While Barcelona continue to be linked with big names such as Neymar Jr, Bernardo Silva, and Joao Cancelo in the market, they are not forgetting the importance of bolstering the youth ranks at the club.
Having secured the renewal of Lamine Yamal and brought in talented youngster Mikayil Faye this summer, along with several other prospects, the Blaugrana recently confirmed the arrival of German whizkid Noah Darvich from SC Freiburg.
Who is Noah Darvich?
Born in Freiburg im Breisgau on September 25, 2006, Noah Darvich came through the youth ranks at SC Freiburg in Germany, where had been making rapid strides before his move to Barcelona this summer.
Just 16 years of age, he is an attacking midfielder by trade but is capable of operating out on the flanks as well, or in a deeper role in midfield.
A left-footed player, Darvich is known for his dribbling, passing, vision, versatility, and technical ability while possessing a keen eye for goals.
The German wonderkid prefers to operate behind the striker in the No. 10 role, from where he can fashion opportunities for his teammates. A physical specimen, despite his age, the prodigious midfielder stands at a touch over 6 ft tall.
Darvich made 23 appearances for Freiburg’s Under-17 side, scoring nine goals and setting up five more. He even broke into the club’s Under-19 team and featured three times.
Star of the U-17 Euros
Darvich has also shone brightly in international fixtures with the German youth teams. Given his Iraqi roots, the youngster is eligible to represent them at the international level but has opted to play for Germany.
Darvich has 16 appearances for the Germany Under-17 national team, scoring five goals in the process.
Notably, the 16-year-old was one of the best players in the Under-17 European Championships, where he led Germany to the trophy, scoring two and setting up four goals in the process.
Darvich also finished with the most number of chances created in the tournament (7), along with Barcelona’s in-house wonderkid Lamine Yamal, who excelled for Spain.
While he was not named the MVP of the tournament, Darvich did make it to UEFA’s Best XI of the competition.
Darvich joins Barcelona
❗️ 𝐔́𝐋𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐀 𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐀
— Barça Atlètic (@FCBarcelonaB) August 8, 2023
✅ Noah Darvich, nuevo jugador del Barça Atlètic
😍 ¡Bienvenido!
🔗 Todos los detalles 👉 https://t.co/WBEGmwhYyw 👈#ForçaBarça 💙❤️ pic.twitter.com/aEZ67pukq9
Barcelona announced Darvich’s signing earlier today, confirming that the club have paid a transfer fee of €2.5 million.
The 16-year-old has opted to sign for the Catalans despite courting interest from several other big clubs in Europe, including PSG, Bayern Munich, Ajax, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City.
The German wunderkind has signed a three-year contract with the club which runs until 2026 and contains a mammoth €1 billion release clause.
Even though he is just 16, Darvich has been incorporated into the Barça Atletic team right away, indicating how highly the Catalans rate him.
And if the teenage prodigy continues to perform the way he did at the Euros earlier this year, it might not be too long before he follows in Lamine Yamal’s footsteps and earns himself a debut with the first team.