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Barcelona is one of the biggest clubs in world football, and is the third biggest club in the world in terms of revenue generated at the end of the last financial year.
Some of the greatest players in football's history have worn the colours of Barcelona, and with 90 major trophies won, the club is the most successful by the number of trophies won in the history of European club football.
Barcelona's famed La Masia academy is widely regarded as one of the best football development centers in the world, and some of the greatest players over the last two decades including Lionel Messi, Carles Puyol, Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, Xavi Hernandez and Sergio Busquets honed their football skills in the walls of La Masia.
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The club's substantial football might means it also has the resources to attract world-class players, and the lure of playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world adds an extra advantage.
These factors enable Barcelona to boast one of the most fearsome squads in world football, and competition for starting places is extremely stiff, as almost all the players in the Blaugrana are among the best in their respective positions.
So many players who would have been guaranteed starters elsewhere find playing time hard to come by at Barca, and a lot have expressed desires to leave the club in search of regular playing time.
However, departures of some key players and change in plans by the manager mean that some of these hitherto fringe players could find themselves playing major roles this season. Here are three fringe players who could feature heavily for Barcelona this season.
#3 Munir El Haddadi
Back in 2014, the stage looked set for 22-year-old Munir El Haddadi to become the next La Masia product to take the footballing world by storm.
He joined the youth ranks of Barcelona from Atletico Madrid in 2011, and with 11 goals in 10 matches, he finished as the top scorer at the first ever edition of the UEFA Youth League of 2014, which was won by Barcelona, with El Haddadi scoring a brace in the 3-0 win over Benfica in the final.
He was promptly promoted to the senior team at the start of the 2014/2015 season, and scored on his official debut for the club in a La Liga match against Elche at Camp Nou, becoming the third youngest player to score a senior goal for Barcelona (behind Bojan Krkic and Lionel Messi). He finished the 2014/2015 as one of the joint top scorers in the Copa Del Rey (which was won by Barcelona).
He was also handed his Spain senior team debut that year, replacing Koke for 13 minutes in a Euro 2016 qualifier against Macedonia (this would cost him in his appeal to switch allegiances to Morocco prior to the 2018 World Cup, as he had featured in a competitive match, which was against FIFA's rules of eligibility).
The arrival of Suarez at Barcelona in the summer of 2014, however, derailed El Haddadi's progress, and he increasingly found himself out of the first-team picture, making a combined total of just 25 La Liga appearances (most of them from the bench) over the next two seasons, scoring five goals, while he has also failed to add to his solitary international cap won four years ago.
He impressed at loan spells to Valencia in 2016/2017 and particularly last season at Alaves where he made 32 appearances in the league, scoring 10 goals.
The Spanish-Moroccan enjoyed a new lease of life at Alaves last season and would seek playing time to continue his upward trajectory. Latest reports emanating from Italy indicate that Serie A side Udinese are interested in his services, but Barcelona are keen on him staying.
With the relative underperformance by Luis Suarez last season, and the expression of confidence in his abilities by Ernesto Valverde, this might finally be the true breakout season for Munir El Haddadi at Barcelona.
#2 Carlos Alena
The 20-year-old has long been touted as the future of Catalan football, due to his impressive displays for the Barcelona B and Spain youth teams.
However, owing to the abundance of talent in Barcelona's midfield, his opportunities for promotion were largely stunted, but he continued to dazzle in Barcelona's B team, including with this amazing solo goal scored against AS Roma in the UEFA Youth League of 2015.
He was called up to the senior team in February of 2016 but did not feature, making his debut nine months later in a 1-1 draw away to Hercules in the Copa Del Rey, where he scored the equalizer.
The departure of Andres Iniesta to Vissel Kobe in Japan at the end of last season seemingly paved the way for Alena to become the first La Masia product since Sergi Roberto to fully cement a place in the first team, as Ernesto Valverde was willing to work with him extensively during pre-season. However an injury has cruelly put paid to those plans, and Alena has been ruled out till September with a ruptured tendon in his right hamstring.
The arrivals of new midfield signings such as Arthur from Gremio and Arturo Vidal from Bayern Munich might make Alena's breakthrough a bit more difficult. However, on account of his extensive knowledge of the club's history and operations (having been with Barcelona since 2005), and the belief by Valverde in his abilities, this season could prove to be pivotal in the development of Carlos Alena.
#1 Ousmane Dembele
Following Neymar's shock blockbuster world record move to PSG, Barcelona turned to Borrussia Dortmund for the Brazilian's replacement, signing a relatively unknown 19-year-old Ousmane Dembele in a £135.5m deal, making him the then second most expensive player in footballing history behind Neymar himself.
However, an injury on his full Barcelona debut ruled him out for almost four months, while a fresh setback in January also hampered his progress in his first season at Camp Nou following his mega move.
He, however, rallied back from those, and came back stronger, scoring his first goal for Barcelona in the 3-0 second round rout of Chelsea in the Champions League last season. He ended his injury hampered debut campaign for Barcelona with four goals in 24 appearances across all competitions but was still called up for France's World Cup-winning campaign by Didier Deschamps.
The arrival of Coutinho in January pushed Dembele further down the pecking order, and doubts were expressed over his relevance in the coming season for the Blaugrana, with reports suggesting that Barcelona were ready to sell him.
Arsenal and Liverpool were among the clubs interested in signing Dembele, and the £35m capture of Malcom from Bordeaux further legitimized Dembele's exit claims, with the Frenchman reportedly voicing his displeasure at the signing of the Brazilian.
This season has however started in a different fashion for Dembele, as he started and scored the winner in Barcelona's 2-1 victory over Sevilla in the 2018 Spanish Super Cup played in Morocco, while he also played impressively in the La Liga opener against Alaves at the Camp Nou, being replaced by Arthur in the 77th minute to a standing ovation by the Barcelona crowd.
Ousmane Dembele is an undoubted talent, with the potential to become one of the best in the world. However, a serious injury and loss of confidence hampered his progress at Barcelona last year, but this new season offers Dembele a fresh opportunity to show Barcelona fans what he is capable of, and lead the club in its quest to reclaim its pride of place in the Champions League.
