Official: 20-year-old Barcelona gem joins Al-Ittihad for €4.5 million | OneFootball

There is perhaps no better club than FC Barcelona when it comes to youth development. From La Masia to the subsidiary, youngsters are given a lot of opportunities to grow and excel as they develop. However, that does not automatically translate into a first team guarantee at Barcelona.

After all, the club’s primary goal is to remain as competitive as possible, and that involves making use of a mix of both big signings and academy talents. Even in this current Barcelona team led by Hansi Flick, there is a clear reliance on youth products developed by the club itself.

Unfortunately, however, that opportunity is not available to most players and only caters to the few elite. As such, young players often have to look elsewhere when it comes to wanting to play first team football. One such talented player is Unai Hernandez, and he seems to have found a new home already.

As confirmed by Fabrizio Romano, the Spaniard has now officially signed with Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad. The midfielder, originally from La Masia, has decided to opt for a change in scenery and will now be headed to the Middle East despite being only 20 years old.

However, the deal will include a rather generous transfer fee of €4.5 million as a fixed amount as per Romano, and Barcelona did need to make some player sales either way to even consider the possibility of bringing in potential signings. It will also include a sell-on clause, although the exact figures or percentage linked to it has not been revealed by the Italian journalist.

While the transfer for any promising young player away from Europe is interesting, perhaps Unai Hernandez’s departure is an even more surprising one. With the kind of talent he possessed, it would have seemed likely that he could have even opted to sign for another European club but it seems that Al-Ittihad were quick to make their move.