Spanish wonderkid Sergi Palencia is reportedly set to renew terms with Barcelona, having agreed a new three-year deal with the Catalan club.
Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo have reported that Barcelona have secured the future of 21-year-old B team right-back Sergi Palencia. The Barcelona B captain is set to put pen to paper on a new four-year contract with the Catalan club.
Palencia joined Barcelona from boyhood club Badalona in 2006, progressing through the ranks at the club before making the grade in the club’s reserve side in 2015. Having impressed in his first campaign with the Barcelona B side, he was rewarded with the team’s captaincy.
And the 21-year-old led a successful campaign with the side in the recently concluded season, as Gerard Lopez’s men clinched promotion back to the Segunda Division. Palencia made 41 appearances for Barcelona B in the campaign, keeping things tight at the back while also chipping in on the attacking side with a goal and five assists.
Sergi Palencia is close to renewing with Barça B for 3 more years (2020) and an optional year. He’ll do the preseason with the 1st team [md] pic.twitter.com/EO9Nmv3e2h
— FC Barcelona Fl (@FCBarcelonaFl) July 5, 2017
The player’s impressive development with the reserve side have now helped him make it to Barcelona’s first-team setup. In fact, newly-appointed manager Ernesto Valverde has included Palencia alongside fellow B-team stalwarts Marlon Santos and Carles Alena for the club’s pre-season tour to the USA.
Furthermore, the 21-year-old is also set to continue his senior career with Barcelona beyond his current contract, which was set to expire in the summer of 2018.
As per the report, Palencia has agreed a new three-year deal with the Blaugrana, that will keep him at Camp Nou till 2020, with the club having the option to extend the contract by another year.
The renewal is also a rare positive for Barcelona in the transfer market after they saw two of their most highly rated prospects, Jordi Mboula and Eric Garcia depart last month for pastures anew, with Juvenil A defender Mateu Morey also heavily linked to a summer exit.
In the grand scheme of things, meanwhile, Palencia’s renewal and progression to the first-team setup can, perhaps, help the Catalan club finally find a long-term solution at the right side of defence as they struggle in pursuit of players like Hector Bellerin and Nelson Semedo.
It now remains to be seen if Valverde indeed utilizes the Spaniard regularly in the forthcoming season and drops out of the race to sign the aforementioned right-backs.
