Six Players Barcelona Need to Sell This Summer to Bolster Transfer Funds

Plans are already in motion within Barcelona‘s hierarchy to fortify the squad targeting even greater success in 2026–27, and one thing appears certain: Changes are imminent.

It’s no secret that Barcelona are eager to secure world-class reinforcements during the summer transfer window in an effort to end a decade-plus Champions League title drought next season.

Striker and center back are the two priority positions the Catalans want to address, with names such as Julián Álvarez and Alessandro Bastoni atop the list of targets. But a move for these elite talents won’t come cheap and Barcelona’s dismal financial situation further complicate matters.

Although re-elected president Joan Laporta insists the club will be able to operate without constraints in the summer market, Barcelona need to generate income in order to fund the operations for their world-class reinforcements. Selling players on the current squad for profit is the easiest path towards securing the needed income.

Robert Lewandowski and Andreas Christensen are both likely to leave Barcelona this summer as free agents, but there are other pieces the Catalans could look to cash in on in the coming months.

Here’s six players Barcelona could be tempted to sell during the fast-approaching summer window to bolster their transfer funds.

Marc-André ter Stegen

Marc-Andre ter Stegen — Marc-André ter Stegen might’ve already played his final game for Barcelona. | Urbanandsport/NurPhoto/Getty Images

There’s no other way around it, the Marc-André ter Stegen saga will reignite once again this summer, and Barcelona must figure out a way to find a new home for their Champions League-winning goalkeeper.

Joan García has done nothing this season but make Barcelona look like geniuses for poaching him away from city rivals Espanyol for a bargain $30.4 million (€26.3 million) last summer. The Spaniard is on his way to winning his first career Zamora trophy and is Barça’s undisputed starter for the foreseeable future.

Ter Stegen is under contract until 2028 with one of the most lucrative salaries at the club. The German will return from a failure of a six-month loan at Girona this summer and the cash-needing Catalans simply can’t afford to be paying a backup goalkeeper such an high salary.

The problem is that Ter Stegen has played less than 20 games over the last two seasons and he’ll be 34 in 2026–27. He’s been unwilling to relinquish his salary in the past and few teams will be interested in an aging, injury-prone, expensive goalkeeper.

Still, Barcelona must address Ter Stegen’s situation this summer, but letting him leave on loan seems like the most likely outcome currently. In this scenario, the Catalans could at least save some money from his wages.

Ronald Araújo

Ronald Araújo has become the target of incessant criticism at Barcelona for the better part of the last three seasons. Some critics have been unwarranted, some he’s brought upon himself, but there’s no denying that it all reached a breaking point in 2025–26.

The Barcelona vice-captain played less than 45 minutes between late November and February after his infamous red card in Barça’s 3–0 defeat to Chelsea in the Champions League resulted in him asking the club for a leave of absence to deal with mental health issues he was struggling with.

The club stood by Araújo until he returned and he’s had a fine second half of the season, though, playing sporadically and primarily as a right back. He’s clearly fallen in the defensive pecking order, and Araújo finding a new home this summer could benefit all parties involved.

There’s no question Araújo has traits to be a very good center back, but the toxicity around his name has seemingly reached a point of no return in Catalonia.

Premier League sides were interested in Araújo last year and, so were Juventus, with Barça even reportedly rejecting an offer from the Italians during the 2025 winter window. With Flick’s side looking for defensive reinforcements this summer, cashing in on Araújo before his value drops further seems like a no-brainer.

Marc Casadó

Marc Casadó was unquestionably the breakout player of the first half of 2024–25, but ever since he suffered a knee injury in March 2025, he’s never regained the prominent role he enjoyed during the infancy of the Flick era.

It’s not that Casadó isn‘t an exciting talent either. When he featured prominently at the start of 2024–25, Frenkie de Jong and Gavi were injured. In fact, Casadó was behind Marc Bernal in the midfield depth chart, but the latter’s ACL injury three games into the term opened the door for Casadó to start alongside Pedri for a lengthy period.

With all of Barcelona’s central midfielders fully fit, Casadó’s path towards consistent minutes are emphatically blocked. Furthermore, 19-year-old Tomas Marqués should start getting more looks come 2026–27.

Reports suggest teams across Europe and in the Saudi Pro League are monitoring Casadó’s situation. With an overbooking at the position, it might be time for the Blaugrana to profit the 22-year-old La Masia graduate that realistically will continue struggling for playing time, halting his development.

Regardless of what happens, the memory of Casadó’s Clásico performance at the Bernabéu three days after a dominant showing against Bayern Munich in the Champions League in October 2024 will live on forever—and Barça would do well showing those highlights to interested suitors in an effort to boost the midfielder’s value.

Jules Kounde

It’s been an underwhelming season for French right back Jules Kounde, who has failed to replicate the outstanding level he showed for the majority of 2024–25.

But despite a subpar season for his standards, Kounde remains a desirable talent for teams across Europe looking to add a defensive reinforcement. Recently surfaced reports indicate that Premier League giants, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool would all be interested in a move for the former Sevilla man.

Kounde signed a new contract last summer valid until 2030. At 27 years old, he’s very much in the prime of his career and Barcelona have all the leverage to demand a significant transfer fee from any club interested in the France international.

With La Masia graduate Xavi Espart having impressed in his brief cameo appearances this season and the versatile Eric García also proving to be a serviceable right back, the Catalans could be even more interested in making serious profit from a potential Kounde sale.

If Barcelona don’t want to part ways with Lamine Yamal’s primary partner on the right wing, there’s another fullback that could warrant significant income.

Alejandro Balde

There’s no question that at his best, Alejandro Balde is one of the best left backs in the world. The issue is that it’s been a while since the 22-year-old La Masia graduate has been able to consistently showcase his top version.

Injuries continue to be synonymous with the ground-covering fullback and, this term, the recurring fitness issues have significantly halted his development. Instead of building on what was a very impressive 2024–25, Balde has worryingly regressed.

Between injuries and poor form, winter recruit João Cancelo has outright usurped the starting left back role from Balde in the second half of the campaign. If the Catalans find a way to keep Cancelo permanently this summer—which is reportedly the desired outcome on all fronts—then Balde could become an attractive bargaining chip for Barcelona to profit on.

SPORT indicates the Catalans would be open to listening to offers in the neighborhood of $58.5 million (€50 million) for their homegrown fullback. If teams oblige and meet that valuation, then given his age and potential, Balde stands out as one of the biggest potential sales Barça could make this summer.

Ferran Torres

Could Barcelona really part ways with their top two striker options of the past two seasons? It’s unlikely, but not impossible.

Lewandowski’s drop in form this season saw Ferran Torres play a more prominent role this term. The Spaniard has had his moments and will probably finish the season eclipsing the 20-goal mark, but it also became obvious that he can’t be the first option to lead the line for a team with Barcelona’s aspirations.

Torres is a streaky forward, when he’s in a groove, he can score for fun, but when he’s in a funk, he can be equally awful, like it happened when he went on a dreadful 15-game scoreless drought that lasted more than two months.

Additionally, Torres’s contract expires in the summer of 2027, meaning this could potentially be the final time Barcelona can squeeze some transfer value from the former Man City attacker.

Keeping Torres as a backup to an incoming world-class striker seems like a very sensible option, but if a considerable offer arrives for the 26-year-old, it could be a fine piece of business for Barcelona to seriously consider it.

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