Barcelona have reportedly turned their attention towards 21-year-old Dutch international Owen Wijndal over a possible summer move.
According to a report by Spanish publication AS, Barcelona’s search for a left-back has taken them to the Eredivisie. The La Liga heavyweights are interested in signing Owen Wijndal from AZ Alkmaar in the summer transfer window, with the 21-year-old Dutch international identified as a potential long-term successor for Jordi Alba.
Owen Wijndal has been with AZ Alkmaar since joining their academy in 2010, aged 10. Since then, he has come leaps and bounds and has established himself as one of the best left-backs in the Eredivisie since making his first-team bow in 2017. Now a mainstay for the Dutch outfit, Wijndal has also become a full-fledged international for Netherlands.
2020/21 ended up being a solid campaign for Wijndal, who produced a tally of 2 goals and 6 assists in 43 appearances across all competitions. His progress seems to have captured the attention of Barcelona, who have sprung into action and are now plotting a possible summer swoop for the 21-year-old.
Junior Firpo’s move to Barcelona from Real Betis in the summer of 2019 has not worked out one bit as he has failed to make any sort of impression. While opportunities have come few and far between for him, Firpo himself has done himself no favours with his performances during those rare outings for the Blaugrana.
As a result, the 24-year-old is expected to depart Camp Nou this summer, with Southampton one of his suitors. As for Barcelona, they now need to sign a replacement for Firpo and they also need that player to possibly be a long-term successor for Jordi Alba, who is on the wrong side of 30 and is inching closer to the final phase of his career.
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To that end, Barcelona have been touted to be keen on signing Jose Gaya. However, Valencia are likely to press hard to retain the services of their captain, meaning the Catalan giants could well be forced to scour the market for alternatives.
To that end, Robin Gosens is an option being considered by Barcelona, who have also set their sights on Wijndal. What also works in Barcelona’s favour is the fact that his agent is Mino Raiola, who has a fine working relationship with president Joan Laporta.
In fact, AS suggest that the 21-year-old could become the priority now and it remains to be seen if Barcelona do end up launching the offensive for the Dutch international as we creep closer to the summer transfer window.
