Barcelona’s ‘new Busquets’ scouted by Lazio, an important La Liga club also keen

Barcelona youngster Marc Casado is a player who has been tipped for a bright future at the club. The 19-year-old is rated very highly not only within the club it seems, as Diario AS is reporting that Serie A side Lazio recently scouted the defensive midfielder.

Casado signed for Barcelona from CF Damm in 2016 and has excelled at every youth level within the La Masia ranks. Last season, he was the captain of the club’s Juvenil A team as they won the league and Champions Cup double.

The teenager has been touted as the ‘new Sergio Busquets’ within the club, as per the report, even though the two players do not share the same exact characteristics. Casado is said to be more intense when it comes to defensive duties than the first-team captain and is seen as a hard-working individual with leadership abilities.

Within the club, Barcelona believe that Casado is meant to grow into an important player for the senior team in the years to come. The 19-year-old was the only youth player that manager Xavi Hernandez took to the pre-season tour of the USA last summer.

Following that, Casado even made his official first-team debut in the UEFA Champions League group stage game against Viktoria Plzen last year. That remains his sole appearance for the Barcelona senior side, but he has been regularly called up to the squad by Xavi.

Casado’s potential has not gone unnoticed as Lazio had reportedly sent an emissary to watch the defensive midfielder in action during Barça Atletic’s 3-0 win over Logrones last Saturday.

Apart from that, an important La Liga club is also said o be interested in the 19-year-old midfield prospect.

Casado’s contract with Barcelona runs until 2024 with an option for an additional year. In case the Catalans are unable to bring in a new pivot midfielder in the summer, one would imagine that the youngster could see greater involvement in the first-team setup.

And it would not be a surprise to see the club try and renew his contract, just like they are trying to in the cases of Aleix Garrido and Estanis Pedrola.