Denis Suarez – 5/10
Re-signed from Villarreal in what was a catastrophic summer transfer window, Denis Suarez impressed at the start but faded away as the season progressed. The former Villarreal man was good towards the start of the season, so much that some had started hailing him as Xavi’s succcessor. However, since the turn of the year, his game time reduced by the week and he hardly played any part towards the end of the season.
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The 23-year-old benefitted from the poor form of Ivan Rakitic towards the start but after Enrique started backing the Croatian’s experience, Suarez didn’t get much of a look-in. He has a long road ahead of him and chances are that he will turn it around next season and establish himself as a first-choice starter but he will have to work tremendously hard. It also depends on how highly new manager Ernesto Valverde rates him, for if he signs another midfielder, the Spaniard will have to wait for his chances.
Arda Turan – 5/10
The Turk has flattered to deceive since his €34m move from Atletico Madrid. Arda Turan was arguably the best player at the Vicente Calderon outfit but a combination of being played out of position and his style not suiting that of Barcelona has seen his stock fall rapidly.
Turan still managed to make 30 appearances for the club last season and returned with a decent haul of 13 goals and 7 assists. However, in the absence of Neymar or Messi, he didn’t have the same impact as the magical duo and it looks like his Camp Nou dream is coming to an end.
Javier Mascherano – 5/10
The Argentine has been a loyal servant of Barcelona for the past 7 years but now, more than ever, it feels that the time is right for Mascherano to part ways with the club. The 33-year-old is no longer the defender he once was and he has also lost a yard of pace.
His high-profile mistakes have proved costly for the club and although he filled in at right-back, as and when required, he simply cannot be used at that position for the course of the season.
The Argentine may have scored his first goal for the club this season but he should look for a move to a relatively smaller club where he can play an integral role and end his career as a first-team regular. He can still be a utility player for the Catalan giants but I am not sure, it is something that he envisages towards the twilight of his career.
Lucas Digne – 5.5/10
Another summer signing that failed to live up to the expectations. The Frenchman was signed from PSG to cover for Alba and while Digne didn’t actually disappoint whenever he got the chance, he didn’t do something spectacular either.
In the limited opportunities that he got, he tried to showcase his defensive and offensive qualities and overall gave a good account of himself. The Frenchman would be hoping to play a more central role next season but for that he needs to improve tremendously. And with age by his side, one could argue that he can eventually become an integral part of the first-team and we will be hoping it happens sooner rather than later.
Aleix Vidal – 5.5/10
Barcelona, quite bravely, started the season with Aleix Vidal as the only established right-back in their team. They did have Sergi Roberto too – a midfielder filling in at right-back – but expecting the duo to replace the mercurial Dani Alves was not the wisest of decisions and one which cost them dearly.
After it was clear that the Roberto experiment had failed, Vidal got a few chances in the first-team and he impressed but as fate would have it, he soon suffered a season-ending injury, which saw him miss most of the season apart from the Copa del Rey final.
