Barcelona Prodigy Oriol Busquets Has the Tools to Be the New Sergio Busquets

Sometimes names can weigh heavy in football. Those adorned with a surname that has already made a mark in football—via family relation or coincidence—carry expectations beyond usual levels.

The son of a former great is expected to be as good as his father; a player named after a legend must have something special about him (in this instance, our thoughts go to Ronaldo Vieira of Leeds United—and his twin brother, Romario).

A name can attract your eye to a player before you’ve seen him play, and that’s certainly been the case for many when it comes to Oriol Busquets of Barcelona. With a forename the same as La Masia graduate and Southampton star Oriol Romeu, and a surname matching Cules hero Sergio Busquets, a buzz has already been generated despite his tender years.

At 17, he’s still to make his own mark on senior football. He’s yet to play a single minute of first-team football for Barcelona and has only this season become a key figure in their UEFA Youth League side. He played a part in 2015, but the No. 6 position in the Blaugrana’s famed 4-3-3 was dominated by Ferran Sarsanedas; Busquets earned minutes, but often played as a No. 8.

This season he has locked down that sole holding spot in the team, starting the first four Youth League games and aiding the collection of 12 points from 12. Only two goals were conceded during those four fixtures, and Manchester City—a team of bright prospects capable of rivalling any collection—were held scoreless in both games. Busquets’ resilience was key to this.

Despite the fact Oriol is no relation to Sergio, he is literally Barcelona’s “next Busquets.” The “next X” tag is horribly and abusively used in football, but it’s quite apt in this scenario.

So Many Similarities

People are surprised to find Oriol and Sergio are not related, as every tangible piece of evidence screams that they are. Not only do they share a surname, but they’ve been raised through the same club’s academy, play in the exact same position, and have that same lanky quality to their frame. Oriol is around 6’1”, has long legs made for tackling and …

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