FC Barcelona have officially offloaded Jorge Cuenca to Villarreal. The young defender has joined the club on a five-year deal, with the transfer likely to cost around €2.5 million. Cuenca, however, has already been shipped out to UD Almeria on loan in search of regular game-time as he looks to make a breakthrough under Unai Emery in the future.
Who Is Jorge Cuenca?
A product of the UD Alcorcon youth academy, Cuenca joined La Masia in the summer of 2017 for a fee of €400k. He joined as part of Barcelona B squad, hoping to get a promotion to the senior side through his consistent performances in the youth competitions.
A centre-back by trade, the 20-year-old has indeed impressed the onlookers with his towering presence at the back. Standing at 1.90m, Cuenca is quite an obstacle for attackers when it comes to physical and aerial duels. In addition, the Spaniard is also a smart defender, who can read the game well and cut off opposition’s passing lanes.
Cuenca’s qualities didn’t go unnoticed either as the youngster made his Barcelona debut back in 2018 in a Copa Del Rey match against Cultural Leonesa. Unfortunately, the defender is yet to feature in more games and has primarily played for the reserve sides.
Did Cuenca Have Any Future At Barcelona?
Following a disastrous end to the 2019/20 campaign, Barcelona’s appointment of Ronald Koeman has brought in many changes to the team, with ageing midfielders like Ivan Rakitic and Arturo Vidal leaving the club.
Unfortunately in defence, Barcelona are yet to find a proper transition player, so they still have to rely on the services of Gerard Pique. At the same time, the Catalans already have talented individuals like Jean-Clair Todibo and Ronald Araujo looking to make a breakthrough at Camp Nou next season.
Cuenca, in that regard, may have offered competition in the defensive unit, but it is unlikely that Koeman would have preferred him. Besides, the Dutchman is likely to sign at least one new centre-back before the transfer window slams shut this summer.
What’s Next For Cuenca?
As far as Cuenca is concerned, a loan move to Almeria makes a lot of sense.
The club has already brought in two fellow La Masia products in Chumi and Sergio Akieme this summer, and they can certainly provide Cuenca with the platform to showcase his talents in the Segunda Division next season.
In fact, it will be interesting to see how the 20-year-old competes with Chumi, and Nikola Maras for a place in the first-team as Almeria once again looks to push for promotion in this new season.
