Barcelona are starting to lose patience with Joao Felix. That much was evident when Xavi Hernandez hauled him off at half-time during their 3-2 win over Almeria, yet President Joan Laporta does not want to hear about it.
Internally at Barcelona, the doubts are growing around Felix, who looks like the same player as he did at Atletico Madrid, leading them to jettison the Portuguese. Capable of the brilliant, that sparkle only appears on rare occasions, and his lack of commitment inbetween those performances leave his position in question.
Those in charge of the money at Barcelona believe it would be ‘suicidal’ for a club with such financial difficulties to try to sign Felix permanently next summer, as they have stated they want to. Culemania detail that while patience is running out at Montjuic, Laporta remains removed from the situation. A personal project of his, Laporta has been a firm backer of Felix, and is part of the reason he always starts. Despite the obvious evidence in front of his eyes, Laporta does not accept it whenever he has a bad game, or there is criticism of the Portuguese.
Meanwhile his other main backer at the club, also with links to his agent Jorge Mendes, is Sporting Director Deco. He on the other hand is ‘the ultimate pragmatist’, and is willing to turn his back on Felix if the performances do not follow. The coaching staff have their doubts, and it remains to be seen whether they maintain Felix in the line-up, risking the wrath of Laporta or perhaps gaining an improvement in fortunes on the pitch.
Xavi was never keen on Felix’s arrival, but he came as a condition of Barcelona loaning Joao Cancelo, an exchange he was willing to accept. It did mean that Barcelona missed out on other targets, such as Giovani Lo Celso though.
There will only be so long Xavi can continue playing Felix if he continues to not only underperform, but not put the effort in. At a certain point, if it looks like his job is on the line anyway, the motives for playing him are no longer there.
