At FC Barcelona, the “Joaos,” Cancelo and Felix, instilled a great deal of hope.
This summer, both players went on loan from their previous teams. They had a reputation for being gifted players who struggled to perform at a high level on a regular basis, but when they did, they were practically unstoppable.
Their early games drew a lot of plaudits right away, with Felix needing to show something after being frozen out at Atletico and Cancelo aiming to disprove his detractors following some internal strife at Manchester City.
So much so that, according to reports, the club had started crunching the statistics to potentially sign both of them permanently for the following summer.
But according to Javi Miguel, these encouraging feelings are starting to fade, and Barcelona is no longer certain that they want to complete their acquisitions.
Discrepancies are beginning to appear.
Particularly in his first few months at Barcelona, Joao Cancelo has shown both bursts of creativity and patches of inconsistent play.
He is a genuine attacking asset because of his speed and talent, but he can also be chaotic, unpredictable, and sometimes self-centered.
He has frequently left holes in the back, and the team’s balance is sometimes upset by his propensity to stray into unfamiliar terrain.
blowing both too cold and too hot. Picture courtesy of Stuart Franklin/Getty Images
In addition, his offensive effect has occasionally been imperceptible in games.
Joan Laporta was eager about bringing the Portuguese star to Barcelona and had been closely monitoring Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid for years. As a result, Joao Felix initially faced criticism within the team.
In an interview, Felix also declared his love for Barcelona, which made things worse for him at Atletico after a disastrous loan at Chelsea.
Felix established himself in the starting lineup at Barcelona following a strong debut, mostly from the left wing, where he contributed goals and assists.
But following this promising start, he has gradually declined to the point where he finds it difficult to have a meaningful influence in front of goal.
In addition to not creating nearly enough opportunities for his teammates, he has not scored in ten games.
Miguel says that while it’s too soon to make a firm decision about these two players, fans hoping that Barcelona will spend much to keep them this summer might be let down.
When the Catalans decide to make another investment, they appear to have their sights set on a defensive midfielder and a left winger.