Barcelona’s Orian Goren gives Hansi Flick another reason to believe

Barcelona teenager Orian Goren has continued to impress Hansi Flick during pre-season and remains with the first team after several academy players were moved to Barcelona Atletic.

Barcelona’s preparation period has once again provided a platform for players from La Masia to emerge, with Goren among the young prospects making the strongest impression on the German manager.

The 17-year-old midfielder and fellow academy player Ibrahima Tonkara, born in 2009 and 2010 respectively, were told at the end of last season that they would join first-team training in July. Both are regarded as two of the most promising players currently developing within Barcelona’s academy system.

Last summer, Dro Fernandez and Jofre Torrents successfully came through a number of similar tests and began the competitive campaign as part of the regular first-team group.

A month into the current pre-season programme, Goren and Tonkara are still working under Flick, while several other academy players have already moved on to their next stage of development.

Goren’s previous campaign finished later than expected. He remained involved with Pol Planas until the closing stages of the Champions Cup, before also representing the team in the Copa Catalunya ahead of his holiday.

As a result, he had to shorten his break. However, the sacrifice was made for an important opportunity, with Goren and Tonkara reporting for medical checks under Flick on 13 July.

Goren joined Barcelona in 2022 and has already been living at La Masia for several months. The academy provides him with an environment centred on football while also offering his formal education, giving the teenager the structure considered important for his development.

He has continued to progress through each stage of pre-season. Following Barcelona’s training camp in England, the first round of decisions saw Ibrahim Diarra, Alex Gonzalez and Oscar Gistau move into the Barcelona Atletic squad.

Goren, by contrast, stayed with the first team and travelled to Italy last weekend for a triangular tournament in Udine. He played 30 minutes against Udinese, having already featured for half an hour against Birmingham.

Those appearances offered valuable experience to a player who has only recently turned 17 but has shown a maturity beyond his years. Goren has attracted attention for his reading of the game and his willingness to take risks in possession, qualities that have helped him stand out among the younger players involved in pre-season.

His continued presence with Flick does not mean a permanent first-team role has been decided. The current plan is for Goren to become an important player for Barcelona Atletic under Belletti during the season, while he could also feature for the youth team in the UEFA Youth League.

That pathway will be reviewed as the campaign develops. Barcelona’s coaching staff, however, are keeping a close watch on him, and a first-team debut cannot be ruled out if his progress continues.

For now, Goren is making the most of an opportunity that began with a shortened holiday and a place in first-team training. His performances have given Flick further reasons to keep him within his plans rather than allow the teenager to disappear from view.