Thursday, January 20, 2022 at 09:54• Mart Oude Nijeweeme • Last update: 09:57

Óscar Mingueza threatens to leave Barcelona this winter, reports Mundo Deportivo. The defender, who still has a contract at the Camp Nou until next summer, has appeared on the radar at Valencia, who are happy to take him over on a rental basis for the rest of the season. Valencia is looking for a replacement for Daniel Wass, who in turn is in the focus of Atletico Madrid. Mingueza has never played for a club other than Barcelona, ​​where he entered the youth academy in 2007.

Valencia has started the search for a new defender after it became known that Atlético would like to see Wass come as a replacement for Kieran Trippier who left Newcastle United. Mingueza is considered an ‘interesting option’ in the the Dutch city, as he can be used on the left wing as well as in the center. The Barcelona defender would be interested in a move to the current number nine in LaLiga. There is a chance that Barcelona will involve José Luis Gaya in the deal. The Valencia left-back is considered the ideal successor to Jordi Alba.

Mingueza is not assured of a basic place under Xavi. He has appeared in 13 LaLiga appearances this season, including 8 as a starting player. In total, he only played five official games under Xavi. Only against Espanyol, Bayern Munich and Real Mallorca was he allowed to show it from the start. However, Barcelona is struggling with a large number of injuries, including Eric García and Samuel Umtiti, which means that the club is not immediately eager for a departure from Mingueza. Mateu Alemany is aware of the offer that the defender has received through agent Josep Maria Orobitg.

Should it come to an agreement, Mingueza could be admired for the first time in the shirt of another club. The defender entered the Barcelona youth academy in 2007. In the 2018/19 season, he was transferred to the U23 team. On November 24, 2020, under Ronald Koeman, he made his debut in the A-selection in the Champions League match against Dynamo Kyiv. Five days later, he made his LaLiga debut. So far he has played once for the national team of Spain. In June last year, he played the full 90 minutes in the friendly against Lithuania (4-0 win).