On Tuesday, Barcelona announced the shock news that Mateu Alemany would be leaving his position as Director of Football at the end of the season.
Alemany took up the position in 2021, having previously been heavily involved at Mallorca and Valencia. During his time at Barcelona, he oversaw 19 first team signings, as per MD. Some were a success, others less so.
Memphis Depay, Eric Garcia and Sergio Aguero were Alemany first three signings, and they were all free transfers. The former joined from Lyon, while Garcia and Aguero arrived from Manchester City.
Depay had a successful first season at Barcelona, but fell down the pecking order during the first half of this campaign, and he was sold to Atletico Madrid in January. Garcia is still at the club, although he has been linked with a move away in the summer, while Aguero was forced to retire less than six months after joining due to heart problems.
Emerson Royal joined permanently in the early stages of the summer transfer window in 2021, before being sold a few weeks later for profit. Yusuf Demir and Luuk De Jong (both loans) also joined in the summer of 2021. The former failed to deliver on his potential and he subsequently returned to Austria, while De Jong had an okay spell in Catalonia, but he failed to set to world alight.
In the winter window of 2021/22, Ferran Torres, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Adama Traore (loan) were signed, while Dani Alves signed a few months prior. Torres remains at Barcelona, although he has yet to fulfil his potential, while the other three have all since left, with Aubameyang having been the only successful signing.
Barcelona spent big last summer, recruiting the likes of Raphinha, Jules Kounde and Robert Lewandowski on big-money deals. All three have had successful first seasons, and will likely remain at the club going into next season.
Pablo Torre also joined from Racing Santander for €5m, and although he has yet to make his mark on the first team, the youngster has plenty of potential.
Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessie and Marcos Alonso also joined on free transfers. The latter two have impressed at times when called upon, but Christensen has arguably been Alemany’s best signing. The Danish defender has been in sensational form this season, and he looks set to continue being an important player going forward.
Hector Bellerin also joined on a free from Arsenal, and despite being the only natural right back in Barcelona’s first team squad, he failed to make his mark, and he was subsequently sold to Sporting CP in January.
Barcelona’s financial situation meant that they failed to officially sign anyone in January, although a deal was agreed with LA Galaxy for Julian Araujo. Late paperwork meant that the transfer was not approved in the winter, but he will join this summer.
All in all, Alemany has had a fairly successful tenure as Director of Football at Barcelona. His focus on free transfers has been fruitful, although he has been largely unsuccessful in solving the club’s financial issues. However, he will get a chance to help, in that regard, before his time is up.
