg of their blockbuster UEFA Champions League quarterfinal on April 10 before the tie concludes six days later in Spain.