Top 5 big-money flops at Barcelona
Philippe Coutinho
Barcelona have thrown away a fortune and then some in making these signings that did not work out at all.
Barcelona have endured a difficult few years and particularly so from a financial point of view. The Catalans have been horribly managed on all fronts. They were able to gain a fortune through the sale of Neymar Jr. to Paris Saint-Germain.
But instead of investing that money wisely, Barcelona made one hasty decision after another in the transfer window and wound up with more problems than they started out with. The club is in severe financial distress right now and is mostly linked with to-be free-agents these days.
Josep Maria Bartomeu and his board of directors tendered their resignation after the public outcry and resentment against them reached alarming levels. Without further ado, let's take a look at the top big-money transfer flops at Barcelona.
Top 5 big-money flops at Barcelona
#5 Arda Turan
Despite being La Liga title-rivals, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona have done a considerable amount of transfer business together. It's mostly been one-sided with Barcelona luring some of the finest of the Rojiblancos' talents away and Arda Turan was one of those players who was sold on the Catalonian dream.
Barcelona signed the Turkish international for €34 million in 2015 but Atletico Madrid were serving a transfer ban at the time. As a result, Turan only featured for Barcelona for the first time in January 2016.
Barcelona proved to be quite a departure from Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid. At the Camp Nou, it was more about guile, poise and flair, whereas Turan was more suited to an all-action midfield that prioritized solidity and industry.
Don't get us wrong though, Turan was a good technician but he was not the right fit for Barcelona. With his speed and close control, he was configured to take advantage of counter-attacking opportunities. He stuck out like a sore thumb at Barcelona where the midfielders should be dominating possession.
Turan made just 55 appearances for the side before being loaned out to Istanbul Besaksehir and subsequently sold to Galatasaray.
#4 Andre Gomes
Xavi and Andres Iniesta were so good at their jobs that Barcelona's desperation to find long-term successors to them could be largely excused. However, they consistently did such an awful job with it and most often found players who weren't even of the same ilk.
A prime example of this would be Andre Gomes. The young midfielder bit off more than he could chew by securing a switch to Barcelona from Valencia at a young age to take over from two of the legends of the game.
Barcelona fans, the entitled bunch they were, jeered and booed Andre Gomes for not performing to the standards expected of him. The youngster even came out and admitted how all the reactions had sent him into a bout of depression.
Gomes spent two nightmare seasons at Barcelona before eventually joining Everton in the summer of 2018 on loan. His signing was made permanent in the subsequent season and he has done a pretty decent job for the Toffees so far.
But it's fair to say that after costing €35 million, Andre Gomes was a big-money flop at Barcelona.