Karim Adeyemi Shines in Barcelona's Pre-Season

Karim Adeyemi lit up Barcelona’s latest pre-season outing – and handed Manchester United an early reminder of what they chose to walk away from.

Linked heavily with United in January, the 24-year-old was on the Old Trafford radar as an explosive forward option. The numbers backed it up. At Red Bull Salzburg, after signing professionally in 2018, he produced 33 goals and 24 assists in 94 games, form that fast-tracked him to Borussia Dortmund in 2022.

In Germany, he kept climbing. Adeyemi added 36 goals and 25 assists in 125 appearances for Dortmund, his pace and direct running forcing Europe’s biggest clubs to take notice. By January, the valuation hovered around £70million. It looked like the going rate for a rising star.

Barcelona waited. And waited.

When Dortmund finally opened the door this summer, the Catalan club walked through it for just £26.5m – a deal that already has the feel of a steal.

United chose a different path. Faced with plugging the Casemiro-sized hole in midfield, they pushed their resources into the centre of the pitch instead of reigniting their interest in Adeyemi. Youri Tielemans arrived from Aston Villa. Andrey Santos came in from Chelsea. The forward line was left untouched.

On Sunday night, in a 5-2 win over FC Basel, Adeyemi offered an early hint of what they passed up.

His first Barcelona goal arrived alongside an assist, a sharp, incisive performance that immediately caught the eye in a side tuning up for a season in La Liga and the Champions League. It was only a pre-season friendly, the kind that usually drifts by without much noise. Adeyemi refused to let that happen.

Spanish outlets did not hold back. SPORT hailed him as the “star” of the game, while Marca highlighted how clearly he stood out in a team already packed with attacking talent. On a night when Barcelona spread five goals across their squad, it was the new signing who owned the spotlight.

The reaction online matched the mood in the stands.

“How on earth did we convince Dortmund to let Adeyemi come for just €22M???” one stunned user posted on X, capturing the disbelief at the fee Barcelona ultimately paid.

Another wrote: “He arrived quietly but could spring a surprise. Karim Adeyemi.” Quiet arrival, loud statement.

One fan went further, placing him firmly in the elite bracket: “Adeyemi is far from an average player. A player who single-handedly took a team like Dortmund to a UCL final is consider elite for me. And a quick reminder: he’s just 24yr. His output is pretty impressive. 30+ G/A averaging Saka’s best szn, and he never played for an elite team.”

Others simply revelled in the raw talent on show. “Man, I’ve always believed in Adeyemi, but I never knew he had this in his locker. What a player!” came another verdict.

There was a note of caution too, the kind that often follows a big pre-season display. One user pointed out: “A preseason match against Basel certifies nothing, due to the level of the opposition, but one can appreciate, in Adeyemi, the spark, the will to hurt, a certain degree of skill in the dribble, the intent of the pass and the shot.”

That, ultimately, is what Barcelona have bought: spark, intent, and the kind of direct threat that can change the tempo of a game in a single run.

For United, the picture is more uncomfortable. While they moved quickly to reshape their midfield, Adeyemi’s price collapsed to a level that now looks like one of the bargains of the summer. If his early flashes in Catalunya turn into sustained damage in Spain and across Europe, the question will linger around Old Trafford: