Barcelona youngster closer to staying than leaving amid interest from La Liga rivals

Over the past couple of days, there has been a lot of speculation surrounding the future of FC Barcelona centre-back Eric Garcia.

After all, the 22-year-old has slid down the pecking order at the club and is currently the fifth-choice in Xavi’s plans behind the likes of Andreas Christensen, Jules Kounde, Ronald Araujo, and Inigo Martinez.

As such, game-time will likely be hard to come by for the youngster, sparking rumours of a departure, with Girona showing an interest in him.

Reports on Tuesday suggested that Garcia was also open to joining Girona and had informed Xavi that he wishes to leave on loan.

Garcia’s Girona move unlikely

However, as per the latest update from Gabriel Sans of Mundo Deportivo, it appears that Garcia is closer to staying at Barcelona than leaving for Girona in the final days of the summer window.

Girona were interested in Garcia as they see him as a player who can slot in as a centre-back and a pivot midfielder as well while his ball-playing abilities are something that manager Michel admires.

However, the Catalans are hoping to sign the former Manchester City starlet on a loan deal, whereas Barça wish to sell him outright in case there is a departure.

This makes the possibility of a move unlikely as Girona do not have the money to sign Garcia permanently.

Xavi wants Garcia to stay

Furthermore, manager Xavi Hernandez remains intent on keeping hold of Garcia, having informed the player in a meeting that he is a part of the plans.

Especially with Ronald Araujo’s recent injury and Inigo Martinez’s slow recovery from his last season’s injury, Xavi wants depth in the centre-back department and as such wishes to hold on to Garcia.

So, as things stand, it appears likely that the 22-year-old continues at Barcelona unless Girona raise enough cash to fund a permanent move for him.