Munir Copa Goals Come Too Late for Impact at Barcelona with Nolito Loan Close

Barcelona cruised through to the next round of the Copa del Rey with a 2-0 win over derby rivals Espanyol on Wednesday night, giving Luis Enrique's men a 6-1 victory on aggregate.

Young forward Munir netted both second-leg goals, his first strikes of the season against meaningful opposition in his 19th appearance. While the strikes were welcome ones for the 20-year-old, they have come far too late in the campaign for his manager to really place trust in Munir—he clocked up just shy of 1,000 minutes of game time before finally hitting the back of the net against anyone other than third-tier Villanovense.

With Nolito said to be extremely close to sealing a loan move from Celta Vigo to Barcelona, per Marca, Munir's chances will become even more sporadic, and he will be thinking he has missed a big chance to impact on the first-team scene.

Munir, In and Out of the Copa

Prior to the second leg at the Estadi Cornella-El Prat, Munir had clocked up 18 appearances through the season in all competitions, with 11 in La Liga and four in the Champions League which together accounted for over 750 minutes of game time.

During that period, and especially while Leo Messi was out injured and Munir and Sandro were rotated in to fill in for the No. 10, it was disheartening for Barcelona fans to see just how far short both fell to filling the gap.

Of course, nobody—much less a youthful prospect—would offer the same level that Messi, of all people, does, but in terms of performing well, finding end product and being consistent with their performances, Munir was a disappointment.

PATRIK STOLLARZ/Getty Images

He provided a few assists along the way, true, and the odd important one at that, but consistency is the only way to find a path into the Barcelona XI on a regular basis. He failed to find this and, aside from the Copa del Rey and however long his team last in the competition, Munir is going to find it very hard to get additional minutes over the rest of the campaign.

Lucho

As recently as last week, manager Luis Enrique suggested his front line needed strengthening.

Even with Arda Turan coming into the midfield line and Aleix Vidal able to play either from full-back or on the wing, giving the front three more room to rest or rotate was clearly paramount in the manager's thoughts. Per Marca, he said:

"

Negotiations are tough [in January], [but we will try] right up until the final day. I think that if someone's going to come in, we need to strengthen the frontline, although ideally I'd like to strengthen in all departments.

"

Signing further bodies might have to wait until summer, and certainly for any exits, but the loan move for Nolito—with a compulsory purchase agreement in summer, according to the report—won't stretch immediate finances and will give international-standard cover in the front line.

Front Four

Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez; the "MSN" attack of Barcelona is frighteningly good at times, but they cannot play every match; injury has robbed Messi of more than a month already, while a suspension is never too far away for Suarez. Neymar has had illness and injury this season, too. The latter two have already clocked up well over 2,000 minutes of game time each this season.

Add Nolito to the mix and, while he usually plays left side of the front line for Celta, it's probable that he can cover the right side, too. Both Neymar and Messi can play centrally, so Lucho has the rotational prospects he requires, especially factoring in the versatility of Vidal and Sergi Roberto.

MIGUEL RIOPA/Getty Images

Whether Nolito will continue getting enough minutes is another matter; he'll very likely be used as a regular substitute, as Pedro was, but he has a Euro 2016 place to play for and is returning from injury. He needs to impact reasonably well to make the cut for Vicente del Bosque's Spain selection, but at least he can be assured that playing alongside three of the world's best forwards will make his ability to be consistent that little bit easier.

As for Munir, a watching brief for the rest of the season appears the most likely bet, if not an outright loan away. He took his goals well against Espanyol when the pressure was off, but in the games that really mattered, he has missed his chance this term.

Follow @karlmatchett