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Barcelona Starlet Carles Aleña Reveals Which Other Academy Youngsters to Look Out For

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Barcelona youngster Carles Aleña has recently signed a new contract with the Catalan giants and is seen as one of the stars of the future, but he's also named some of Barca's other academy wonderkids.

The 19-year-old, who is regularly compared to Lionel Messi, has already made his debut for the first team, playing most recently against Manchester United in the Champions Cup.

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SPORT have been speaking to Alena after his recent contract signing and the young attacker has been speaking of how he idolizes Messi:

"I see all the [Barça] games, even repeats, to try to copy, to see what he does on the pitch. Above all, I watch how he positions himself, how he has that vision… after, to repeat what he does is impossible," claimed Alena.

Alena has recently come through the youth system at the Catalan club and also outlined some of the potential stars coming through the ranks:

"There are a lot of strong players. Vitinho is super special, De Galarreta... we have signed really well. Also the players from the Juvenil are pushing, Bernabé, Collado... and, of course, there's the little Xavi Simons," said Alena to SPORT.

The first player that came to Alena's mind, Vitinho, is a 19-year-old attacking midfielder, whom Barca have on loan from Palmeiras for the season, with the option to buy. The youngster is an attacking midfielder who has played at every youth level for Brazil and is seen as the future replacement for Neymar.

Xavi Simons is another stand out name on that list, most notably because he's just 13-years-old. The little Dutch winger is the son of former footballer Regillio Simons and currently captain of Barca's under-14s. 

He's reportedly being scouted by a host of big names across Europe, including Chelsea, but Barcelona are unlikely to let the little star go, with him seen as the future for the Catalan giants.