“We have been victims” – Barcelona threatened by legal action over “forced departures” of teenage talents

Earlier this week, it was reported that Barcelona are very close to securing the signings of two of Real Zaragoza’s best young talents: Gorka Buil and Samuel Borniquel. Relevo now say that the deals have been completed, and in light of this, the Segunda club has come out with a furious statement in which they have appeared to hit out at the Catalan giants.

In this statement, Zaragoza has confirmed that they are prepared to pursue legal action on the matter.

“Following the latest information and events regarding the forced departures of players trained in our youth academy, Real Zaragoza wishes to express that:

In recent years we have been victims of a plundering of the players of our academy, increasingly at younger ages, which is a huge damage to one of the most relevant pillars of our entity: youth football.

 The youth academy is one of the cornerstones on which Real Zaragoza’s present and future project is based. Under our model, only last season, a total of 15 players trained in our academy played an official match with Real Zaragoza, thus reaffirming our commitment to the players of the house.

The club makes a great effort and investment for the training and development of its players that, on occasions, is used by clubs with greater resources. This is due to the fact that there is a regulatory insufficiency that reflects and regulates these circumstances and that is causing serious conflicts of a sporting, social and economic nature that threaten the stability of clubs such as Real Zaragoza. Current practices often prioritize purely competitive and commercial interests, without considering the child’s overall well-being.

For all these reasons, and due to the situations we are experiencing recurrently, Real Zaragoza will take the appropriate legal measures to preserve its prestige and guarantee the sustainability of its institution.”

Poaching youth talent before they’ve signed professional contracts is something that not only happens in Spain, but across Europe too. It’s a topic that divides opinion, and it’s likely to continue that way until changes are made – if indeed, they are deemed as being necessary.

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