Problems for Barça? The stance of Flick's three discards in the winter market

The FC Barcelona board does not expect major news in the final stretch of the winter market. Although the club had at least three fixed discards in the squad for the second half of the 2024-25 season, the players' stance, along with other sporting and economic factors, closed the door to any negotiation. This is the case for Ansu Fati, Pablo Torre, and Andreas Christensen. Three top-level footballers who, despite being sentenced to a secondary role until May, will choose to stay and fight for a spot and link a true 'miracle' that allows them to play more often.

Ansu Fati

The player from Bissau is a headache for the board and the coaching staff, as Hansi Flick does not count on him and his salary (14 million euros gross per year) is one of the highest in the squad. Ansu has only accumulated 186 minutes of action in 8 appearances this season, but he has no intentions of leaving for Arabia at just 22 years old. In LaLiga, clubs like Sevilla were very interested in him, but his high salary put a barrier to negotiations. Looking ahead to the summer, it is likely that Barça will choose to renew his contract (which ends in 2027) to adjust his earnings to a figure that facilitates his departure.

Pablo Torre

The Cantabrian was rumored as a possible reinforcement for Girona or Sevilla, but he will ultimately not move from Barcelona this January. Pablo has only accumulated 361 minutes in 11 matches (4 goals and 3 assists), but he is convinced to wait for more opportunities in the second half of the season. Unlike Ansu, Hansi Flick does count on him as an attacking alternative, although he is behind Gavi, Fermín López, and Dani Olmo in terms of quality minutes. In his first season, he experienced a similar situation under the orders of Xavi Hernández, but he endured the entire 2022-23 season as a substitute.

Andreas Christensen

The same goes for the Danish center-back. Christensen just received medical clearance last week and knows that, for now, he is the last center-back in Hansi Flick's plans. Even Eric García, who will also not leave this January, surpasses him in the coach's rotations, although the Catalan has been counted on more for the midfield (pivot) than in defense. The 28-year-old defender was rumored as a possible reinforcement for at least two English clubs, but he prefers to wait until summer to define his future. The '15' barely played in the first matchday of La Liga before suffering a tendinopathy that kept him 'KO' for almost five months.