23-year-old Barcelona Atletic defender set for MLS switch | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are generally not a club used to seeing their academy starlets leave in search of new opportunities. If they are good enough for the first team, the Catalan club usually finds a way to retain their services.

Marc Guiu proved an exception to the rule, as the Spanish striker left Barcelona to join Chelsea in the summer ahead of the 2024-25 season, and in hindsight, he might agree that he would have received many more opportunities at the Catalan club.

Now, it has emerged that Dro Fernandez is also set to leave, moving to PSG in the winter transfer window. According to SPORT, he is expected to be joined by another quarry-team player, Mamdou Mbacke Fall.

Mbacke has passed his medical and agreed a shock move to MLS club St. Louis City on a permanent deal. Despite having offers from second-division clubs in Spain and Italy, the young centre-back has chosen to move to America.

A regular for Juliano Belletti’s reserve team, it comes as quite a surprise to see Mbacke leave mid-season. Barcelona Atlètic playing in the fourth division does the club no favours in their ability to retain talent.

The truth is that Mbacke has never been close to the first-team picture. Unlike Dro, who was very much in Hansi Flick’s plans, the 23-year-old Senegalese defender’s exit is unlikely to ruffle any feathers, given he has the opportunity to play at a higher level elsewhere.

Ultimately, as Flick would put it, what matters is players wanting to stay and play for Barcelona. The rest are free to decide as they please for their careers.