Breaking news! Barça's black sheep is finally leaving, goodbye to Sergio Busquets's successor.

The void left by Sergio Busquets in Barcelona's midfield after his departure has been truly difficult to fill. For more than a decade, the Badia native was the beacon that guided the team from the base, setting the pace for every play. Now, several years later, Barça can boast of having found in Frenkie de Jong the ideal replacement for the legendary "5", but the path to get here hasn't been easy.

After Sergio Busquets left for Miami, the Catalans desperately searched for someone capable of interpreting the game as he did. They tried different profiles, some more successful than others, but none managed to reach the Catalan's excellence. Among those experiments, one of the most highly expected was Oriol Romeu.

Oriol Romeu has fallen far short of Sergio Busquets

The homegrown Barça player, who had just completed a fantastic season with Girona, returned to Camp Nou with the dream of succeeding at the club of his life. His signing was received with enthusiasm by much of the fanbase, who saw in him a tactically intelligent footballer, with experience and commitment. In his first matches, Oriol Romeu left very positive impressions, showing composure, vision, and remarkable spatial awareness.

It seemed that Barça had finally found Sergio Busquets's heir. In the first months, Xavi Hernández fully trusted him, giving him a leading role in midfield and using him in high-stakes matches. Oriol Romeu won the hearts of the Barça supporters.

However, as time went by, his performance declined alarmingly. The lack of rhythm, mistakes in playing out from the back, and the presence of more dynamic footballers like Gavi relegated him to the bench. What began as a redemption story ended up being another chapter of frustration for the Ulldecona footballer.

Oriol Romeu already has a new team

Last summer, Barça tried to find him a way out. They considered offers from abroad, and even Girona itself explored his return, but no proposal materialized. In the absence of an agreement, both parties decided to terminate his contract, allowing Oriol Romeu to become a free agent and decide his future.

That future has finally become clear. According to Gerard Romero on Jijantes and confirmed by Fabrizio Romano on his social media, Oriol Romeu will play for Southampton again, the club where he experienced his best years. There, he played more than 250 matches, becoming one of the most beloved players by the fans and a reference in the locker room.

The midfielder returns to the English team with the goal of helping them return to the Premier League. It will be a major challenge, but also an opportunity to rediscover his best form. At 34 years old, Oriol Romeu wants to enjoy soccer again far from the pressure that comes with wearing the Barça jersey.

For the Barça team, his departure means definitively closing the search for Busquets's replacement. Oriol Romeu, who arrived as a hope and left as a disappointment, puts an end to his time at Camp Nou.