In recent years at FC Barcelona, the tradition of bringing in and nurturing young talent from La Masia has once again gained prominence. It has seen the club reap great benefits as the likes of Ansu Fati, Ronald Araujo, Gavi, and Alejandro Balde have become mainstays in the first team.
And, more youth prospects could be set for a big push in the coming months or years. Lamine Yamal is already being tipped as the next best thing to emerge out of the Barça academy and the club are working to tie him down to a new deal.
And now, according to Albert Roge, another young talent who could soon be the subject of a first-team call-up is forward Angel Alarcon.
The 18-year-old striker, who plays for Barcelona’s Juvenil A team, is said to have made a huge impression on manager Xavi Hernandez. It is claimed that the teenage forward is one of the first-team coach’s favourite La Masia players.
Angel Alarcon signed for Barça’s academy from Espanyol in 2018. While he had largely been used as a winger during his early years at the club, of late, the 18-year-old is being deployed as a centre-forward due to orders from the senior coaching staff.
Xavi and his coaches see Alarcon as an exciting option for the striker’s role as the youngster possesses great acceleration and can finish with both feet, even though he is right-footed, while possessing a keen eye for a goal.
In six UEFA Youth League appearances this season, Angel Alarcon has scored and assisted three goals. He was called up to train with the seniors during and post the World Cup break as Xavi rates the forward highly.
The Spaniard’s contract with Barça expires in the summer and they wish to renew him and show to him that he can break into the first-team setup in the coming years.
In fact, the report states that there is already consideration being given to the possibility of taking Alarcon to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup or using him in the Copa del Rey.
With both Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres suspended, Alarcon could even get a look-in in La Liga in the coming weeks as Xavi has just Ansu Fati and Memphis Depay as his options for the centre-forward position.