FC Barcelona is one of the biggest clubs in the world and has attracted some of the finest talents in world football. The Catalan Club made a statement of intent back in 2013, when they pipped arch rivals Real Madrid to the signing of Brazilian wonder kid Neymar Jr.
However, 4 seasons down the line, after establishing himself as one of the best forwards in the game, Neymar left Barcelona for a world record fee of €222 million in the 2017 summer transfer window.
Barcelona immediately responded with the club-record signing of Ousmane Dembele to fill in Neymar's boots. The French sensation who had a breakthrough season at Borussia Dortmund, has been injured for the majority of the current season and we wonder if there were better alternatives available for Barcelona.
Let's take a look at 5 players who would have fit the bill perfectly at Barcelona:
#5 Angel Di Maria
Angel Di Maria is one of those rare talents in world football who can boss the midfield as well as the attack. The tall and pacy Argentine, with magical dribbling skills and unique vision, is one of very few players to have shared the pitch with both Lionel Messi (at Argentina) and Cristiano Ronaldo (at Real Madrid).
Barcelona fans need no introduction to Di Maria's abilities, having witnessed the havoc wreaked by him in the 4-0 defeat against PSG at the Parc Des Princes in the UEFA Champions League. In the 2016-17 season, Di Maria scored 6 goals with 7 assists in 29 games in the Ligue 1.
Di Maria has often made it clear in his interviews how highly he rates Messi and also shares good chemistry with him on and off the pitch. He was instrumental in Real Madrid's Champions League triumph in 2014 and a €55 million move to arch rivals Barcelona was very much on the cards in the 2017 summer transfer window. It would have certainly been a mouthwatering prospect to see Messi and Di Maria in the same team, but unfortunately it wasn't to be.
#4 Julian Draxler
It is quite a mystery as to why Barcelona did not opt for a like to like replacement at the left wing. There were a lot of good players who were touted to join Barca but none could fit the bill as well as Julian Draxler.
The young German winger impressed one and all with his pace and dribbling ability during his time at Schalke, scoring 18 goals in 119 appearances in the process. A move to VFL Wolfsburg in 2015 did not turn out to be fruitful but his potential was enough to attract attention from the bosses at PSG.
With Neymar joining PSG and adding to the attacking talent already comprising of Edinson Cavani, Kylian Mbappe, Angel Di Maria and Javier Pastore, it was always going to be difficult for Draxler to find a place in the staring XI. In the limited opportunities that he got, Draxler netted 4 times in 17 appearances and made 20 key passes with a pass accuracy of 85%.
Had Barcelona gone in for a Neymar-Draxler swap deal, it would have given a chance to Draxler to express himself at a big club and would have been a like for like replacement for Barca, a win-win situation for both parties
#3 Paulo Dybala
Following his €32 million move from Palermo to Juventus in 2015, Paulo Dybala has absolutely lit up the Serie A. Owing to his prodigious talent, Dybala has often been compared to fellow Argentine and compatriot Lionel Messi. It was only a matter of time when the 2 made their first appearance together for the national team and many people began tipping Dybala to be Messi's heir at Barcelona as well as Argentina.
Following Neymar's departure, Barcelona upped their efforts to sign Dybala. However, Juventus, being completely aware at the prospect of losing one of their brightest players, tied Dybala to a new lucrative deal that sees him staying at the club until 2022. Moreover, Dybala was handed over the iconic No.10 shirt following Paul Pogba's move to Manchester United.
Dybala has been in blistering form this season and has already scored 12 goals for Juventus, one better than he scored in the whole of last season. Having said that, a player of Dybala's quality would have costed anywhere in excess of 150 million in today's inflated transfer market.
Although Dybala would not have been a direct replacement for Neymar at the left wing, playing him on the right wing with Messi taking over as one of the central midfielders (a role which he has been taking on lately in Iniesta's absence to create attacks), ticks all options on the right.
Barcelona could have then used Arda Turan as the left winger. Turan is more than a capable player in that position and has been earlier utilized by Luis Enrique for the same. After all, it is all about making tactical tweaks in the system to maximise the team's potential.
#2 Alexis Sanchez
Sanchez was rated highly in 2011 by Pep Guardiola, who sanctioned a move for the young Chilean forward from Udinese to Barcelona. He became the first ever player from Chile to play for Barcelona. Capable of playing anywhere in the attack, Alexis impressed one and all with his work ethic and dedication towards the Barcelona way of playing. He won 6 major trophies for Barca while scoring 47 goals in 141 appearances in the process.
Alexis joined Arsenal in 2014 for more game time but has been left frustrated ever since due to the club's failure to win major trophies. There have been speculations that the Chilean is keen on a reunion with former boss Guardiola at Manchester City and is yet to sign a contract extension with the Gunners. This also made signing Sanchez an economically profitable prospect as he would have come at €40 million or so.
Statistically, Alexis is one of the best players of the Premier League having scored 24 goals and 10 assists for Arsenal in the 2016-17 season.
With Alexis's contract at the Emirates expiring in 2018, Barcelona could have struck a deal which would have been economically viable for them. Who knows, it may well have turned out to be the bargain of the summer!
#1 Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard is one of the very few players capable of drawing comparisons to the duo of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Hazard announced his arrival at the world stage by his stunning performances in the 2014-15 premier league season eventually going on to win the "Premier League Player of the Season" award.
The fact that Chelsea has won 2 Premier League title in the last 3 years largely comes down to the charismatic game play of Eden Hazard. The Belgian captain is also a proven goalscorer scoring a total of 125 goals in his 456 appearances at club level while netting 21 times in 81 appearances for the national team.
Although extremely vital to manager Antonio Conte's plans at Chelsea and already a favourite of the Blues' faithful, Hazard would not have minded an opportunity to represent the Catalan giants. Hazard's likenesses to Neymar in terms of dribbling and ability to take on defenders and a price tag of around €150 million should have prompted Barcelona to go for one of the best talents in Europe.