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Barcelona B's 2015 transfer ban (2nd September, 2017)

Barcelona may have had a transfer ban in 2015, but that didn't stop them from making new signings. But it wasn't just the first team, it was every youth team too - and Barcelona B was no exception.

Barcelona B’s new recruits included attacking midfielder Xemi, who had stepped onto the pitch of his club’s stadium, the Camp Nou, and has defeated Barcelona and Valencia. They also brought in Dani Romera, a striker who has played Córdoba in the league twice in the space of five weeks and won 2-1 both times. Finally, they have signed Jokin Ezkieta, a goalkeeper who has played for the Spain U-19 team but hadn't played a single professional match in Spanish football. Ever.

Xemi was currently playing for UE Cornellà, a team that plays in the 1,500-seater Nou Camp Municipal. Their first game of the 2015-16 season was at home against Barcelona B, which they won 2-1. And nearly a month later, again at home, Cornellà defeated Valencia Mestalla 3-2.

20-year-old Xemi is highly energetic and is known for his hard work and defensive nature. He started all 18 league matches in the first half of the 2015-16 season and already accumulated five yellow cards. And he has an eye for goal too - in the 2015 calendar year he had scored five times - and hopefully when he joined Barcelona B in January he would score some more.

Dani Romera, a 20-year-old striker, actually joined Barcelona B to train - hence, he couldn't play until January. The season before, he played for UD Almería B but was called up several times to the first team. Therefore, he played against Córdoba in the first team, and then just over a month later played with his B team against their B team.

Romera is a quick striker who is known for his ability to evade defenders with speed and agility. The previous season he scored 15 goals in 31 league games.

Like Romera, Jokin Ezkieta was signed over the summer. The 19-year-old goalkeeper actually played for the Spain U-19 team, and was the third goalkeeper last year for CA Osasuna, but had only played for amateur, fourth-tier Osasuna B.

He might be the most promising signing of all. While comparisons to De Gea and Courtois by Sport and Mundo Deportivo respectively are premature and ridiculous, what we do know is that he is 6’6" tall, quick and has sharp reflexes. Osasuna saw that he had the talent - and lost their next big star due to contractual disputes. Unfortunately for them, Barcelona B saw the potential in him too.

So how have the signings worked out?

Jokin Ezkieta actually spent the 2016-17 season on loan to Sabadell, but he is finally a professional, playing for Barcelona B in the Segunda. Xemi signed for Oxford United this summer, failing to break into Barcelona B's starting eleven. And Dani Romera, despite scoring 6 goals in 12 games in the 2015-16 season, and another 15 goals in the 2016-17 season, was sold to Cádiz for a measly 350,000 euros.

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