The news that Gavi extended his Barcelona contract came as a pleasant surprise to the team’s fanbase earlier this week.This new contract should ensure the young midfielder’s long-term career at the Camp Nou until June 2026.
It ended months of speculation about his future with the club.As his previous contract had a €50 million release clause, this came after other top clubsshowed interest in snatching him up. Sides like Liverpool and Bayern were reportedly considering making a move to grab the 18-year-old away from La Liga.
Gavi, a product of the famous La Masia academy, has already made a significant impact in his first year with the Blaugrana. Along with Pedri, he has established himself as a regular in the Spanish national team, and he is widely expected to contend for a starting berth in Xavi Hernandez‘s midfield trio this next season.
The reasons why Gavi will have to continue wearing No. 30 until January
Xavi Hernandez of Barcelona. (Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
Since Gavi has started six of the club’s eight matches in all competitions, he has surpassed Frenkie de Jong in the pecking order. However, even though he has become an integral component of Barcelona’s midfield, the youngster still wears jersey number 30, which isusually reserved for academy players in La Liga.
In addition to the new deal, Spanish newspaper Marca, as well as journalist Gerard Romero claimthat the club will elevate the player’s stature by awarding him the renowned No. 6 shirt.The teenagerwill be eligible to switch to the jersey number because ithas been vacant since Riqui Puig left this summer for LA Galaxy in the MLS.
Gavi, however, must wait patiently for things to play out.Even if the jersey is open, he can’t swap it out just yet. One of the reasons is thatBarcelona’s roster for the first half of the season has already been submitted to La Liga. It may be changed when the next registrationperiod starts in January.
The other explanationis that, due to wage cap issues, the Catalan giants must retain himon the young team’s roster. The midfielder has long since graduated from the youth team. However, he is listed as suchto increase the wage cushion for the squad so that they may all participate in games.
Naturally, the Blaugrana’s No. 6 kithas a particular significance since current coach Xavi wore it from 2001 until 2015. He is a Barca icon for his role as the team’s midfield architect throughout their illustrious years.
