At Barcelona, there is a huge number of players who have proven themselves in the first team and who have grown up in La Masia, such as Pablo Gavi, Iñaki Peña, Ansu Fati, Alejandro Balde, Pau Coparsi, Marc Bernal, Marc Casado, Héctor Fort, and Lamine Yamal.
However, there are also many gems who have made their debuts and enjoyed continuity in the elite at the Camp Nou but who have eventually had to leave the club in search of stability.
Among these examples are Carles Alena, Carles Pérez, Óscar Mingueza, Ángel Alarcón, Elias Akhomach, Alex Valle, Juan Miranda, and Ilaix Moriba.
According to information from the Catalan newspaper “Sport,” Nico González is the protagonist of the story, having made his debut under Ronald Koeman.
Nico impressed in his first few games and was quickly considered the successor to Sergio Busquets, as he had great ability and was close to joining the Spanish national team.
Unfortunately for him, things changed dramatically after Xavi Hernández took over as coach, as he dropped to second place and got limited playing minutes. Despite his unwillingness to leave, he was forced to try his luck at another club, with Valencia being his first stop.
He ended up there on loan, but he was not as successful as expected due to physical problems, which prompted Deco and Joan Laporta to allow him to leave permanently and accept the offer from Porto.
The newspaper added that this is the mistake that Barcelona regrets a lot, especially with the amazing progress that Nico González has made since moving to Portugal.
Nico has developed tremendously and has become one of the most sought-after young midfielders in Europe, with many of the most prestigious European clubs seeking to sign him.
Laporta admitted his mistake in assessing Nico’s abilities, and it seems that the eight million euros that Porto paid is very small, especially in light of the problems that Barcelona is suffering from in midfield.
If Barcelona wants to bring back Nico, they now have to pay more than 30 million euros, and contacts with his agent have already begun regarding next summer.