Barcelona annoyed by the ostracism of summer signing Junior Firpo

The injury to Jordi Alba should have opened the door to Junior Firpo to come in as Barcelona's left-back. The Spain U21 international has had some injury problems, but he's in shape and ready to play now and the club are annoyed by his ostracism in recent weeks. 

Junior was signed to provide competition for Alba, but Ernesto Valverde's not given him many minutes. Valverde personally backed his singing when there were other options on the table. The idea is that he now returns to the squad and starts making his way in the first team. 

The former Real Betis defender has surprised the dressing room with his physical power. He's an explosive player but the club recognises he's a rough diamond as he arrived with technical deficiencies. 

For that reason, the coaching staff have worked with him to help him adapt to Barcelona's style. Now he needs minutes to demonstrate his worth. 

Junior was beginning to find his place, he even scored at Getafe, but Valverde's not given him regular football, something which the Spanish champions cannot understand. 

It's not that he should be ahead of Alba, but Valverde's even used Nelson Semedo as a left-back ahead of him, while Junior has not even been called up. This was not how the season was planned and Valverde must know how to get the best out of his squad. 

Junior should start against Celta Vigo on Saturday with Alba out. He could then have a run of games in the team. It's true he's not adapted very quickly, but he's ready to play. He's young and has a lot of quality. There's a belief he can be an important player in the coming years.