Barcelona have not hesitated to throw in La Masia players this season or last, but one exception to the rule could see the Blaugrana bid farewell to one of the better players in their academy. At just 20 years old, Marc Casado has been on the fringes of the first team for the last two seasons, but is yet to be given a proper shot.
Despite Barcelona lacking a natural option for the pivot position outside of Oriol Romeu, who has been left on the bench often by Xavi Hernandez, Casado has rarely seen game time. Sport point out that Casado has been in the first-team squad on 34 occasions, but has yet to make his La Liga debut. On Saturday, central defender Andreas Christensen was given the nod ahead of him this season too.
Casado has played three times for Barcelona, all of which in the Champions League, amounting to a total of 45 minutes. He is also out of contract at the end of the season, and while Barcelona have an option to extend his deal by a further year, the lack of trust shown in a regular for Barca Atletic could see him leave the club.
The Blaugrana perhaps do not to feel Casado has the long-term potential to carve out a place in the side, but it’s also true that Barcelona’s injury crisis has been less intense in midfield than it has elsewhere. Romeu, Frenkie de Jong, Ilkay Gundogan and Fermin Lopez have been fit all season, while one of Pedri or Gavi has often been available too, leaving Casado with a tricky job to earn minutes.
