Has Barcelona's Arda Turan Lived Up to His €34 Million Price Tag?

It has been a tough year for Arda Turan.

After agreeing to sign for Barcelona last July, he knew he would spend the next six months on ice. What he didn’t envisage was his failure to click at the club in the rest of the season.

Because of Barcelona’s ban on registering players, which expired in January, Arda had to sit out half the season after joining the Catalan giants from Atletico Madrid for an initial €34 million.

He was not loaned out, with the club hoping he could adapt to life in the city and build up a good relationship with his team-mates in the interim period.

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By all accounts, he seems to have done so—the Turk is frequently pictured on Instagram with his Barcelona colleagues. But that does not translate to cohesion or good performances on the pitch.

Arda’s bad form since he made his debut against Espanyol in the Copa del Rey on January 6 even caused Sport to run an article titled “What is going on with Arda Turan at FC Barcelona?”

Writer Javier Giraldo described him as “a puzzle that needs solving," adding: "He's not been able to force himself into the team or connect with the game when he does. It still hasn't been decided where he fits in—central midfield or in the forward line?"

Arda was made a scapegoat of sorts after the Clasico on April 2, when he came on for Ivan Rakitic with 16 minutes to go, shortly after Karim Benzema’s equaliser.

Barcelona lost control of the game completely after the Turkey captain's introduction. Some of that was his fault, but it went in line with the general trend of the game.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a late winner and Gareth Bale hit the woodwork as Madrid dominated the end of the game and upset Barcelona’s apple cart.

That was when fingers started being pointed at Arda, who until that point had been a quite disappointment rather than a problem.

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Despite his versatility, being able to cover Andres Iniesta, Ivan Rakitic, Lionel Messi and Neymar’s positions, he has not helped Luis Enrique rest his first team because his performances have not been good enough.

If the coach believed Arda was going to play at a high level, he would find it easier to give his Gala XI players a breather.

Arda has, unfortunately, picked up more bookings in his time at Barcelona (eight) than assists (four) and goals (two) combined.

In his first six Barcelona appearances, he played at least 45 minutes in each. In the other 17, he has only reached that figure eight times.

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Arda has only played the full 90 minutes on five occasions as a Barcelona player, hinting his fitness level is not to Enrique’s liking—although on occasion he appears to have been taken off for his own good after getting booked or because his performance was abject.

The latter was the case against Real Sociedad, Villarreal and Las Palmas, games in which he had chances to shine but failed to take them.

So far, Arda has proved to be a poor investment for Barcelona. On paper, it looked like a good deal—robbing a rival of a key man while getting someone who could offer high-quality cover across the attacking half of the pitch. It has not turned out that way.

Of course, it would be harsh to judge him only on his first five months at the club, ignoring his down spell, but Arda must pull his socks up if he is to become a success.