La Liga giants Barcelona have released Kays Ruiz-Atil while handing Arsenal another chance to lure the former PSG starlet to the Premier League, as confirmed by the club.
Nicknamed the ‘new Messi’ by some, Ruiz-Atil returned for a second spell at the Camp Nou last summer hoping to follow in the footsteps of arguably the greatest footballer ever to grace the planet with his ethereal presence.
But just 11 months after swapping the Parc des Princes for the red-and-blue of Barcelona – signing a three-year deal complete with a 50 million euro release clause – the twinkle-toed teenager is packing his bags once again.
They do say you should never go back. And while Ruiz-Atil obviously felt that he had unfinished business at Barca, the fact that his contract has been torn up after less than a year on Spanish soil will serve only to breath fresh life into that tired old cliché.
‘Never go back’ indeed.
Barcelona release Kays Ruiz-Atil
“FC Barcelona has informed player Kays Ruiz-Ail that we are doing without his services,” reads a rather blunt statement on the Blaugrana website.
“The French midfielder puts an end to his stint at Barca. The Club wishes him luck and success in the future.”
The Lyon-born France U20 international played just 11 games for Barca’s B team. According to CCMC, Ruiz-Atil’s departure came about after he ‘lost the trust’ of reserve coach Sergi Barjuan.
Given that the talented playmaker was reported to have admirers at plenty of major European clubs not so long ago – including Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, Chelsea and Arsenal, per FootMercato – it seems unlikely that he will be unemployed for long.
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Ruiz-Atil made every one of his seven Ligue 1 appearances in Paris Saint-Germain colours during Thomas Tuchel’s time at the Parc des Princes after all.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have enjoyed great success with regards to signing exciting young talent with a point to prove, from Aaron Ramsdale to Gabriel Martinelli.
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