Two soccer players wearing FC Barcelona uniforms on the field.
SOCCER

It's official now, he swaps Barça for Croatia: Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez have pushed him out

Another young gem from La Masia leaves Barça to start a new adventure in Croatia!

With Hansi Flick's arrival, the team's revolution has been complete both psychologically and tactically, starting with the defensive line. Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez have been the pillars on which Barça has started to build its team concept and defensive structure. Although Flick had other options such as Araújo, Christensen, Eric, or Sergi Domínguez, the veteran Basque center-back and the young La Masia talent have been more than untouchable.

Pau and Iñigo have been chosen to form the center-back duo and their work has been simply spectacular. Pau Cubarsí, despite his youth, has settled into the position like a true veteran, reaching a top level. Iñigo Martínez has gone from strength to weakness but has always kept a good defensive level.

Given the dominance of the two center-backs, the rest have considered leaving the culé squad at some point. Ronald Araújo did so last January when the possibility of signing for Juventus arose, although he ultimately renewed his contract. Meanwhile, Christensen and Eric García have also been linked with other teams.

Sergi Domínguez, the La Masia product leaves Barça

Ultimately, the center-back who has ended up leaving the blaugrana squad has been the reserve team defender Sergi Domínguez. This past Monday, the agreement between Barça and Dinamo Zagreb was made official, under which the blaugrana club would receive €1.2M. Barça keeps a percentage of the capital gain from a future sale, a formula that has yielded very positive results in recent years.

Hansi Flick looking seriously with La Masía in the background
Hansi Flick did not count on Sergi Domínguez | Europa Press

With this move, Barça continues to earn income from players they didn't count on, as is the case with Alex Valle, signed by Como. Flick bet on the 20-year-old player last preseason and he started in friendlies against high-level teams. The German coach gave him the opportunity to debut in an official match against Osasuna, but a poor performance condemned Sergi to ostracism.

Dinamo Zagreb signs Sergi Domínguez

Both parties have decided to go their separate ways, and the center-back trained at La Masia has opted for the Croatian adventure. The young center-back's goal is to keep progressing and get playing time at a prestigious club in the Croatian league. Sergi Domínguez has had the support of Dani Olmo, who played several years at Dinamo Zagreb after leaving Barça as a youth player.

After 8 years in Barça's youth ranks, the young defender brings his blaugrana journey to an end. The footballer, born in Barcelona, arrived at La Masia as a child from San Gabriel. The large number of center-backs and the high level of competition have led to his definitive departure.

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