Austrian wonderkid still stuck in purchase clause limbo at Barcelona

Yusuf Demir was named all around town during the preseason. Article after article was written about his superb skills in training and the increasing attention won him starts as well.

Yet, the youngster has fizzled out of the manager’s plans over the past few weeks. Ilias Akomach, Jutgla, and Ez Abde have all seen minutes in the recent games. Yet, Demir has not seen minutes off the bench despite his promising start.

According to Austrian outlet KURIER, the reason for Demir’s exclusion is the tricky clause in his contract.

If Demir plays 20 games for the club, each with at least 45 minutes, Barcelona will be forced to activate the €10 million purchase clause. However, this would be a constraint to their budget for the January transfer window.

The club has thus opted to freeze the player out of action until the new year, such that his clause will remain untriggered until after February. Any economic operation from the second month of the year will be recorded under the next economic period, giving Barcelona more breathing space in the transfers market.

As it stands, Demir will play sparsely for the club until February, after which he will be incorporated once again. It is a massive blow for the player himself, though an understandable move from the club.

Barcelona require a large budget for the January transfer window, especially given that they are eyeing at least 2-3 reinforcements. Ferran Torres is the number one candidate on the list, while Edinson Cavani is another prime option.