Jules Koundé has started just two matches since the beginning of the current season, having lost the battle for the right-back spot to Eric García. Several clubs are now monitoring the French defender's situation as they weigh up a move.
Barcelona were clear with Koundé about his standing within the team, and the club even signalled its openness to offers. The player decided to stay and fight for his place.
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With the season under way, Koundé has begun to rethink his future. Much could change over the coming period, but every possibility remains open if his current situation continues.
The club had taken a clear stance on the two full-backs they leaned on previously: Koundé and Alejandro Balde.
Barcelona's academy product was told he would get very few minutes and could listen to offers. Koundé, meanwhile, was told he remained part of the project but was no longer a strategic player for coach Hansi Flick and the club, according to the Catalan newspaper "Sport".
Barcelona's gaps
Flick's decision on Koundé looks purely sporting. The German coach pays close attention to the full-back positions, and when he took over at Barcelona he spotted problems there and wanted to rebuild them completely with new faces, having seen that many of the defensive gaps came from the spaces behind the full-backs.
Koundé has started only two of the eight official games Barcelona have played. All the signs suggest his involvement came, first and foremost, to rest Eric García rather than signal any change in the pecking order.
Andreas Christensen's injury opened a new window, though, and the French defender is waiting to seize it. If he cannot, he will know his situation has become more difficult.
His value on the transfer market is high, and it seems strange that he finds himself outside Barcelona's starting line-up given Flick's previous reliance on him and the club's decision to renew his contract until 2030.
That stage has become a thing of the past. Koundé now finds himself a substitute at Barcelona and a starter for the France national team, an unusual situation that could shape his future.
English and German interest
Several clubs are waiting for Koundé to open the door out of Barcelona. At least three big Premier League clubs are interested, and there was talk in the summer of Bayern Munich chasing him before the move stalled when some defenders the German club wanted to offload failed to leave.
At Barcelona, it seems clear that Koundé is among the players permitted to listen to departure offers, provided the deal suits all parties.
Now the defender has begun to rethink his future, in a deal that could bring Barcelona more than 50 million euros as well as saving his salary. That makes his potential departure one of the club's key pieces of business.