Hansi Flick Plots ‘Solution’ for Barcelona After Nico Williams Snub | OneFootball

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick is planning on turning to the club’s famed La Masia youth system in the immediate aftermath of Nico Williams’s shock snub, reports in Spain claim.

The Spanish forward was thought to be on the verge of joining up with Barcelona this month. Williams had reportedly agreed personal terms with the Catalan giants, who were preparing to pay Athletic Club his release clause in full. Yet, much to the shock of those in Catalonia, Williams penned a new 10-year contract in Bilbao on July 4.

This sharp U-turn was thought to be the consequence of Barcelona refusing to insert a clause into Williams’s contract which would have allowed him to be immediately released for free if he was not registered. The defending La Liga champions refused and now any deal is entirely off the table.

In the absence of Williams and with Barcelona’s preseason fixtures fast approaching, Flick is expected to upon the best talent La Masia has to offer, SPORT report, with Jan Virgili and Dani Rodríguez both tipped to make a significant impact this summer.

Jan Virgili has been a star of Barcelona’s youth team. / IMAGO/Ulmer/Teamfoto

Virgili, an 18-year-old forward comfortable on either flank, is yet to make his senior debut or even get a spot on the bench of a top-flight fixture. That could change in the near future given Williams’s snub and the departure of fellow forward Ansu Fati.

Despite his limited involvement in senior football, Virgili enjoyed an eye-catching run at this summer’s Under-19 European Championships, coming off the bench to equalize and then tee up the winner in a chaotic 6–5 semifinal victory for Spain over Germany.

Rodríguez has made his La Liga debut, starting against Real Valladolid in May. However, that seismic day ended in disappointment when the teenage forward was forced off in the first half with a shoulder injury. Rodríguez missed the U19 Euros with the same issue but is set to make his return in August.

Flick applied this approach of trusting youth throughout the 2024–25 season. “I like what I see from La Masia players. When we need them, we call them up,” the German coach gushed last summer. “I am impressed by La Masia.”

As much as he loves the youth system, Flick is still expected to be treated to the arrival of a new senior forward this summer. There has been plenty of speculation surrounding Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, while a deal for Liverpool’s Luis Díaz may remain outside Barcelona’s budget.