According to a report by AS, FC Barcelona are interested in signing the AZ Alkmaar full-back Owen Wijndal this summer. The Catalan manager is a huge admirer of the youngster and sees him as a replacement for Jordi Alba in the team.
Owen Wijndal is a product of AZ Alkmaar academy, as he joined the club at the age of 10 in 2010. Since then the youngster rose to become one of the best left-backs in the Netherlands. Wijndal made his first-team debut in 2017 wearing the AZ Alkmaar shirt.
Following his first-team debut, he has made 100 appearances for the Dutch side over five years. However, this season Wijndal has appeared 43 times while scoring two goals and 6 assists in all competitions.
Due to his impressive form, AZ Alkmaar finished third in the table while securing a Europa League qualification spot. His form this season has also earned him a place in the National squad for Euro 2020.
Wijndal has still two more years left in his contract for AZ Alkmaar. However, the Dutch team might sell him this summer following offers from big clubs. Currently, Barcelona is leading the race for the youngster. It is believed that the Catalans are willing to offer €15 million for the Dutch international.
Barcelona interested in signing Wijndal for replacing Jordi Alba
Barcelona are going to have busy summer after finishing this season in a poor term. The Catalans were out of the Champions League in round-of-16, while finishing third in La Liga table. Following this poor season, the club is looking to restructure its team for the next season. Barcelona’s main concern has been the poor backline which restricted them from keeping clean sheets in most of the games.
The Catalans have signed two former players Eric Garcia and Emerson Royal as their center-backs for next season. The two players will be replacing Gerard Pique and Samuel Umiti in the backline. But Barcelona is still in the market to find a long-term replacement for Jordi Alba in the left-back. They had signed Junior Firpo to replace the Spaniard in the team, but Firpo failed to live up to his potential.
The Catalans have been linked with a couple of left-back earlier, such as Jose Gaya, Robin Gosens, and Marcos Alonso. However, all the deals failed due to some reasons. But, currently, they are targeting Wijndal to replace Alba the next season. Barcelona head Ronald Koeman has also stated that he could be an ideal replacement for Alba. Koeman has also managed Wijndal earlier when he was the coach of the Dutch team.
Wijndal has commented on the transfer rumor and said he would love to join the Spanish Giants. And, it is no doubt that the youngster would be a great introduction to the team for Barcelona.
So, let’s wait and see if the Catalans could land the Dutch international for their next seasons. While it will also be interesting to see if he could successfully replace Jordi Alba in the left-back position.
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