Javier Mascherano's New Deal Buys Barcelona Time to Bed in Summer Signings
For a long while, it seemed like Javier Mascherano was on the way out of Barcelona.
The Argentinian defensive midfielder was with his national team, playing in the Copa America, but Sport's Tomas Andreu broke an exclusive story, detailing Mascherano's desire to leave the club. He wrote:
"The Argentine international is fed up of the club’s continued unfulfillment of contractual promises and is determined to leave unless there is a radical change in the coming weeks.
Mascherano has offers from elsewhere and feels that Barca have not treated him as he deserves to be treated. He communicated as much to the club four months ago after thoroughly talking the decision through with those closest to him and his representatives.
"
The same writer detailed how manager Luis Enrique tried to convince the midfielder to stay after Mascherano told the coach about his wishes during the final phases of last season.
However, Andreu explained how the Asturian respected the 32-year-old’s feelings, and if the situation could not be rectified, he would accept the player's departure.
When Barcelona signed Samuel Umtiti from Olympique Lyonnais for £21 million earlier in the summer, it cast further doubts on Mascherano's chances of staying. There were strong links with Juventus, potentially following Barcelona stalwart Dani Alves to Turin and Serie A.
They persisted as recently as Monday, with Corriere dello Sport (h/t ESPN FC) saying Mascherano was the Bianconeri's top target to replace Paul Pogba, who is set to leave Turin.
But on Wednesday, it was announced Mascherano will soon put pen to paper on a contract extension with Barcelona.
Sporting director Robert Fernandez flew out to the United States to speak to Mascherano during the Copa America, reassuring him the club was desperate to keep him and that a new contract was on the agenda, per Andreu.
As club representative Albert Soler explained during Wednesday's presentation of Andre Gomes: "Javier Mascherano and Barca have reached an agreement for him to continue at the club. We celebrate that this improved contract allows Javier to stay for three more years and this was one of the pending issues we had to resolve."
That settles that. And although Mascherano wouldn’t be included as one of Barcelona’s best players, he’s certainly one of their most important.
Having grown into his role as a centre-back, even though his best position is in midfield, he adds intensity to Barcelona’s game. His desire to win is second to none, and of the entire squad, he is the least likely to be accused of being lazy or not caring.
Mascherano is the ultimate professional and is considered a captain without an armband. Alves was a crucial figure in the dressing room, widely loved by his team-mates and a key determiner of the club’s mood. Losing the Argentinian, the Jefecito (little chief), would have been a brutal blow for a club undergoing a moderate transformation.
As Ben Hayward wrote for Goal: "Mascherano, of course, is not the captain. Not for Argentina, nor for Barcelona. But it does not matter one bit, because he is the player who lifts all the others, he is the extension of the coach on the pitch, the man to whom others look in times of crisis. And he doesn't need an armband to be a leader."
It is his leadership qualities that make a one-year contract extension to 2019 a reasonable idea for Barcelona. Even if he is not able to play at the same level he currently manages, when he's 35 he should still be having positive effects on the team’s mentality and determination level.
Mascherano’s new deal buys the club time to bed in the likes of Umtiti, Lucas Digne, Denis Suarez and Gomes because those players will find it easier to fit in if someone like him is ensuring Lucho’s demands and the rigors of life at the top level are transmitted down the chain.
It is likely he will start the season alongside Gerard Pique at centre-back, a calm and stable partnership, with Umtiti given time to settle into life in Barcelona, both the city and the club.
If Mascherano had left, it would have either been Umtiti thrown in at the deep end or one of Jeremy Mathieu and Thomas Vermaelen who would have needed to be a starting figure.
Both those players have quality, but neither has shown it enough to merit being a fixture in the first XI of a club that will realistically be aiming to win the treble.
And while Barcelona have plenty of cover in midfield, if Sergio Busquets was to drop out injured or suspended, Mascherano would be the No. 1 choice to fill in for him.
Sergi Samper has potential and is far closer to Busquets in style than Mascherano is, but Barcelona would be much more comfortable in a big game with the latter as a wrecking ball at the base of their midfield rather than a relatively untested starlet.
With Barcelona’s newest signing, Andre Gomes, likely to require a lengthy adaptation period, he will feel more confident with Mascherano behind him—whether that’s in defence or midfield—than he would backed up by either Umtiti or Samper.
It is no surprise Mascherano is one of the players cutting their holiday short and coming back early, per Javier Miguel of Sport. He is with the club in England as they train at St. George’s Park in Burton upon Trent.
The continuity Mascherano offers will also help balance the defence as either Sergi Roberto or Aleix Vidal takes over from Alves at right-back.
It is a fight between those two players to see who gets to step into the Brazilian's boots, with Vidal the natural choice. However, Roberto has his fine performances in the position last season in his favour.
Whoever gets the nod will doubtless make a few mistakes along the way, and Mascherano has proved time and time again he is a fantastic last-ditch defender, ready to help out his team-mates should they slip up.
He famously did it against Arsenal in the Champions League in 2011, making a breathtaking tackle on Nicklas Bendtner to prevent the Dane from scoring and keep Barcelona in the competition. He has done it on many occasions for his country too.
Mascherano’s new deal means he will be able to keep that up in Catalonia during the years to come, as well as allowing his new team-mates to find their feet.
.jpg?w=600 "Shedeur not currently in line for Browns QB1")
