A soon-to-be former member of the midfield ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona had been pencilled in to play a central role in this weekend’s showdown with Real Madrid.
That’s according to Mundo Deportivo, who point towards Oriol Romeu as the player in question.
The name of Spaniard Romeu has of course taken its place front and centre in the headlines in Catalunya over the course of the last 24 hours.
This comes after word, out of the blue, was forthcoming that the one-time Southampton man was set to depart Barcelona’s training base in the USA.
Why? To fly back to Spain, ahead of putting pen to paper on terms with former club Girona.
Romeu is set to join Barca’s Catalan rivals on loan, for the duration of the 2024/25 campaign.
And yet, had such a development not been forthcoming, the 32-year-old would actually have been in line for a leading role in the most high-profile fixture of new Blaugrana boss Hansi Flick’s tenure to date.
As per MD:
‘Hansi Flick had told him that he was counting on him and that he wanted to see him during the games in America. He had come on as a substitute against Manchester City but had a leading role reserved for him against Real Madrid, the second game of the tour.’
So, what changed?
Romeu, it is understood, this week informed the Barcelona brass that he would be in favour of a summer exit, in the knowledge that, once Barcelona’s crop of midfield stars have returned to full fitness, he would be relegated to a reduced role once more.
Conor Laird | GSFN
