Barça's Clement Lenglet: a signing capable of performing immediately

When Andoni Zubizarreta presented Thomas Vermaelen, he assured that the Belgian defender was a signing capable of "performing immediately." The reality ended up being the opposite, unfortunately, but his words would have been well applied to Clement Lenglet, a signing with Robert Fernandez's finger prints over it. He was the sporting director who had the French defender on his agenda since his time at Nancy. 

Lenglet was captain of Nancy by the age of 20: it was then that Barca focused on him, but it would have been for the B team if they did do a deal, not the first team. They already had Pique, Mascherano, Mathieu and Vermaelen. In addition, Marlon and Samuel Umtiti were soon on their way in. 

The France defender continued to improve and in January 2017 he accepted an offer from Sevilla. Monchi worked hard to convince the player and his father, Sebastien, to join the La Liga club despite an offer from Juventus. Lenglet's adaption to life at Sevilla was impressive: a regular from the start and an important player for all the coaches he played under. 

FROM 'Masche' TO Lenglet

In January 2018, exactly one year after Lenglet signed for Sevilla, Mascherano left Barça. That's when Robert's team got back to work on Lenglet. Curiously, Yerry Mina was signed, but he never fitted in. The arrival of Lenglet was slowly brewing in the background, though. 

Talks weren't too complicated, despite claims in Seville that Lenglet had doubts about joining Barça. From the first moment he was thrilled at the possibility of a Camp Nou move. Robert's relationship with Gregory Dakad, the defender's player, helped negotiations move quickly. Reports in Seville spoke about a player focused on his work, with a discrete life off the pitch, a lover of football (he studies in detail his rivals) and with huge potential.