4 Players FC Barcelona need to sell to make way for La Masia

"The player who has passed through La Masia has something different to the rest, it's a plus that only comes from having competed in a Barcelona shirt from the time you were a child."

Pep Guardiola, former Barcelona coach, player and La Masia graduate said these words to every young player aspiring to strut their stuff on the Camp Nou one day. Everyone took notice of La Masia as the best football academy in the entire world, as a generation of players took the step up from the reserve side and won everything club football had on offer in the 2008-09 season.

The only academy to produce the top 3 Ballon d'Or nominees in a single year when a certain Xavi, Iniesta and Messi took to the stage, showed why La Masia had an edge over any other institution in the world.

The production line has certainly wavered over the past few years as Barcelona continue to look elsewhere for inspiration instead of their own backyard. Sergi Roberto and Munir are the last of few to graduate from the fabled institution.

We look at four players who could be offloaded in order to make space for the young and fearless generation to take over.

#1 Jasper Cillessen - Netherlands (Goalkeeper)

Cillessen deserves more than a bench role!

Make no mistake! Cillessen is the best backup keeper in the world in my opinion and he deserves to be playing more than he already is. Week after week he sits on the bench while a categorically inform Ter Stegen takes the field. Cillessen has been restricted to the Copa Del Rey for all the seasons that he has been in the Barca squad winning the competition for all of those years.

He has shown a brilliant amount of skill with the ball on his feet while also possessing insane reflexes. In the current market scenario, Jasper Cillessen can easily fetch a good amount for Barcelona and looking at the economic aspect of the deal, it makes massive sense for Barcelona to cash in on him and promote Inaki Pena or Jokin Ezkieta or to bring back Andre Onana from Ajax for half the amount.

The deal makes sense economically and would add important millions to the Barca budget.

#2 Thomas Vermaelen - Belgium (Centre-Back)

Vermaelen has been an able backup for Barcelona

Vermaelen is a classy centre-back who has all the skills to succeed at the Camp Nou, only if injuries hadn't had their way with him. Vermaelen has become the 4th choice center back at Barcelona behind Gerard Pique, Samuel Umtiti, and new signing Clement Lenglet.

Thomas Vermaelen is good in possession and has an eye for the killer passes, but unfortunately for him, his ankles are not the strongest. He has spent more time in the medical room than he has on the Barca teamsheet since his arrival from Arsenal in the 2014-15 season. Barca had to lure the Arsenal captain away from the London club with a six-figure salary and would be hoping to reduce their wage expenses.

Vermaelen's contract ends in the summer of '19 where he could walk away for free. Barcelona should find him a suitor in the winter market and recover any amount possible. His current market value stands at €5mn and anything above that would be considered a win for both the club and the 33 year old Belgium international.

Barcelona have ready-made replacements waiting in the B-team in the form of Chumi Brandariz, who was bought by the club after heavy competition from Real Madrid on the promise of first-team football after he showed glimpses of technique that a certain Gerard Pique possesses. Also waiting for his chance is Jorge Cuenca.

#3 Sergi Samper - Spain (Defensive Midfielder)

Sergio Busquets is one player that has made it impossible for Barcelona to find an heir with qualities anywhere near to that of the current Barcelona pivot. Any player coming in from the Masia with qualities similar to him has either not been able to take the pressure of filling his boots or has been pretty unimpressive with the final output.

Sergi Samper was greeted to much fanfare when he burst onto the scene having the similar, if not as refined qualities of Busquets. He was an absolute star for the reserve side as he played exceptionally well and was tipped to be a first team regular in little time.

Samper made his first-team debut and played well beyond his maturity. Then, injuries took their toll as Samper broke his ankle during a training session. He recovered in a short period of time only to relapse again with an exceptionally long recovery period. He was shipped off on loan multiple times where he struggled to find his feet.

He should be given a new lease on his career and should be sold to a club on a permanent basis so as to settle in there. Waiting in the reserve side is Sergio's namesake and in all probability, the heir to his throne at Barca, Oriol Busquets.

#4 Denis Suarez - Spain (Attacking Midfielder)

On 4th May 2016, two months before the window opens, then technical secretary of Barca, Robert Fernandez issued a statement saying that they would be informing Villareal of activating the buy-back clause in Denis' contract.

A measly sum of €3mn was paid to Villareal for a player valued upwards of 30mn. He came in and quickly challenged Iniesta's place in the starting lineup and took Xavi's #6 jersey. A very bold move by the starry-eyed midfielder.

Three full seasons and a handful of otherworldly performances later, he finds himself off the team sheet for all but a few of the games. Suarez is trying very hard in training to gain the affection of his manager but is pretty far down the pecking order after Rakitic, Arthur, Coutinho, Vidal, Rafinha and even Barcelona B youngster Carles Alena.

By the looks of it, Denis has suitors from the Premier League (like Arsenal) who would be willing to pay the big bucks for him. Any fee above €30mn from the English clubs will make Barca sell him and give him another opportunity to make a name for himself under the tutelage of Unai Emery.

If Denis is sold, Carles Alena would be happy to take his place as the golden boy of this La Masia generation

Edited by Abhinav Munshi