Barcelona eye 25-year-old Spanish ace as defensive reinforcement | OneFootball

As Barcelona scour the transfer market for a new left-back, an old and familiar name has come upon the radars of the club. As per a report from AS, Barcelona are looking at former La Masia trainee Alejandro Grimaldo as a potential option to shore up the left side of the defence in the summer.

Barcelona’s need for a new left-back comes from the uncertainty surrounding the future of Junior Firpo. Two years into his spell at Camp Nou, the ex-real Betis star has struggled to make the kind of impression that was expected of him.

With the 24-year-old now headed for the exit doors, Barcelona will be left with just Jordi Alba as the natural left-back within the squad. While the Spaniard enjoyed a resurgent 2020/21 season, at 32, he does need his game-time managed carefully.

So, there is a necessity for a new player arriving in the position, who can rotate with and eventually replace Alba. And this search for a left-back has led Barcelona to one of their former academy aces, Alex Grimaldo.

The 25-year-old spent close to eight years within the Barcelona setup, having first arrived in 2008 from Valencia. While he went on to make nearly 100 appearances for the Catalans’ B team, a first-team opportunity never came, leading to his eventual departure to SL Benfica in December 2015 in a deal worth €1.5 million.

Since then, Grimaldo has been an ever-present for the Portuguese giants, making 201 appearances and winning numerous titles and trophies. And, now it is being claimed that the 25-year-old is a player that Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman and his staff hold in high regard and may consider a move for him this summer.

Grimaldo is contracted with Benfica till 2023, with the Portuguese club open to a sale for a transfer fee of around €20 million. The 25-year-old is also attracting interest from Atletico Madrid as well as clubs in the Premier League.

Barcelona, though, would not be willing to meet Benfica’s valuation for the Spaniard, considering that it is not a priority signing for the club at the moment. Nevertheless, with there being plenty of time for the transfer window to open and close, there is a feeling that the Portuguese club might settle for a lower fee.

As for Grimaldo, the report states that the 25-year-old would be very happy to return to Barcelona, more than five years after he left the club.