Sport
Barcelona’s Next No. 9: Laporta’s Biggest Test Yet
Barcelona have a problem up front. With Robert Lewandowski set to leave the club in the summer when his contract expires, they are certain to add more firepower. But there will be expectation that a certain calibre of replacement will be found.
This season, it has become clear that Lewandowski has lost his edge. For any regular 37-year-old, 11 La Liga goals would be a decent return, plus four more in the Champions League. But that is the point, the Pole has not been a regular striker for much of the past 15 years; he should have been well past his best when he joined Barça in 2022 after leaving Bayern Munich by ‘regular’ metrics. Yet, he has gone on to score 80 times in the league and helped spearhead the post-Lionel Messi era.
Hansi Flick is losing trust in the man he knows so well and first met during their time at Bayern. He will lead the line between now and the end of the season, with defending the league title very much in sight and a potential first European crown for 11 years up for grabs. But that is mainly because Ferran Torres, the other attacking option at Flick’s disposal, is not enjoying the opportunities he was earlier in the campaign. His days at Camp Nou are said to be numbered, too.
This is a critical summer for Barça generally. Joan Laporta, their president, has just been elected for a second successive term in a second spell, and will be looking to further strengthen the club’s position as a genuine force at the top of European football. Given their size, that may not seem like much of a challenge, but only five years ago, Barça were facing financial issues which genuinely threatened their existence, leading to Messi’s departure and questions over whether they’d ever truly compete again.
That was where Laporta came in, almost 20 years after first taking the reigns, and his remit was eerily similar. At both junctions, Barça’s relevance was questioned; everything taken for granted about the club in the 21st century comes down to decisions Laporta made in 2003, when the club has finished as low as sixth in La Liga. It started with putting Dutch legend and former player and coach Johan Cruyff’s ideals at the heart of everything with Frank Rijkaard in charge of the team and Ronaldinho the star attraction.
From there Messi emerged and Pep Guardiola took the club on to historic success after Laporta left in 2010. In the face of mounting debts and major mismanagement on his return, he again took a gamble with keeping the club relevant at the forefront of his mind. Lewandowski, Torres and Raphinha were among signings with money the club didn’t really have, and they gambled their future on success in the present. They are still doing that now, but the emergence of the likes of Pedri, Pau Cubarsi and particularly Lamine Yamal has arguably justified that approach.
But with Lewandowski needing a replacement, this next move is the biggest Laporta has needed to make in years. Financially, things are more stable, with the club bringing in lucrative sponsorship money and returning to Camp Nou as a revamp of the stadium continues. Only the best number 9s on the market will do.
Erling Haaland is the ultimate target, but the Manchester City man’s contract is a difficult hurdle to surpass, and the fee he would command is beyond anyone, let alone a club with Barça’s money troubles. Julian Alvarez, who ironically left City for lack of opportunities due to Haaland’s presence in 2024, is the man most heavily linked in recent weeks. His league form has been poor for Atletico Madrid this season, with just eight goals, but he has matched that tally in the Champions League. While his diminutive stature would be a departure from Lewandowski, he certainly has the pedigree Barça are looking for. Torres may well be used as part of the deal to minimise the financial impact, but you can be sure Atleti won’t make it easy.
Beyond Alvarez, there aren’t many options who would suit Barça on the market. When Alexander Isak left Newcastle United for Liverpool last summer, he felt like a good fit, but there was no way they could compete on a financial level. A disastrous season with injuries and just one Premier League goal has seen his stock fall; bizarre rumours of a potential move in recent days are unlikely to become concrete.
Laporta is far from perfect but he he has always understood how to keep Barça as a fighting force. As they approach the need for a new striker, though, perhaps his biggest challenge is in the offing.
