One of the mainstays of Barcelona’s midfield looks to stay past the turn of the decade. The official website of FC Barcelona has reported that Sergio Busquets will renew his contract with the club until 2021. The new buyout clause will increase to 200 million Euros.
The 27-year-old has just finished up a campaign which saw him play 53 games, a career high for a season.
Busquets was called up from Barcelona B in 2008 by his manager on the B team, Pep Guardiola when he was appointed as first team manager. Since then, he has played in 384 official matches and has taken a key role in the squad as the starting defensive midfielder. A role he took up in his first season at the age of 20, including starting the 2009 Champions League final, where Barcelona triumphed over Manchester United.
Busquets has won 23 trophies since securing a first team spot. He has also been a key member of the Spanish National football team, starting in both the 2010 World Cup and 2012 European Championship finals, both of which were won by the Spanish team.
As Barcelona enter a long summer that could see multiple players leave, they secured in what was probably their most important contract of the off-season.
Busquets is critical to the way that Barcelona play, and his presence is almost always missed whenever he isn’t on the pitch.
According to Whoscored, Busquets had a passing percentage of over 90 percent for the season and averaged 71 passes a match in both La Liga and the UEFA Champions League matches combined.
