Barcelona did not sign Alphonso Davies 'because he's Canadian'

Alphonso Davies is one of the best defenders in the world, and he could have been playing for Barcelona. The defender, who has dominated the Catalan club on several occasions, including the 8-2 victory in the 2020 Champions League quarterfinals, made a bold claim about why he never moved to Barcelona.

Speaking on the Say Less podcast, Davies claims Barcelona reached out while he was playing with the Vancouver Whitecaps. The defender added that the President of the club did not want him because he was Canadian. Davies says that is what came out in the media, and he could not provide any proof of whether that claim was true. Barcelona’s President at the time of Davies’s move to Europe was Josep Maria Bartomeu, who truly did more bad than good at the club.

That reasoning hurt Davies, who later went on to sign with Bayern Munich in the summer of 2018. He made his debut with the Bavarian giants in the winter of 2019. Since joining, he has been on a tear for both club and country. With Bayern Munich, Davies won a spot in the Bundesliga Team of the Season in each of the last three campaigns. Before then, he was the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season in the 2019/20 campaign. At the international level, Davies was integral in getting Canada to its first World Cup since 1986. He also scored Canada’s first World Cup goal.

Davies has one of the best stories in world soccer, as he moved from a refugee camp to Canada before developing into a star in Europe. His ability with the ball has been a serious benefit to both his club and Canada over the last several years.

Barcelona rivals now hunting Alphonso Davies

Barcelona may have deflated Davies in the past. Now, he is the one making the moves. With Davies’s contract expiring at the end of the 2024/25 season, there are rumblings of the Canadian moving on. The top clubs outside of Bayern Munich that are expressing interest are Manchester City and Real Madrid. Davies’s agent could just be playing mind games, though. He reached out to other clubs, according to the Daily Mail. That could be in a bid to make Bayern Munich offer Davies more money on his next contract.

As of now, Davies is back with the Canadian National Team to prepare for the Concacaf Nations League Finals. Canada plays in its semifinal match against Panama on Thursday. The winner of that game plays the winner of the United States and Mexico, which is also on Thursday.

PHOTO: IMAGO / Just Pictures