Barcelona are looking for Robert Lewandowski's successor - and the first name on the list, if the writing out of England is to be believed, is the nineteen-year-old Eli Kroupi from Bournemouth. The young French international scored 12 goals in his debut Premier League season, enough to attract the attention of Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal as well.

Lewandowski's contract runs out this summer, and the Pole has not been the same finisher he was at Bayern for some time now. Barça have two options - to play it safe with Julián Álvarez from Atlético Madrid, or to gamble on a young face from the list of next-up Holland-France talents. Álvarez is expensive. Very expensive. That is why Kroupi is being pushed forward as an „affordable alternative".

The question is whether Kroupi is ready for it at all. One season of 12 goals in the Premier League is impressive for a young player, but it is not the file of a striker who is supposed to fill the nets at Camp Nou every Saturday. Lewandowski was a goal machine for ten years. Kroupi is being asked to inherit that with one season behind him.

Bournemouth, on the other hand, do not want to let him go. And that has its own logic - at 19, a player with this kind of potential in a club that gives him minutes and trust will grow faster than if he is buried as a backup at a Spanish giant. Everyone knows the scenario: a young player gets sold for big money, sits on the bench, loses confidence, and after two years gets shipped out on loan.

If Barça truly want the next Lewandowski, perhaps they should look beyond a single statistic. Or simply - keep the Pole for another season.