Barcelona appear to have one key signing left in mind for this summer transfer window. Manchester City’s Joao Cancelo is an arrival that has been described as a ‘matter of time’ this week, even if they are yet to make an actual offer.
If Cancelo does arrive at Barcelona, then Xavi Hernandez will finally have an experienced and quality right-back at his disposal. While plenty of players have come and gone, many young and talented, none have actually previously shown before that they can play at the highest level since Dani Alves left the first time.
Sport point out that Xavi will likely have to alter his ideas in order to fit him into the side. So far the likes of Jules Kounde and Ronald Araujo have played a more conservative version of right-back, but Cancelo will either have to be given similar duties to Alejandro Balde on the right side, or Cancelo could move inside and join the midfielders.
Barcelona started with three at the back and used Balde further forward against Cadiz on Sunday, but if he were to use Cancelo in a similar role, it would mean removing the likes of Raphinha or Lamine Yamal as the wide right player.
Equally Barcelona used five central midfielders against Cadiz, including Oriol Romeu, Frenkie de Jong, Ilkay Gundogan, Pedri and Gavi. They have little need for another midfielder in that area. It seems likely that one way or another, Xavi will have to change his system with four central midfielders from last season.
One of the options that has perhaps been suggested less is a return to a more classic 4-3-3 formation, with full-backs streaming forward. So far Xavi has found his side unable to cope defensively with the setup that saw him have so much success as a player.
However with the likes of Cancelo, Gundogan, Pedri and Romeu, he will have several players capable of holding onto the ball under pressure. It seems likely that one of Yamal or Raphinha will continue, thus it may be that Cancelo does not have a fixed position. He could alter his position depending on whether those wide players move inside or stay close to the touchline, and should be intelligent enough to read the game in real-time. The problem may be that if Cancelo does go outside, only Romeu, or the deepest midfielder, will be left with the two central defenders to cope with counter-attacks behind the ball.
De Jong has also shown that he functions well in a double pivot that allows him to stride forward, but struggles more as an ‘interior’, which could condition the side significantly as to how the midfield works if last season’s idea is ditched.
Whichever system Xavi uses, it looks as if he will end up sacrificing players on the bench, or using one or two players in a different role to which they usually excel in. It’s a headache Xavi will enjoy, and no doubt injuries will often deprive him of all of these options, but there is no doubt that Cancelo opens up a number of possibilities for Barcelona.
