Barcelona Super Cup 2023 | Memphis, a year and a half away with a lot of factors against it

He started well, but some injuries and the arrival of several strikers complicated his life at Barcelona

His big supporter Koeman has been replaced by Xavi, who he doesn’t fully trust

There are still many days before the winter transfer window closes and it is not known what will finally happen to Memphis Depay. Atletico Madrid have requested a transfer to replace the loss of Joao Felix and Manchester United are one of the other teams concerned about his personal situation because of what might happen. In Barcelona, ​​it is very clear that he will leave only if the club he goes to takes over his file and also compensates him financially, even though the player terminated his contract on June 30.

Memphis’ career at FC Barcelona cannot be described as a failure, but it can be described as a small disappointment that it did not quite meet the expectations that were created when it joined in the summer of 2021. And it was not only because of him. The Dutchman has had many factors against him since arriving at the Camp Nou. For starters, his signature was confirmed at the third attempt.

Koeman, who he had captained in the Dutch national team, asked for his signature only to reach Barcelona in 2020. Lyon Olympics They could not agree in the summer or in the winter, when Barcelona returned to responsibility for him, then they decided to wait for the summer of 2021 to include him with a letter of freedom since his contract with the French club expired.

He signed for two seasons but in principle he had an obligation that they would give him a three-year contract. But there was a change in the president and Laporta asked to renegotiate certain sums he had agreed with Bartomeu’s board of directors. Memphis agreed, dropping the high money offers it had received from other clubs but signing a shorter-than-expected contract. It was also important that the new directive validated Ronald Koeman, his great supporter, in his position.

The beginning of the season was full of hope, as he scored two goals and an assist in the first three matches, but little by little his performance declined and he was not the offensive leader he had to try to mitigate the losses of Griezmann and Messi a little. . He also had some injuries that did not help him hold on. A hamstring injury caused him to miss six games and Achilles problems for another eight.

Since he had already questioned his performance and was physically ill, Barcelona decided to strengthen itself offensively in the winter transfer window last season. Not only did three new strikers arrive – Adama, Aubameyang and Ferran Torres – but also their big fan, Koeman, was replaced by Xavi Hernandez, who was not among his favourites. The good performances of Uba and Ferran, two key players in Barcelona’s reaction in the second leg of the season, also worked against him.

And this summer, the signings of Rafinha and Lewandowski, as well as the renewal of Dembele, have given him the finishing touch. Memphis was relegated as the last forward and Barcelona tried to get him to accept a transfer. With only a year left on his contract, the striker preferred to stay and try to impress Xavi. But he also couldn’t because injuries reappeared at the start of the season. The striker missed 12 matches in the 59 days he missed due to hip problems.

His personalities are in FC Barcelona

Memphis Depay’s numbers in his first season at Barcelona aren’t entirely bad, but they’re not enough. He played 28 league matches (1,848 minutes) and scored 12 goals, which helped him become the club’s second-highest scorer but was left empty-handed in the six Champions League matches.. In the Europa League, he scored one goal in three matches and did not play in the King’s Cup.

This season, he participated in only two league matches (Cádiz and Elche) and scored one goal against Elche. In the only Copa del Rey match against Intercity, he played 75 minutes.