Carles Alena has told Barcelona he wants to fight for his place at the La Liga giants despite interest from Premier League side Wolves, as reported by Grada 3.
Unfortunately for the 23-year-old academy graduate, that decision may be taken out of his hands.
Given that Barcelona look after their finances about as well as Homer Simpson at an annual doughnut convention, player sales appear to be the only way out of a mess of the club’s own making.
Samuel Umtiti, Philippe Coutinho, Junior Firpo and more are up for sale this summer, with Barca facing debts of almost £1 billion, according to Goal.
Alena on Wolves’ wish-list
And Sport claimed earlier this week that Alena, a technically gifted central midfielder who has spent much of his senior career out on loan, is available for just £7 million with Wolverhampton Wanderers keen to strike what could be one of the deals of the summer.
Alena, however, has his own ideas.
The Catalan-born playmaker is desperate to stay and fight for his place at his boyhood club.
According to Grada 3, Alena has relayed that to Barcelona, via his agent, believing an impressive loan spell at Getafe should pave the way for a run of games at the heart of Ronald Koeman’s engine room.
Unfortunately for Alena, it seems he’s fighting a losing battle.
Barcelona need to sell
Barcelona need to sell, they want to sell and, what’s more, Koeman has made it quite clear he prefers the likes of Pedri and Ilaix Moriba, two players who are younger than Alena and have already made a bigger impression at Camp Nou.
With Bruno Lage now confirmed as Wolves’ new manager, however, a move to Molineux may be exactly what Alena needs.
As Benfica stormed their way to the 2019 Primeira Liga title, Lage showcased a penchant for youth development and exciting, technical football that should suit Alena down to the ground.
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