Why It's so Important Barcelona Secure the Best Right-Back Option This Summer
Barcelona's summer transfer activity has yet to really click into gear, but one of the outgoing players leaves a rather significant hole in the side: Dani Alves, who is linked most heavily with a switch Juventus after confirming he would leave the Catalan side, per ESPN.
Reports have been conflicting so far as to who Luis Enrique's team might look at to plug the gap Alves will leave, with the Brazilian having been largely uncontested in his role for much of his eight seasons at the club—meaning in turn there is no absolute standout to immediately fill the void.
.jpg?w=256 "Chiefs Giants Football")
Given Barcelona need a midfield addition, are in the market for a centre-back and have long been seeking adequate backup to their prolific front three, a new right-back isn't perhaps the first priority in some onlookers' eyes.
It should, however, be one of the areas of the team giving the head coach and supporters the most sleepless nights at present; get it spot on and Barcelona will continue being a force, but underestimate the importance of having a suitable right-back in place and a large part of the team's success could suddenly be missing.
Scattergun rumours
Are Barca looking to even replace Alves? If so, who with? The short answer seems to be that nobody knows, at least with any specificity, with the current rumours more varied and vague than ever before.
Sport's Lluis Miguelsanz reported initially that there were three names on the shortlist: Hector Bellerin of Arsenal, Joao Cancelo of Valencia and Mariano of Sevilla. The former was the preference, naturally, as a former La Masia prospect and on the verge of establishing himself in the Spain national team, but the Mirror's Ed Malyon suggested that an initial enquiry was met with a firm no from the Gunners.
Moving on to Cancelo, Barcelona appeared confident of doing a cut-price deal for a player rated at €20 million on the market, with Sport's Miguelsanz suggesting the price could be lowered by moves for Alen Halilovic and Cristian Tello in the opposite direction, but the same report also added three new names to the watchlist: Serge Aurier of PSG, Bruno Peres of Torino and Sime Vrsaljko of Sassuolo.
Marca's Dario Puig quickly moved to muddy the waters further, as he reported Los Che wouldn't do business for Cancelo below his €30 million release clause—before Marca's Xavi Hernandez contradicted that report a day later by saying Barcelona didn't want to sign anybody for right-back.
Current options
Barcelona's right-back options are nice and clear, then. There are possibly six players coming in for the one position, where Barca currently have two squad players available to them—but neither are genuine positional fits.
Sergi Roberto started last season in phenomenal form, playing, of course, from right-back. Dani Alves was injured and then left sidelined by Roberto's upturn in performances, before the Spaniard had to move into midfield to cover for injuries elsewhere. In the second half of the season, summer signing Aleix Vidal became available for use and played both in defence and the forward line on the right side, but he didn't really show his best level.
Between the two of them, could they see out a full season at the required standard? Possibly, but it means in turn that Barcelona would need to add another midfield option to the squad, and they simply don't have the additional funds to bring in another expensive name who won't play significant minutes.
Of the linked players, Cancelo's €20m (or €30m) price tag is way too high, considering the performances offered to Los Che over the past year.
Fitness issues aside, he was utilised mainly as a right-sided midfielder ahead of Antonio Barragan for a large part of the campaign and, while his attacking play was at times impressive from a higher starting point, he hasn't often shown the capacity to do that when starting as part of a back four.
If money is so tight at the Catalan club this summer that they are struggling to get the number of players they need, they dare not get this position wrong.
Dani Alves
What makes signing a right-back so important, then, versus a fourth (or fifth) forward or an additional midfield option? Simply put, the way Alves has bossed the role over most of the last decade.
The Brazilian full-back is a marauding, powerful runner, who's still rapid even into his 30s and strikes fear into opposition defences thanks to his long reputation of attacking at will, providing good delivery into the box and having a good enough engine to get back and do his defensive work, too.
More winger than defender, Alves stations himself high upfield as an outlet for Barcelona, occupies the space on the touchline to ensure opposition defences are continually stretched and has the self-confidence to take players on, go for shots from range or cross repeatedly into dangerous areas.
His one-touch play infield is good, he'll happily burst into the area, and his longevity is testament to Alves' consistency as much as his quality.
It's a huge volume of work to replace—one entire flank taken care of in the same way as Roberto Carlos did for Real Madrid or Cafu did for Brazil.
Even as Alves' actual on-pitch influence and performances have waned over the last two years—and there have been lengthy spells where he either didn't play as much or was reasonably consistently poor—his status in the game and reputation for delivery was enough to keep teams on the back foot and wary of his ability to cause danger.
Simply by Alves not being there next season, teams will immediately be less fearful of Barcelona's threat from deep and, with the greatest of respect to his undoubted potential and current level of play, Joao Cancelo will not come close to giving teams the same level of worry even before the match has kicked off.
Messi
Lest we forget, there's another tactical reason Alves has become so important under Lucho: his overlaps, link play and the freedom of movement he allows for the man ahead of him, Lionel Messi.
The Barca No. 10 dips infield or even stations himself semi-permanently there, leaving Alves to exploit gaps with good timing and powerful running.
Lose that understanding and timing down the flank, and Barcelona lose a big chunk of their attacking armoury, while also potentially inhibiting Messi's play-space from the channel if the new face makes his move forward too early, too narrow or without appreciation for the opposition defence's layout.
It's rare that a full-back spot in a team is so fundamentally ingrained in their success and strength over a long period of time, but Dani Alves has embodied the offensive, attacking defender like no other over almost a decade.
Barcelona cannot afford to take the matter of his replacement lightly, nor overspend on a player who does not completely fit the requirements.
.jpg?w=480 "Chiefs Giants Football")
.jpg?w=600 "Browns GM Speaks on Trade Buzz")
