Barcelona full-back seen as a leader in the locker room despite limited game time

It has been only a little over a year since Marcos Alonso joined Barcelona, arriving for free after his contract with Chelsea was terminated.

While he has not been a regular in the starting lineup week in week out, and his game-time has taken a further hit this season, Ivan San Antonio of SPORT reports that Alonso is seen as one of the leaders of the team in the Barça locker room.

Barcelona players have total respect for Alonso

Even though it is just his second season at Barcelona, Alonso has earned the complete respect of his teammates as per the report.

The 32-year-old is understood to have forged a good relationship with players like Sergi Roberto, Frenkie de Jong, and Robert Lewandowski in the squad.

At the same time, the youngsters within the roster look up to the former Chelsea defender as an example due to his professionalism and experience.

Manager Xavi Hernandez is understood to be fully satisfied with Alonso, his attitude, and his work even though the player does not receive many minutes.

The report adds that even though Alonso does not play regularly, he is already thinking about the benefit of the team and that whenever he speaks in the dressing room, it is heard by everyone.

Alonso could have left in the summer

Things could have been very different for Alonso, though, as there was a good chance that he could have left Barcelona during the summer transfer window.

The 32-year-old Spanish ace was linked with an exit and there was interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia while Manchester United were also briefly linked.

But nothing came of it as Alonso never contemplated the possibility of a departure while manager Xavi also wanted to keep hold of the left-back.

Alonso’s contract with Barcelona, however, comes to an end in the summer of 2024 and it remains to be seen if the club wish to further extend him or not.