5 players Barcelona should not use regularly in the 2021-22 season

#3 Ousmane Dembélé

Dembele has suffered from 12 major injuries since 2017

A potential €145m signing for Barcelona, Ousmane Dembele was supposed to be a direct replacement for the outgoing Neymar in 2017. Fast forward four years and the French playmaker has turned out to be one of the most disappointing transfers in Barcelona's history.

Signed as a 20-year-old, Dembele exuded huge potential in his solitary season with Borussia Dortmund. Barcelona were tempted by his raw talent and decided to splash a world-record fee for the youngster. However, due to consistent injury and disciplinary issues, the Frenchman's career has stalled in Catalonia.

Barcelona and Ousmane Dembele close to agreeing a new contract https://t.co/HGwyIRUP5x

— SPORT English (@Sport_EN) August 3, 2021

Now 24, Dembele recently played his first full season with Barcelona, having spent most of the previous three on the treatment table. Despite his output of 11 goals and five assists being decent enough for a winger, Dembele's performance failed to even remotely justify his hefty price tag.

Capable of playing anywhere on the front line, the erratic forward still exhibits the immaturity of a teenager. With another long-term hamstring injury ruling him out until October, Dembele's attitude during recovery will be a key factor in deciding his future.

He has some obvious talents, but an inability to harness his true potential might motivate Barcelona to cut their losses, sooner rather than later.

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#2 Gerard Piqué

Barcelona's match against PSG put Pique's infirmity on display for all

A surprise entry on the list, Gerard Pique has been a defensive stalwart for Barcelona ever since he returned to his boyhood club in 2008. The Spaniard's formidable partnership with compatriot Carles Puyol in the early 2010s has become the stuff of legends. Yet a steep decline in fitness and form lands him on such a list.

In an injury-riddled season, Pique could only muster a total of 23 appearances in all competitions. Even when the veteran was deemed fit to play, he displayed a lack of sure-footedness and stability that had carried him to the pinnacle of the game. A humbling defeat against PSG in the round-of-16 stage of the UCL thoroughly exposed the cracks in Pique's current game.

🚨| According to Jaume Llopis, former member of the Espai Barça Commission:Only Gerard Piqué had agreed to lower his salary to comply with the club's financial situation & the possible renewal of Lionel Messi. No other player agreed to a salary reduction, as of yet.@ellarguero pic.twitter.com/TbCyXnSaBg

— Managing Barça (@ManagingBarca) August 10, 2021

With Barcelona clinging on to their glittering past, an over-reliance on a 34-year-old Pique will only drag the club into further chaos. The emergence of new blood in the form of Mingueza, Araujo, and Eric Garcia does generate hope for the Blaugrana.

However, such a project can only succeed if they part ways with former legends who are way past their prime now. As such, Pique could be among the least used players in the first team next season.

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#1 Sergi Roberto

Roberto had a horrid 20/21 season for Barcelona

The last La Masia graduate to make a name for himself in Barcelona's first team, Sergi Roberto has been a victim of his own versatility. Roberto was an integral part of the fabled 2010-11 B-team that finished third in the Segunda division.

Although his former teammates were rated much higher than the utility man, it was Roberto who made it into the first team, after the departure of Dani Alves in 2016.

Initially groomed as a central midfielder, Roberto ended up being deployed at the right-back spot due to his soaring pace and defensive abilities. He became a mainstay under Luis Enrique and even scored in a remarkable 6-1 comeback against PSG. However, the 29-year-old Spaniard has experienced a drastic decline in form ever since Enrique's exit.

Sergi Roberto: "I want to stay as long as I can" pic.twitter.com/ZDW5QwZyMj

— Barça Worldwide (@BarcaWorldwide) August 11, 2021

The Spanish international had one of his worst seasons in a Barcelona shirt in 2020, struggling with injuries and constantly putting in abysmal performances. In Emerson Royal and Sergino Dest, Koeman will have two of the most promising right-backs at his disposal, this season.

With a stocked midfield, Roberto's time at Barcelona is definitely nearing its end, and the Catalans would be wise not to rely on their third-choice captain in 2021-22.

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