Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman handed American winger Konrad De La Fuente his senior debut for the club earlier this season, but could be forced to see him leave the La Liga side this coming summer.
The Catalan club will be listening to offers for De La Fuente, ESPN reported Friday. De La Fuente made his first team debut in the UEFA Champions League, but is currently low on the pecking order for minutes with Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann, and others higher on the list.
De La Fuente has mainly played with Barca B this season, helping the team fight for promotion to the Segunda Liga. The 19-year-old Florida native has made 16 combined appearances with Barca B, scoring two goals and registering three assists.
He’s also made three first team appearances, totaling 36 minutes of action between the UCL and Copa Del Rey competitions.
Barcelona rewarded De La Fuente with a new contract back in June 2020, locking him up until 2022. The club also holds an option to extend his contract to 2024 if they wish, but due to financial reasons they could be in the market to sell him for a sizable transfer fee.
De La Fuente was linked with Hertha Berlin earlier this season and could be on the wishlist of several other European clubs. A former U.S. Under-20 and Under-18 Men’s National Team player, De La Fuente made his senior debut for Gregg Berhalter’s side in November, playing 71 minutes in a 0-0 draw with Wales.
He was not named in the USMNT squad for the past four friendly matches dating back to December.
Barcelona is currently in the mix for the La Liga crown, sitting neck-and-neck with leaders Atletico Madrid ahead of this weekend’s El Clasico.
This isn’t a bad thing at all. It’s a far more common outcome for a Barca B player to eventually move elsewhere than the tiny percentage who become starters in the senior team. He just needs to find a good destination.
A transfer away from Barca will actually be a good thing for Konrad. He’s gotten just about everything he can from playing in the reserves and now needs consistent 1st team minutes to continue his development.
I’m partial to him going to Germany, but could also see him in Holland for a season or 2 in order to polish his game & stats a bit more.
If he wants to push for inclusion with the 2022 USMNT WC squad he needs to fin a club that’s going to be stable and give him minutes.
I dont want to hear 19 excuse, he needs to improve he is very stagnant at Barcelona at the moment.
I can’t believe he can’t beat out Messi, Griezman, and Dembele what a bum. He does need to move though, based on his performance with Barca B 5g 3a in 22 matches he needs to develop his game a lot before he’s going to play regularly for their first team. I’m not sure he really fits with Koeman’s current 3-4-3 either, doesn’t seem suited for the inverted winger position that Griezman and Messi thrive in.
OK- I get the undertone of what you are saying but 19 is not an “excuse” it is a fact that does with realities- especially at a club like Barcelona. A move akin to that of Sancho’s to Dortmund is likely needed to take hi to the next level.