FAILING at the Nou Camp does not spell the end of your football career – as these footballers have proved.
Plenty have left Barcelona, often as La Masia graduates, and prospered elsewhere.
One has won the World Cup, another been the top scorer in Italy’s top flight TWICE, while others have gone on to make big money transfers to the world’s biggest clubs.
Here’s who the Catalans, perhaps shouldn’t have, let go – given their current state of disarray.
Marc Cucurella
The attacking left-back, 24, starred in Barca’s youth teams from 2012-17.
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However, he only played for their reserve side – never the first team – before he made his name at Eibar, Getafe and then Brighton.
Last week, he earned himself a £62million move to Chelsea, after excelling with the Seagulls.
Cesc Fabregas
The Spanish midfielder has enjoyed a storied career, playing in London, his homeland, Monaco, and now Como.
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A product of La Masia, he moved to Arsenal as a 16-year-old – with it being difficult to see a pathway into Barcelona’s first team.
He was the darling of North London, before returning to the LaLiga giants for £35million.
Cesc returned to the Premier League when he signed for Chelsea in 2014 – winning the title.
His greatest achievement in the game was to lift the World Cup in 2010 with Spain.
Mauro Icardi
The Argentine striker might be out of favour at PSG right now, but there was a time when he was the most feared forward in Italy.
He left Barça without playing a single game for the club in 2011 and joined Sampdoria.
Icardi was lethal in Serie A – winning the Capocannoniere two times and scoring 124 goals in just 219 games for Inter Milan.
In 2019 he moved to PSG, initially on loan, where he scored 20 goals in 34 games and won the French league in his first season.
He has since been frozen out, but has been tipped for a sensational move to Man Utd – with Wag and agent Wanda Nara reportedly offering the Premier League side his services.
Sergio Gomez
After missing out on Cucurella, Pep Guardiola has reverted to Plan B and snapped up Gomez from Anderlecht.
The £12million deal completes a remarkable journey in the 21-year-old defender’s career.
He did manage to play for Barcelona B, before he was shipped out to Borussia Dortmund.
He excelled on loan at second division Spanish club Huesca and was snapped up by Anderlecht in 2021, who he managed a goal or assist with every 45 minutes according to the statisticians.
Now he begins a new chapter in his young career.
Adama Traore
Another player who went full circle and returned to Barcelona.
Traore was with the Catalans from the age of eight – making one appearance between 2013-15.
He signed for Aston Villa in 2015, but was dropped from the team for ill-discipline as the club were relegated.
At Middlesbrough and then Wolves he was an exciting watch for fans – with his blistering pace recognised by EA Sports for their FIFA series.
Last season he went back on loan to the Nou Camp, but they decided against buying him permanently and now he’s back at Wolves.
Thiago Alcantara
The Liverpool midfielder has developed into one of the game’s leading playmakers.
But, there was a time he couldn’t get a game at Barcelona. A youth product with the club, he made 101 appearances across five seasons – mostly sub appearance.
However, it was away from Spain where he was at his best – wowing for Bayern Munich and winning the Champions League in 2020.
That’s not to mention winning seven Bundesliga titles in a row, before moving to Anfield in 2020.
Hector Bellerin
At somewhat of a crossroads in his career, it looks like Bellerin’s days at Arsenal are numbered.
The Spanish defender moved from Barcelona aged 17 and soon broke into the Gunners team – becoming a fashionable face in the football world.
In 2019, he suffered a ruptured ACL injury that left him sidelined for nine months.
Last season he enjoyed a loan spell at Real Betis, but is also a surprise target for Barcelona.
Mikel Arteta
The Arsenal manager, making waves at the Emirates and on Amazon’s All or Nothing series, was also a Barcelona youth product.
He played for Barcelona B, but wasn’t quite the standard for the first team and left for PSG on loan, then won the Scottish Premier League with Rangers.
After a short spell at hometown club Real Sociedad, he signed for Everton – and was a hit with the Toffees.
He signed for Arsenal in 2011 in a £10million deal, and became club captain ahead of the 2014-15 season.
Andre Onana
Well before the Cameroon goalie made his name at Ajax, Onana learned his keep at La Masia.
Acquired from the Samuel Eto’o Academy, he joined the club in 2010 and was there for five years.
He became Ajax No1 a year after joining the club in 2015, and went on to win three Dutch league titles.
However, he was banned from playing for nine months for testing positive to a banned substance – he claimed was his wife’s medicine.
Things look up now, though, because last month he signed for Inter Milan.
Alex Grimaldo
One of the most sought-after left-backs in Europe, Grimaldo was linked with Arsenal this summer.
And the Spanish defender has gone on to attract plenty of admirers at Benfica since Barcelona in 2016.
Grimaldo played 92 times for their reserve side, until the Portuguese side came calling for his services.
Across eight seasons in Lisbon, he has played 252 times and won the league title three times.
Thiago Motta
Spezia manager Motta’s early career was spent in Catalonia, but in truth injuries wrecked his dreams of making it.
In six seasons he managed 139 games, before he was shipped off to Atletico Madrid. Persistent knee injuries meant he last just a season at Aletico.
Motta reinvented himself in Italy with Genoa – helping the club qualify for the Europa League in 2009.
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He moved to Jose Mourinho’s Inter that same year – and was a vital cog in Italy’s most successful side and won the treble.
Motta then finished his career at PSG – becoming a club legend with five league titles to his name, as well as four French cups and four French league cups.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
