If Barcelona Need to Raise a £100M Transfer Kitty, Who Should They Sell?

Barcelona aren't shy about splashing the cash these days. With La Masia's production line somewhat halted compared to the success of players coming through in the early part of the century, replenishing the squad has fallen to those in charge of the chequebooks instead.

And the Catalan club habitually shop at the expensive end of the market.

As a commercially prosperous, well-supported and successful club, finances aren't generally an issue—but what if they wanted to raise £100 million for a big investment?

It could be done in a heartbeat, of course, by offloading any one of the front three...but ripping apart the world's best strike force would be counterproductive to improving the side overall.

Instead, we're asking who the club should look to sell to raise the funds—and we've achieved it by selling off five players, totalling the full £100 million, which won't be to the detriment of the side at the disposal of Luis Enrique and his eventual successor.

Jeremy Mathieu: £1 Million

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First up is French defender Jeremy Mathieu. He won't bring in too much money in transfer value, but he takes up a large chunk of the wage bill and doesn't match it with contributions on the pitch.

Having initially played a big role after joining, Mathieu's time at Barcelona has been restricted to filling in for injuries, being used in squad rotation against lesser sides and watching on from the bench, and this season, he has played fewer than 1,000 minutes in all competitions.

Mathieu will be approaching 34 years of age at the start of next season, and the signing—and success—of Samuel Umtiti has rendered the former Valencia man a redundant part of Barcelona's squad.

With one year left on his deal and taking into account his age, Mathieu will only raise a minimal amount above a free transfer, but he should still be one of the first out the door this summer.

Aleix Vidal: £14 Million

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Inconsistent, ignored and then injured—it hasn't been a happy time for Aleix Vidal at Barcelona, despite a brief upturn in form shortly before his season-ending dislocated ankle.

The right-back was signed from Sevilla for around £13 million and initially couldn't play, along with Arda Turan, due to the transfer ban on Barca at the time. Perhaps that long spell on the sidelines knocked his sharpness, perhaps he simply wasn't of the required standard—but either way, Vidal has rarely looked capable of nailing down a regular spot.

Sure, he had a flurry of form and impact in the final third for around a month earlier this term, but that's nowhere near enough and not even as good as Sergi Roberto has previously proved from the same position.

Barcelona are likely to sign another right-back this summer, of one style or another depending on the formation they play, and Roberto is the more logical choice to keep due to his age and versatility.

Vidal will still fetch more or less the same fee Barca paid for him, allowing the position to be upgraded in the process.

Andre Gomes: £20 Million

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Vidal's value might not have dropped, but there's no question Andre Gomes' has.

The Portuguese midfielder has been a bust—a poor decision to sign in the first place, as he was overpriced and there were plenty of other targets who could have played his role more effectively—with the total amount payable to Valencia reaching €55 million with add-ons.

We ranked Gomes as the Barcelona player whose value had fallen most this season, due to his consistently ineffective performances in the centre of the park and the fact Barcelona look a more cohesive, fluid and rounded unit without him.

He's not a part of the three-man midfield in a 4-3-3, and Lucho's switch to 3-4-3 leaves even less room for Gomes to shine—he's not dynamic enough to feature on the sides of the quartet in the middle and cannot be trusted to protect the defence at the base of the central zone, either.

There will be takers around Europe for him, and he'll be a good player for slightly lesser sides than Barcelona, who will ask him to operate in a more natural way, but there's no chance of him adapting his game to give this side what they need.

Sell, recoup at least most of the initial outlay paid for him and invest it more wisely next time.

Ivan Rakitic: £30 Million

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Gomes isn't the only midfielder who has struggled for form and has been marginalised to an extent by the switch to 3-4-3; Ivan Rakitic has gone from being an indispensable part of the Barcelona XI to one who flits in and out according to need or the unreliability of others.

Rakitic was out of the side at the start of the year but has rediscovered form and signed a new contract. However, on the right side of midfield in the 3-4-3 system, he is wasted, unable to help link play from middle to final thirds and is more concerned with tracking back down the channel and filling in for his defence on the flank. Naturally, he's not quite of the required level to do so.

He's an elite attacking midfielder, one of La Liga's finest over the past few years with Barca and Sevilla, but moving him back downfield at this stage is not the right move.

If Barcelona were dominant and controlled both possession and territory, as they used to under Pep Guardiola, Rakitic would be better utilised even in this formation, but such is the (comparative) lack of midfield control that Luis Enrique's team have, the Croatian is forced backwards more often.

Rakitic would fetch a huge fee in the market, maybe even more than the £30 million we predict if Barca played hardball, and there would be no shortage of offers.

Jordi Alba: £35 Million

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The final exit is a surprising name, perhaps, but taken in context, it makes sense.

Jordi Alba has been a fantastic part of Barcelona's side for five seasons, raiding up and down the left flank from defence to attack, aggressively challenging at one end and using his immense pace to offer overloads down the other.

But there are two mitigating circumstances that make his exit not just bearable but sensible: The 28-year-old isn't needed in the 3-4-3, with a midfielder on the left of the middle quartet and Neymar wide in the front line, and he has been a regular on the bench over the past three months.

Secondly, there's Lucas Digne: The French left-back isn't as explosive as Alba, but he has been excellent for Barca since signing in the summer, rarely costing his team possession or chances and always diligent about his work in both halves of the field. Digne fills the role in a different way to Alba, but he also won't have to be in the side every week.

Alba would fetch an astronomical fee for a full-back, being a Barca and Spain first choice, but there's a good chance that—especially if the current system prevails—his presence on the field, marred at times by indiscipline and injury, wouldn't be missed as much as might once have been expected.