Making sense of Barcelona's move for Valencia's Andre Gomes

Barcelona announced the surprising transfer of Valencia's Andre Gomes on Thursday night, surprising not least because Real Madrid had seemed to have sewn up the Portuguese star's signature. An instant reaction is that he is an unnecessary buy for Barcelona, considering they have impressive depth in central midfield as it is. But here are some reasons they may have moved for the star...

Spite

Barcelona were linked heavily with Danilo in March 2015 when Real Madrid stormed the fort and agreed a deal with the Porto right-back, who many thought would come in and be the successor to Barcelona's Dani Alves. Now Barcelona have returned the favour by picking the only firm transfer target Madrid have had this summer. No, spite won't be the only reason Barcelona have signed Gomes but of course the Blaugrana will enjoy getting one up on their biggest rivals.

Iniesta changes

Last season Luis Enrique was careful about how many minutes Andres Iniesta played. And the star himself seemed to be playing differently, coming deeper and taking a more central role. That could continue with Gomes on the scene, as the midfielder likes being the man to burst into the area, which would allow Iniesta to sit back a bit more and dictate the play - perhaps his Xavification will continue. Barcelona also need more goals from midfield, with only Rakitic being a consistent scorer. Gomes doesn't have a spectacular record by any means but will be more of a threat from the edge of the area than Iniesta.

Sergi Roberto switch

Barcelona don't seem to have ambitions to replace Dani Alves with a new right-back, so Sergi Roberto could find himself in that position even more than he did last year. Aleix Vidal is an option too, but not a player Lucho trusts completely. With Roberto displaced, a role opens up in midfield, although Gomes will be competing with Rafinha, Rakitic, Iniesta, Denis Suarez and Arda Turan for those two midfield spots ahead of Sergio Busquets.

Frustration

Arda Turan had a bad first season as a Barcelona player and could leave, although Luis Enrique likes the Turk and called him back early to try and prep him for the new season. Barcelona's striker search has proved fruitless too, so perhaps Denis Suarez will be utilised more often in one of the wide forward roles than as a midfielder which would open up more space for Gomes to feature in midfield.

Refresh

Iniesta still has plenty of football left in his boots, but like with Xavi, the time to say goodbye will come eventually. At 22, Gomes is young enough to mature under Iniesta's guidance, before possibly going on to become Barcelona's next key midfielder. Just like with the signings of Samuel Umtiti, Lucas Digne and Denis Suarez (all 22), Barcelona are thinking about the years ahead, and not just the short term.