Chelsea Keen On Recruiting This Barcelona Defender This January: Should Maresca Go For Him? | OneFootball

In a recent interview with TBR Football, journalist Graeme Bailey claimed that Chelsea are keen on recruiting Barcelona defender Eric Garcia this January. Bailey said, “We know Chelsea tried to sign Fermin, but now sources confirm they would happily have taken Cascado and Garcia too.

“Interest in Garcia remains, and Barcelona are now working hard on tying him down as his contract expires at the end of the season.

“I am told Garcia is someone Chelsea would want in January, but the chances are he will have signed a new deal.

“They have been offered Araujo, and in theory, they do have an interest, but they are yet to be convinced he wants to leave Barcelona, so I do not believe they are pushing too hard on that.

“Should Araujo make it clear he would move, then things could very well change, but as it stands, he really isn’t keen on leaving.”

Garcia’s Good Form In La Liga This Season

Garcia has produced a run of solid displays for Barcelona in La Liga this season. The Spaniard has made ten appearances for the Catalan club so far in this campaign, scoring one goal across various competitions.

MILAN, ITALY – MAY 06: Eric Garcia of FC Barcelona in action during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Semi Final First Leg match between FC Internazionale Milano and FC Barcelona at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on May 06, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The 24-year-old has been a good performer on the defensive third of the pitch as he has made 14 tackles, eight blocks, eight interceptions and 17 clearances in La Liga. He has also been careful when distributing the ball from the back after completing 89.5% of his attempted passes in the Spanish top tier (stats via fbref.com).

Should Chelsea Boss Enzo Maresca Go For Garcia?

Garcia is a good tackler of the ball and can sense the danger well to earn possession back for his team at the back. He usually puts his foot through the ball when required and can play his way out from inside his half.

The Spanish talent would no doubt improve the quality of Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca’s defence. He already knows the Premier League well from his time at Manchester City and won’t take much time to settle into life at Chelsea.

At 24, Garcia has his peak years ahead of him. Hence, the Blues would be wise to go for a defender of his quality this January or at the end of this campaign.