Xavi wants 22 players in his Barcelona squad, club looking to close 7-8 exits – report

With the summer transfer window open for business, Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez is busy planning his squad with directors Mateu Alemany and Deco.

There have already been three signings announced with Ilkay Gundogan, Inigo Martinez, and Vitor Roque, although the latter will be arriving next year. And Oriol Romeu is close to joining the club as well, with an announcement said to be imminent.

As far as departures are concerned, only Samuel Umtiti has been shipped out thus far, with the Frenchman terminating his contract.

However, the tweaks to the squad are far from over as Xavi and Barça remain keen on making more changes to the roster before the transfer window slams shut.

And, as per SPORT, the Barcelona manager wants a squad with a total of 22 players at his disposal, such that he has two quality players for each position on the pitch.

As things stand, the Blaugrana squad consists of 26 footballers: two goalkeepers, ten defenders, seven midfielders, and seven forwards.

But, there are several players who do not belong in the manager’s plans. As such, Barcelona are planning to finalise at least seven or eight departures while making two or three more additions to reach Xavi’s ideal number of 22.

The Catalans are working hard to sanction the departures of six players before they leave for the USA later this month: Clement Lenglet, Nico Gonzalez, Pablo Torre, Franck Kessie, Alex Collado, and Julian Araujo.

Once they return from the pre-season tour Ez Abde and Sergino Dest could also be shown the exit doors while offers will be heard for the likes of Ferran Torres and Eric Garcia. The hope is to finalise the exits of at least seven or eight of these players.

At the same time, at least two or three more signings will be targeted, with the manager hoping to add Romeu, a right-back, and possibly another creative midfielder to the roster.

Even though there is still plenty of time left in the transfer window, the La Liga champions will hope to get the business done at the earliest.