Xavi’s plan to fit deadline-day signing into the Barcelona lineup – report

Barcelona roped in two Portuguese stars, Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix, into the squad on the transfer deadline day, with the pair arriving on loan from Manchester City and Atletico Madrid, respectively.

Given Barça’s long-running issues at right-back, Cancelo is set to assume the position moving forward and even provided a glimpse of what he offers in his cameo against Osasuna last weekend.

As for Felix, it is still not very clear as to where he would fit in and how Xavi uses him to get the best out of the 23-year-old.

Joao Felix on the left wing?

Now, Mundo Deportivo is reporting that Xavi is likely to use Joao Felix on the left wing in his Barcelona lineup.

Speaking about the Portuguese international last week and where he can play, the manager had said: “As a ‘9’, as a ‘7’, as an ’11’…. He is a very versatile player and has wonderful qualities to succeed at Barça.”

During his debut cameo against Osasuna last weekend, Felix was deployed on the left side of the attack as well.

And, as such, the idea seems to be utilise the 23-year-old former SL Benfica wonderkid on the left wing, from where he can drift into central areas, allowing Alejandro Balde the space to romp forward at free will.

For most of his career, Felix has been utilised as an auxiliary second striker, playing off of a proper centre-forward, and while such a position might not exist in Xavi’s system, the Portuguese ace could strike up a similar tandem with Robert Lewandowski.

The numbers

In his career, Felix has played 119 games as a second striker, racking up 35 goals from 119 matches. When it comes to his tally on the left wing, the 23-year-old has 13 goals and eight assists from 32 matches.

Contrarily, the Portuguese international has been ineffective from the right flank, managing just a couple of goals from 14 games.

So, using Felix on the left flank and have him drift infield makes sense for Xavi. However, how he plans to rotate him with Gavi, Pedri, and Ferran Torres will be interesting to see.