For Barcelona, although the team's operational situation this season has shown significant improvement compared to previous seasons, the club has once again stumbled in individual player transfer operations. After the registration deadline in the middle of the season, Barcelona still failed to register Olmo, which undoubtedly caused significant losses for the team. According to La Liga regulations, Olmo will not be able to represent Barcelona at least for the second half of this season. In the most pessimistic scenario, Barcelona may ultimately face a situation where they "lose both their wife and their troops."
At the beginning of this season, when Barcelona signed Olmo, the team did not have the conditions to register the player. At that time, Laporta took advantage of the injuries of players like Christensen to trigger the injury clause of La Liga, allowing Olmo to be registered. However, with the recovery of Christensen and others, Barcelona could no longer use this clause. In this situation, Laporta has taken various measures in the past period to try to convince the management of La Liga to agree to register Olmo, but all were rejected. With the registration deadline over, all of Barcelona's efforts have ultimately failed.
According to the contract between Barcelona and Olmo, if Barcelona cannot continue to register Olmo for the second half of the season, the player has the right to immediately terminate the contract without having to pay a breach of contract fee and can receive the full salary for the six-year contract period. Currently, Olmo faces two choices. The first is to immediately terminate the contract with Barcelona. This way, he would become a free agent, receive six years' salary, and can sign with any team, obtaining another lucrative contract while also receiving a substantial signing fee. For Olmo, this is undoubtedly the choice that maximizes his interests.
However, this would leave Barcelona facing a situation where they lose everything. They would not only lose the 62 million euros spent on signing Olmo but also have to pay the player's full salary, resulting in total losses exceeding 100 million euros. This would once again push Barcelona into a quagmire. According to Spanish media analysis, considering moral aspects and Olmo's background from Barcelona's youth training, he is likely to choose the second option, which is to continue executing the contract with Barcelona and temporarily leave on loan during the second half of the season. Such a choice can help Barcelona reduce losses to the greatest extent.
Regardless of which option is chosen, Olmo's departure in the second half of the season is already determined. According to Spanish media Relevo, Olmo's agent is already in communication with Barcelona's management about the player's next loan plan. Currently, the "next stop" for this 65 million mainstay has gradually emerged, and the scene of three giants "fighting for the ball" is about to officially unfold.
Firstly, there is Manchester City. This season, Guardiola's team has fallen into an unprecedented dilemma, almost having prematurely withdrawn from the league title race. Key players like De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva have shown obvious declines in form due to age, injuries, and other factors, and the team urgently needs to introduce a midfield attacker. It is reported that Guardiola is very appreciative of Olmo and believes that his technical characteristics can fit perfectly into Manchester City's tactical system.
Secondly, there is Manchester United. This season, Manchester United's state has also been poor, showing no significant improvement after changing managers and hovering in the lower half of the table. In the midfield position, Bruno Fernandes, as the attacking core, has performed quite ordinarily, and the management is considering selling him. In this case, Olmo is undoubtedly an ideal replacement. The team can use Olmo to get through the second half of the season's matches and then seek to sign a top midfielder at the end of the season.
Lastly, there is AC Milan. The Rossoneri are also seeking change after changing managers. In the midfield position, they hope to find a reliable partner for Youssouf Fofana and Reinders, and Olmo, who possesses excellent technical and attacking abilities, is undoubtedly the perfect candidate. However, considering the consistent style of the Red Birds, they may find it difficult to fully cover the player's salary during the loan period. (Images sourced from the internet; if there is any infringement, please contact us to remove them.)