Barcelona-owned midfielder Carles Alena has said he would be ‘crazy’ to rule out staying at Real Betis beyond this season, where he is ‘very, very happy’.
Alena joined the Seville-based club in January due to a lack of first-team minutes at the Camp Nou, where he found himself behind Frenkie de Jong, Sergio Busquets, Arturo Vidal, Ivan Rakitic and Artur Melo in the pecking order.
That decision was made when Ernesto Valverde was still boss at the Blaugrana and it is thought that his successor Quique Setien may have afforded the 22-year-old more opportunities.
“It would be crazy if I closed the door to Betis,” Alena is cited as saying by El Mundo Deportivo. “I am very happy, I love the city, I have had my first son here and I am delighted with how the players are treated in the club.
“The future? I don’t look any further than this season. You have to be focused on that. I am very, very happy at Real Betis and I don’t want to think about the future. I am just thinking about Sevilla (the first La Liga match back).”
La Masia youth graduate Alena made 27 first-team appearances for the Catalan giants last season after being promoted from their B team but started just two games this season after the opening day of the campaign.
Alena has made 10 appearances for Betis to date since his loan move two months ago and has generally impressed in his outings for Los Verdiblancos, who languish in the lower half of mid-table in La Liga.
