Benfica fans, given the club’s illustrious history, most likely let Álex Grimaldo’s signing pass through without too much fanfare. It is true though that the 20-year-old is an exciting prospect, and for those who did take the time to watch his highlight reels, the acquisition of the Spaniard suddenly seems like a very astute move by the Portuguese champions.
So said the excellent Barcelona-dedicated website TotalBarça, when PortuGOAL asked them. But what exactly can the Eagles expect from their new signing? To find out read on.
To make a start, the €1.5 million Benfica paid for Grimaldo is a fair sum for a player whose contract with Barcelona was set to expire this coming summer. Had the contractual situation been different, with Benfica’s interest in the player the same, Barcelona would have duly pointed to the €12 million release clause all of Barcelona B’s most promising players. Therefore, at first sight the Grimaldo deal is good value for money, given that they managed to beat off interest from Arsenal and Bayern Munich.
For that money, Benfica will be getting a player who’s been through lots of bumps in his short career so far. Although a graduate of Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, the Spaniard started out with local club Paterna in his native Valencia before moving to La Liga giants Valencia CF, where he impressed as a central midfielder. At the age of 13, he did enough to catch the eye of Barcelona scouts, who recommended him to the La Masia high command. Young Alejandro made the move north to the Catalan capital shortly after.
Prodigious start at La Masia
Barcelona coaches thought it best to change the youngster into a left-back, but his play for Barça’s youth sides was still thoroughly impressive, meaning that he was able to become the youngest ever debutant with Barcelona B team in Spain’s second tier at the age of 15 years of 349 days, breaking a record that had stood since 1998. His initial outings with Barça B saw him continue to make a name for himself as one to keep an eye on.
In 2012, he was the youngest member of the Spain u-19 squad, led by Julen Lopetegui, which won the European U-19 championships in Estonia, but managed to play ever single match. Grimaldo ruptured his cruciate ligament, and had to endure 324 long days on the sidelines before making his return to action. Armed with steely determination, the Valencian fought hard to win back his spot on the left side of Barcelona B’s defence, helping the team to a record equalling 3rd place finish.
Over the past year or so, Grimaldo has shown both the best and he worst of his playing character. Playing for Barça B, the Spaniard is the epitome of a modern fullback. He knows how to defend, but he is even more exciting when going forward. Essentially a full back with the soul of a midfielder, Grimaldo always knows how to pick the right pass. Eusebio Sacristán used him as a central midfielder when Barcelona B were struggling at the autumn of 2013, and almost instantly, he changed the team’s fortunes.
Sweet left foot
His crossing from the wing is first class, but has gone largely unnoticed, as Barcelona B forwards have been annoyingly wasteful as of late. The Spaniard is blessed with a left foot capable of delivering inch-perfect set pieces, but he is also perfectly capable of scoring from those free-kicks too.
Grimaldo is defensively responsible, but his playing style has caused some problems in the past. People were quick to compare him with Jordi Alba, but comparisons with the Catalan are wide of the mark. The two may be similar in terms of technique, but Alba’s physique sets him apart. Grimaldo very often bombards forward to offer his winger a passing option with overlapping runs, but without with a relative lack of pace, Grimaldo would leave his defence exposed all too often.
His timing in the tackle is excellent in nine out of ten occasions, but he can be exposed by rival forwards due to his tendency to commit to tackling every single time he is faced by an opponent. In Barça B’s nightmare relegation season, he did exhibit a certain degree of laziness in his marking which often proved costly, but these are things which will be fixed as the player accumulates experience.
Benfica would therefore have nothing to lose if they were to give Grimaldo a run, but in the opposite scenario, the Eagles are likely to face some problems. Grimaldo hates bench warming, and cannot control his words. He had shown to be very demanding at Barcelona, turning down a loan to La Liga side Levante, which would theoretically give him precious La Liga experience, and demanded playing time with Luis Enrique’s star-studded first team squad. Naturally, his wish was not granted, and although he was voted captain of the reserve team in Spain’s third tier, Álex was very unhappy.
Headstrong
He made his feelings known with a rant in the mixed zone after a league match. “He has never told me anything. I haven’t had any contact with him. Nor do I have anything to discuss with him,” said Grimaldo in reference to Barcelona coach Luis Enrique. Barcelona quickly expressed their discontent, forcing Grimaldo to take to twitter to claim that his comments were “misinterpreted.” The player later affirmed his commitment to the club, saying “I am at the best club in the world and I want to continue here.” Shortly after these comments were made, Grimaldo froze off contract renewal negotiations and opened talks with Benfica.
In conclusion, Benfica fans should probably get excited about Grimaldo. The Spaniard has lots to offer, and not just as a full back. He has to be given his chances though, and if Rui Vitória is late in doing so, Grimaldo’s patience might be exhausted once again.
Written by Savvas Marcou, totalBarça youth specialist.
