While one of the major themes in the transfer market over the last few years has been just how difficult super clubs have found it to move players on due to the sheer financial scale of their contracts, Barcelona have struggled more than most. 

In mountains of debt and unable to renew Lionel Messi's contract, the La Liga giants have crumbled under the weight of years of mismanagement at the top. Poor signings have been made and good players have been allowed to leave without adequate replacement. 

In fact, the last seven players to have walked out of the Camp Nou to join either a direct European rival or a fellow Spanish team have enjoyed success while Barcelona continue to flounder in major competitions. 

GIVEMESPORT have looked at them. 

Philippe Coutinho 

Philippe Coutinho celebrates winning the Champions League with Bayern Munich after they beat Paris Saint-Germain in the 2019/20 final

Granted, Philippe Coutinho remains a Barcelona player. Still, it's also true that perhaps the only success he's found since moving from Liverpool for a huge £142m in January 2018 was during a loan spell away from the Catalan titans. 

Farmed out to Bayern Munich in 2019, the Brazilian won the Champions League in 2020 and even scored twice against his actual employers in a thumping 8-2 quarter-final win in Lisbon. 

Paco Alcacer 

Paco Alcacer lifts the Europa League with Villarreal in Gdansk after they beat Manchester United in the final

Another man to have left in 2019, few would have lamented Paco Alcacer's move to Borussia Dortmund after two years in Barcelona. 

15 goals and 8 assists in 50 games is a relatively impressive record for a back-up, however, and surely neither Martin Braithwaite nor Luuk de Jong are major upgrades on the Spanish international 

Now with Villarreal, Alcacer played a major role as the Yellow Submarine lifted the Europa League last time out. 

Ivan Rakitic 

Ivan Rakitic celebrates his goal for Sevilla against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey

A ludicrously talented midfielder and part of the 2014 recruitment drive that saw Barcelona win the treble less than a year later, Ivan Rakitic formed the last great version of a Blaugrana midfield alongside Xavi and Sergio Busquets. 

Leaving in 2020 for a nominal fee, the Croatian international remains one of the best midfielders in La Liga and even scored to knock his former side out of the Copa del Rey semi-finals last season. 

Arturo Vidal 

Arturo Vidal celebrates scoring for Inter Milan against Hellas Verona in Serie A

Even when signing for Barcelona from Bayern in 2018, there were question marks about Arturo Vidal's suitability for the club's famed style of play. Wherever you stand on that, the Chilean did ultimately prove successful and won a La Liga title while at the Camp Nou before leaving for Inter Milan in 2020. 

There, he further proved his winning mentality by helping Antonio Conte end the club's long wait for a Serie A title. 

Rafinha 

Rafinha celebrates with Neymar after Paris Saint-Germain score against Manchester United in the Champions League

Perhaps not as eye-catching but, given the importance Barcelona place upon their academy graduates, watching Rafinha play for another major European club has to be fairly gutting. 

Now with Paris Saint-Germain, the Brazilian international looks set to form part of a squad capable of winning the Champions League. 

Arthur 

Arthur Melo celebrates lifting the Italian Supercoppa with Juventus

It's not that Arthur is particularly pulling up any trees with Juventus following a strange swap between the two clubs that saw Miralem Pjanic move to Barcelona, it's that the latter player was a disaster for the club. 

Aside from an exercise in clever accounting to balance the books, it's hard to see what Barca got out of this. At least Arthur won the Coppa Italia in Turin, while Pjanic slates Ronald Koeman

Luis Suarez 

Luis Suarez celebrates winning the La Liga title with Atletico Madrid

The worst example yet. 

Effectively, Barcelona have paid Luis Suarez (their second-highest goalscorer in history) to move to Atletico Madrid and duly win the league title after scoring 21 goals. 

It simply does not get worse than that.