FC Barcelona Reportedly Set To Start Busquets Contract Renewal Negotiations

FC Barcelona are reportedly ready to start negotiating a new contract with captain Sergio Busquets.

The skipper has been a mainstay in the Catalans’ midfield since legendary manager Pep Guardiola took a punt on him and promoted the pivot from the B team in 2008.

Next came one of the most successful eras in the club’s history spearheaded by Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and current head coach Xavi Hernandez.

After playing alongside Busquets for a good seven years until he departed for Qatar in semi-retirement in 2015, Xavi knows the qualities of his former teammate well and has allegedly pushed for his continuation at Camp Nou.

A fortnight ago, however, Xavi said that he doesn’t know what Busquets will decide to do moving forward, with his contract set to expire in the summer.

While Busquets is said to have offers on the table from Inter Miami in the MLS and Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia where Cristiano Ronaldo currently plays his football, SPORT says on Tuesday that Barca plan to start negotiating a possible extension as soon as the ongoing January transfer market closes.

In talks, the club will strive to reach a deal that appeases both parties, with Financial Fair Play preventing them from offering Busquets what he currently earns.

This has been put as high as €20mn ($21.8mn) a year and more by some reporters such as MARCA‘s Luis F Rojo, and is not in sync with what a player set to turn 35 in July typically demands.

That being said, Barca should indeed try and keep Busquets around if possible and will buy themselves another year in their neverending battle to find a worthy and natural successor for him in the process.

The captain brings untold experience to the locker room and is still capable of putting in a strong shift in the center of the park providing support to the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Pedri and Gavi.

For matches against elite opposition, however, such as Bayern Munich in the Champions League or Atletico Madrid in La Liga in recent times, Busquets has often come unstuck and it is in these fixtures that Xavi must have the courage to drop him in 2023/2024.