Barcelona are coming off a hugely successful season in which they won a domestic double and came within a whisker of the UEFA Champions League final.
That's a huge positive not just for the club and belief in new coach Hansi Flick, but also president Joan Laporta, who faces club elections at the end of next season.
Laporta inherited a disastrous financial situation from his predecessor, Josep Maria Bartomeu, and pursued an aggressive strategy of "levers," many of which involved selling off shares of future revenue streams in exchange for immediate cash injections. Whether this will be good for the club long term remains to be seen, but two LaLiga titles in three seasons and renewed faith in the club suggest that on the pitch, the plan has worked.
That said, Barça are still threading the needle to meet LaLiga's stringent financial requirements.
We saw this with the Dani Olmo case in January, when the club's ability to register him required the sale of future luxury boxes at Spotify Camp Nou.
Trying to divine what their spending limits might end up being is risky (and could, of course, change) but we expect them to be in a stronger position.
This is not just due to increased prize money for their success on the pitch, but also the return to Camp Nou (a far more lucrative venue than Montjuic) and some tweaks to LaLiga's regulations.
If everything falls into place, their net spend could be as high as €50 million. That's what the club hopes, but recent history suggests the situation is mutable.
The good news is that the squad doesn't need very much to remain competitive. They need a succession plan for Robert Lewandowski, some clarity over the goalkeeper and help at center back. At a push, those needs could be kicked down the road to summer 2026 -- and the even better news is that so many important players are young and likely to improve.
Editor's note: This is the fifth installment in this year's series, Keep or Dump, which will continue over the coming weeks, detailing which players to keep, extend and move on from for all the top clubs in the Premier League and Europe. Find the article on Arsenal , Manchester United, our Liverpool version too, and Manchester City. Remember: This is our assessment of what we think the club should do, player for player, with the squad at its disposal. It's not what we think the club will actually do, though sometimes the two will align.
That said, we take into account what we know of the club, coaching staff and player preferences, as well as its financial situation and any other factor that we think will impact personnel moves.
Where we disagree, or where we think our rationale is worth explaining, we've noted below. Marsden: He literally came out of retirement when Marc-André ter Stegen got injured and played extremely well. They're talking to him about a two-year extension. I'd give him only one year and let him compete for the job, given Ter Stegen is returning after another bad knee injury. Don't forget: if you let him go, you still need to spend some money to sign a No. 2. Marcotti: I really like him, and you can argue he saved their season.
But the other keeper has a long-term contract and is your club captain. Szczęsny is 35 and not ideal for a team that plays a high line.
I don't think you can justify committing money to a backup keeper. My hope is that he enjoys living in Barcelona and had so much fun that he'll take a tiny wage and some sort of big bonus every time he plays. That's the only way to justify keeping him, as I see it. Verdict: Split between keep and extend, and release (unless he stays for cheap) Marsden: You'll get a little bit for him. He played enough games for Barça: maybe €3 million plus a sell-on clause. Marcotti: If Flick were comfortable with him as a potential No. 1, they wouldn't have persuaded Szczęsny to unretire.
Might as well move him now when you can get some money back. Verdict: Move on Marsden: He has had surgery on his knee and has missed large parts of the past two seasons, but he's the team captain and has a long-term contract. You hope he stays fit. Marcotti: You have to hand him the starting job. And I think last season showed that you can find a backup keeper if you need him. Verdict: Keep Marcotti: He did well at Como, and we expect them to pay the pre-agreed €6 million in fee and bonuses to make his deal permanent.
Verdict: Move on Marsden: I thought he would have played more this season, especially as he can cover both flanks, but Flick doesn't seem to trust him just yet. Still, he's very young, so I would extend his contract and loan him out to get playing time. He can always come back. Verdict: Extend and loan out Marsden: You'd get a very good fee for him, but he has done very well since his transition to right back, which is ironic since he didn't want to play there initially. Marcotti: To me, he falls into the category of players you look to extend, but not at any price.
He's one of the best in the world at his position, but that also means you could get a huge fee for him. I think a lot here depends on what the spending limits end up being. Assuming we're right, and there's a lot less pressure than there was, it's a no-brainer. But if you get a mega-offer from a club he'd be open to considering ... well, you'd have to consider it. Verdict: Keep and extend Verdict: Keep Marsden: A lot of people didn't understand why Flick had so much faith in him, but he ended up starting after Balde's injury and got a two-year extension through 2028.
Marcotti: It's not very expensive to keep him, and I think you have to defer to Flick on this one. If he likes him, you keep him. Verdict: Already kept and extended to 2028 Marsden: He actually extended his deal to go to Atlético Madrid; I'm not sure whether he'd do it again, or whether you just give him away to save on wages. Marcotti: The issue with him is he deferred his wages during the pandemic and remains on a massive salary. If he comes back, Barça are on the hook for €16 million. He was injured at the start of the season and didn't actually play for Atleti until October, but was pretty much a starter since then.
You might have to let him go for nothing if Diego Simeone likes him enough and he reaches a multiyear deal with Atlético that he's happy with. Verdict: Move on Marsden: He triggered a one-year extension back in March. He has done well, but at best, he has only one year left as a starter on this Barcelona side. Marcotti: He had a fantastic season. Obviously he's 34 now, so that's a concern long term.
But he's very valuable. Verdict: Already kept and extended to 2026 Marsden: He's OK with being a squad player, and as we've seen, he can play midfield, right back and center back. He's a good guy to have in the dressing room. Dan Thomas is joined by Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and others to bring you the latest highlights and debate the biggest storylines. Stream on ESPN+ (U.S. only). Marcotti: I'd be open to moving him on if an offer came in, simply because I don't think he's a great player.
He's undersized as a central defender and not particularly quick or skillful on the ball. On the other hand, besides his two seasons at City and the year at Girona on loan, he has been at the club since he was seven. There's value in that. Extend him, sure, but obviously without a big pay bump. Verdict: Keep and extend Marcotti: He missed most of the season with injury but was a starter in the 2022-23 title-winning campaign, which was really the only year he was a regular. He arrived as a free agent and is on a big salary, and while there was some logic to keeping him because he can also play central midfield, I think there's enough cover there now. Ideally, you'd move him on, though I doubt you'd get much. Otherwise, if he proves his fitness, you can look to extend him and maybe spread his wages over another year or two. Marsden: If he can prove his fitness, I think you'll find a Premier League club that will take him. Maybe you get between €10 million and €15 million. Verdict: Move on Verdict: Kept and extended to 2031 (renewed this year) Marsden: He extended his contract in January and actually lowered his release clause.
There are plenty of doubts around him, but I think in the right team he can be effective.
I think they'd be looking for a minimum of €30 million for him. Marcotti: He missed the whole first half of the season and wasn't particularly good when he did return. If Barça sign a central defender to replace Iñigo Martinez either now or next year, he'll slip to fourth choice. The thing is, without him getting a run in the side, I don't think Barcelona would get anything like the €30 million they'd want. It might be one of those situations where you loan him in January and hope he does well elsewhere. Verdict: Move on Marcotti: He's 34 in September and I think you have enough midfielders.
You might not get any money back, but it's time to let him go. Verdict: Move on Marsden: He was good at the end of the season, and you should extend him to protect his transfer value. Marc Casadó is a squad player, and Bernal is just 17 and coming off a bad injury, so De Jong still has a big part to play. Marcotti: I agree, plus his enormous salary is down to the fact that he deferred a big chunk of his salary during the COVID-19 pandemic.
I think you need to get creative again, and maybe give him more years on lower wages.
Considering how often they tried to shift him in the past and he didn't want to go anywhere, I don't think it's going to be that difficult. Verdict: Keep and extend Marsden: He's a dead-ball specialist and very good technically, but there are just too many guys ahead of him and more guys coming through -- guys such as the Fernández cousins, Guille and Toni, who are at Barça Atlètic. I think this is going to be another one of those deals where Torre goes to a team like Real Betis or FC Porto, ideally with a sell-on fee in case he steps up.
Barcelona returned to the top of LaLiga under new coach Hansi Flick. What moves should they make to avoid a step back in 2025-26?