His arrival had not necessarily pleased much in Catalonia. And for good reason, when we were talking about players like Joshua Kimmich or Martin Zubimendi – we even went so far as to talk about Rodri – to replace Sergio Busquets, it was finally Oriol Romeu who landed at Camp Nou. A player less flashy in the media, and whose age suggests that he does not necessarily have a lot of seasons at the highest level ahead of him.
Replacing a legend like Busquets with Romeu is what many call a downgrade On paper. Although it’s highly likely that in reality Xavi will now use Frenkie de Jong in front of the defense and the ex-Girona player will come on as a substitute, at least in the big games. But for now, Oriol Romeu agrees with Xavi, the man who insisted so much on recruiting him.
The good surprise of the summer
Facing Real Madrid in the weekend’s friendly Clasico, the 31-year-old surprised everyone. Solid, he muzzled Madrid midfielders and was then quite good at managing the ball. He even came close to scoring a real golazo at the start of the game, but his volley crashed into the Madrid bar. A performance that reassured the media and the Barcelona supporters. From there to already imagining him as a starter, there is a world, but Romeu will be a more than useful player for Xavi, who is coming out of a good season a few kilometers north of the Ciudad Condal.
Perhaps the victim of a “foul-mouthed offence”, Romeu is very popular with Xavi because he allows the more creative players placed in front of him to free themselves, as indicated AS. With a player like him, Pedri or De Jong know they have a little more freedom, and they have a rake behind them in case the ball is lost. A role that Busquets no longer really had in recent years, for obvious physical reasons. Romeu is also presented as a model of professionalism and he made a strong impression on the physical level during his first training sessions. And if it was him, the good move of the summer on the Barça side?
