5 possible long-term replacements for Sergio Busquets at Barcelona

#2 Julian Weigl (Borussia Dortmund)

Weigl looks tailor-made to play for Barca

The brilliant young German has not had a fantastic time in about 2 seasons. However, his talent is not in doubt. Playing with the sort of intelligence expected from much older midfielders, Weigl is brilliant at both the offensive and defensive sides of the game.

Under Peter Bosz, he played as the deepest member of a midfield triangle. It was his responsibility to initiate build-ups by using simple passes to draw pressure from the opposition. More often than not, it is he who was tasked with receiving the ball from the centre-backs and starting attacks.

In situations where the intention is to quickly counter, Dortmund has relied on Weigl’s quick thinking and long-range passes to free up the wingers or overlapping full-backs. Like Busquets, he is very good at knowing when to carry the ball forward into the opposition’s half and when to stay back.

His cleverness in recycling the ball and intelligence in drawing out opposing midfielders helps create space for the more forward-going players.

Like Busquets, he is a very good tackler and is getting better at winning aerial duels. He still has a long way to go before he can even be compared to Busi but he has the tools to become a great option for the Liga giants.