Alejandro Balde’s Alejandro Balde future is being shaped by a simple timeline. He has made only 1 appearance for Barcelona this season, a 12-minute cameo against Racing Santander, and the silence around his role has turned January into a real possibility. Chelsea, Liverpool and AC Milan are all in the conversation, while Barça still have the contract leverage because he is tied down until 2028.

Barcelona's sudden change in the hierarchy

The drop in minutes is the key part of this story. Balde has appeared only once as a substitute this season, which is a long way from the status he built over the last two years. Hansi Flick has said he was key over that period, but also that he is not getting minutes now, and Juan Jesus reported that the player is starting to see a departure from Barça as a completely real option.

The squad competition is doing the rest. Flick said Barcelona have five full-backs, and the current pecking order has Joao Cancelo and Eric Garcia ahead of Balde in the rotation. Cancelo has played 6 league games this season, while Eric Garcia has made 6 as well, which helps explain why Balde’s route into the team has narrowed.

Why January matters for the clubs watching

The interest is not coming from nowhere. Juan Jesus said Liverpool are maintaining a very high level of interest, while Chelsea and AC Milan are pressing hard to land him in the winter window. That is a useful marker of how the market now sees him, especially with Barcelona’s left side already crowded.

Chelsea’s own situation helps explain the fit. Their squad has Jorrel Hato and Pep Chavarria as the recognised left-backs, but Balde is still being framed as a player who suits Xabi Alonso’s system. Liverpool sit 6th in the Premier League and AC Milan are 5th in Serie A, so both are in the kind of range where a January upgrade is believable rather than speculative.

Barcelona, though, are not under pressure to rush. They have won all 7 league games this season, scored 31 goals in those matches, and Balde’s contract until 2028 gives them the patience to wait for the right bid. The more interesting question now is not whether clubs like him, it is whether any of them are ready to pay what Barça want in January. The player’s next run of minutes, or lack of them, will probably decide how hard the race gets before the window opens.

Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 6 outlets. How we work →