Five reasons why Franck Kessie is perfect for Barcelona

The Blaugrana are close to announcing the signing of the Ivorian on a free transfer.

Despite the financial troubles, Barcelona have shown plenty of ambition in the summer transfer window. The club have reached a pre-contract agreement with Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen on a free transfer. The club is also pushing to sign Chelsea defensive duo César Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso on a free transfer. Barcelona are also keen to land Bayern Munich star striker Robert Lewandowski and Leeds winger Raphinha in the transfer window.

While on the other hand, the club had let go of Philippe Coutinho to Aston Villa on a permanent basis. The likes of  Samuel Umtiti, Martin Braithwaite, Clement Lenglet, Oscar Mingueza and Riqui Puig have all been placed on the transfer list. While Frenkie de Jong might also be on his way to Manchester as the club look to balance its financial books.

But today we are focusing on the signing of Franck Kessie from AC Milan on a free transfer. Here are five reasons why Franck Kessie is the perfect midfielder for Barcelona:

5. Free transfer

Despite the ambition Barcelona have shown in the transfer market, the club are still in serious financial trouble. The La Liga giants are venturing into the free agents market to avoid dishing out massive transfer fees, This is where Franck Kessie comes into the picture. The Ivorian midfielder comes into the 2022-23 season after a Serie A triumph with AC Milan last term. Signing Kessie on a free transfer could turn out to be one of the best moves of the summer transfer window.

4. Frenkie de Jong replacement

Manchester United have shown a key interest in Frenkie de Jong after the appointment of Erik ten Hag as the club's new manager. Despite club president Joan Laporta's statement about having no plans to seek the Dutch midfielder, the switch to Manchester seems inevitable and just a matter of time. With Kessie, Barcelona have a ready-made replacement for Frenkie de Jong. Although both the midfielders are very different from one another but the Ivorian can certainly fill the hole left behind by the Dutch midfielder.

3. New element to midfield

The Ivorian midfielder would add a new element to the Barcelona midfield. The 25-year-old is known for his physicality and stamina in the middle of the park. The Blaugrana have lacked physicality in the middle of the park in recent seasons and Kessie would fix that problem.

2. Perfect age bracket

Kessie is still just 25 and he will bring plenty of experience to the Barcelona midfield. Blaugrana captain and anchor man Sergio Busquets is now 33 years old and is near the end of his career at the top level. Pedri is just 19 and Gavi is just 17, Kessie would be the perfect leader and partner for the young midfield.

1. Ability to operate in different systems

The 25-year-old has featured in various positions in the middle of the park. He played in a two-man defensive midfield system in the past few seasons for AC Milan alongside Ismaël Bennacer. While for his national team he majorly features as a number 8. Last term he played as a number 10 and a roaming midfielder at times for the Serie A champions. His ability to feature and fit in different roles across the midfield could be really handy and make the difference for Barcelona manager Xavi.

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