La Liga rivals rule out January move for Barcelona midfielder – report

It has been just around six months since Oriol Romeu returned to FC Barcelona, signing from fellow Catalan club Girona in a deal worth less than €4 million.

The 32-year-old started out very well in his second spell with the Blaugrana, but things have gone bad for the pivot midfielder in recent months.

From being a regular fixture in the starting XI in the early parts of the season, Romeu has now gone on to become a benchwarmer with minutes becoming very hard to come by.

Even when he has played, the former Chelsea and Southampton ace has looked sloppy, as was visible in the shock defeat against Royal Antwerp.

Girona not considering Romeu return

Given his situation at Barça, there were reports that Girona might look to re-sign Romeu in the January transfer window.

The Catalan club’s manager Michel and director Quique Carcel had publicly admitted that they would welcome the midfielder back if a chance presented itself.

However, according to a new report from Mundo Deportivo, Girona are still looking for a new midfielder in the market but have ruled out a January move for Romeu at this point.

Instead, Michel & co. are looking at other options to strengthen their squad, including former Barcelona midfielder Nico Gonzalez, who is struggling for minutes after joining FC Porto in the summer.

Barcelona counting on Romeu

As far as Romeu is concerned, Xavi and Barcelona still count on the 32-year-old despite his dip in form in recent games.

Given the number of injuries in midfield and the number of fixtures lying ahead, the Catalans believe that the veteran will get plenty of minutes in the second half of the season.

The player himself remains focused on Barcelona and earning his place back in Xavi’s starting lineup. So, for now, Romeu will not be going anywhere in the winter.