Alejandro Balde's Unexpected Freeze-Out at Barcelona
Alejandro Balde is stuck on pause.
The Barcelona full-back, once pencilled in as a pillar of the club’s future, has not played a single minute for the first team this season. Not one. For a 22-year-old who was flying two years ago, the fall has been abrupt.
Flick’s hierarchy leaves Balde on the outside
According to Sport, Hansi Flick has made his choice at left-back. The coach leans on Gerard Martín and João Cancelo on that flank, a clear signal of the current pecking order. Balde sits behind both, stranded in a grey area between the first team and the periphery.
The shift did not come out of nowhere. Barcelona had already placed Balde on the market in the summer after a difficult, injury-affected campaign in which he missed 10 matches through physical problems. The club listened to offers. One of Europe’s heavyweights came calling.
Manchester United showed late interest towards the end of the transfer window. Talks took place, but the two clubs never found common ground financially. Any deal was complicated further by Balde’s contract: it runs until 2028 and includes a staggering one-billion-euro release clause. More importantly, the player himself had no intention of leaving Barcelona. He wanted to stay and fight.
From opener omission to total freeze-out
Flick’s first big decision of the season spoke volumes. Balde did not even make the squad for the opening La Liga match against Elche. The coach, according to the report, considered him not focused enough and pushed him down the list of options at left-back.
The weeks since have only underlined that stance. Balde has yet to pull on the shirt this season. Among outfield players who are fully fit, only he and Bryan Fariñas have not featured at all. The two reserve goalkeepers, Ljubičić and Szczęsny, are also still waiting for their first appearance, while Frenkie de Jong and Bardají remain sidelined with long-term injuries.
For a player who once looked untouchable in that position, the silence around his name on team sheets is deafening.
Deco backs Balde – but sets a clear challenge
Inside the club, the message is firm. Deco, Barcelona’s sporting director, addressed Balde’s situation on RAC1.
“Nothing has happened, he is our player,” Deco said. “He is 22 years old, he has a big future, and a contract with the best club in the world. He has to compete to play.”
The support came with a reminder of the standard expected.
“Balde suffered injuries, but he was outstanding two years ago,” Deco added. “If Balde is in good shape, it is difficult for him not to play with Barcelona.”
The subtext is obvious: the door is not closed, but no one will open it for him. He has to force it himself.
How far things have turned in a year
The contrast with last season is stark. In the 2025-2026 campaign, Balde began as a starter. He opened the league season in the XI and kept his place for the first three La Liga matches, amassing 222 minutes in that early stretch.
Back then, being left on the bench for an entire match was the exception. Flick did it only five times over the whole season. Now, with September barely underway, Balde has already spent more full games unused than that, without even a single late cameo to cling to.
From rising cornerstone to unused asset in the space of a year: Balde’s situation has become one of the most striking subplots of Barcelona’s early season. The question now is simple and brutal — how long can a talent of his profile sit still before something finally has to give?
