Author name: gool

Barcelona have not made much progress in their pursuit of a centre-back. While Andreas Christensen has agreed to join the club on a free transfer, Xavi is looking for an additional defender amid worries over the longevity of Gerard Pique.

The Barcelona coach has informed the veteran of his diminishing role in the first team while injuries have not helped either.

It has compelled Barcelona to look for an additional centre-back, who can emerge as a long-term replacement for Pique.

Jules Kounde has emerged as the desired target for Xavi, but Sevilla’s €65-70 million price tag has made the operation quite tricky. As such, Barça have identified an ideal alternative in the form of Kalidou Koulibaly.

A recent report from Il Matino, relayed by Napoli Magazine, has offered an update on the future of Koulibaly, whose current contract at Napoli expires at the end of next season.

There is no secret that Koulibaly wants to leave Napoli this summer and start a new chapter in his career. He held a meeting with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, earlier this month, to inform the Italian of the same.

However, the report from Il Matino suggests Napoli are in no mood of selling Koulibaly in the summer, as head coach Luciano Spalletti considers him vital to the club’s progress in the coming season.

The defender himself has refused to renew his contract with the Partenopei, meaning the Italians will be forced to either offload him in the summer transfer window or let him leave the club for free in 2023.

Barcelona are on hand to take advantage of a market opportunity, although Napoli are sure to make the operation difficult by holding out for a hefty price tag. It won’t be surprising to see the Catalans include a few players in the operation, in an attempt to sweeten the deal.

Barcelona is still working to strengthen its team in the current summer Mercato to be able to return to competition in Europe again next season. The financial crisis is on its way to being resolved after the members of the General Assembly agreed to activate the economic levers.

Robert Lewandowski is Barcelona’s number one target in the market, but in the Camp Nou offices there are other names on the table to strengthen other positions such as defense. The deals of Christensen (Chelsea) and Franck Casey (Milan) have already taken place, but are awaiting official announcement after getting rid of players who have no future at the club.
On the other hand, three players offered their services to Barcelona’s sports administration, according to the Catalan newspaper Sport.

Dybala

After he ended his trip with Juventus, where his contract will expire on June 30, Paulo Dybala (28 years old) offered his services to Barcelona to fulfill his dream of wearing the Blaugrana shirt, but neither Jordi Cruyff nor Xavi considered him a good option for the future and he is now close to signing for Inter Milan.

Angel Di Maria

The future of Angel Di Maria (34) is still up in the air. The Argentine will not renew his contract with Paris Saint-Germain, which expires on June 30, and there are several options open to him. The club that has shown a strong interest in him is Juventus, but the Argentine striker is prioritizing playing in Spain and is hoping Barcelona will make moves to sign him.

The Bianconeri want to sign the free player at any cost. They agreed to Di Maria’s requests for salary, as well as offering a fixed one-year contract plus an optional contract, something that fit the Argentine’s requirements. But the player decided to postpone his decision, despite Juventus’ insistence on deciding whether to sign with them this week or not.

Maria always had a priority to come back to play in Spain, so when Barcelona took an interest in him, he chose to bet the Blaugrana. At the Camp Nou, the Argentine option appeared after seeing the economic differences with Leeds United in favor of Ravenha, so the Argentine ran as the “low cost” option.

In this sense, the Italian press indicates that Di Maria’s decision will not be imminent, although Juventus demanded a refund this week. He wants to wait for Barcelona.

Raphinha

Half of Europe is fighting for Raphinha (25 years). The Brazilian has decided that he wants to leave Leeds United to take a step forward in his career as a footballer and start a new phase away from the English club. His priority is to wear the Barcelona shirt, but the high price charged by the English club complicates the deal. Many of the big clubs are also craving him.

One of them is Arsenal, who had already made the first offer for Raphinha which was rejected by Leeds. His current team has set a price for him at €70m, which is a very high figure.

The Brazilian wants to sign for Barcelona and his agent Deco plays for the Catalan club. However, the delicate economic situation in Camp Nou makes it difficult for them to invest such amount of money in Raphinha. However, the striker has rejected the rest of the offers that come to him, he is thinking only of Barcelona.

According to the “Daily Mail”, Chelsea and Tottenham are also expected this week to submit a preliminary offer for him, and it is not excluded that Arsenal will raise its offer. The Gunners coach, Mikel Arteta, is very interested in the Brazilian. For now, Barcelona are quietly contemplating the scenario because they know the player prioritizes them.

Source: sport

The situation in the file of the future of the French star, Othman Dembele, changed in a short period of time, as the wing whose contract with Barcelona had expired became desperate to stay and is pressing to meet his financial demands, at a time when the club’s board of directors adheres to its position in light of the economic crisis it suffers from.

And the Spanish newspaper, Mundo Deportivo, revealed, on Wednesday, 3 reasons that would push the Frenchman to stay with the team and sign a new contract, to complete the wonderful work he did at the end of the season.

The newspaper pointed out that the first reason that Barcelona seeks to exploit is the player’s insistence on staying with the team despite the offers he received, the latest of which was serious interest from Chelsea, where the negotiator and sporting director Matteo Alemani considers that he must reverse the pressure of the player’s agent in their favour, in order to ensure Dembele services in the new season.

The second reason lies in the communication of coach Xavi Hernandez with his player who is in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh, where he spends the end of the season on an ongoing basis, and assured him of his desire to watch him carry the team’s colors again, and Othman exchanged his coach the same feeling, although the Spaniard stipulated that he accept the financial conditions current and thinking about his football future.

Faced with this situation, the Blaugrana resorted to a final pressure factor, which is the Brazilian Rafinha paper, as interest still exists in the Leeds United star, through continuous communication with his agent and former Portuguese team star Deco, which made Dembele change his position and review his requests one last time to match. With the situation, it will also allow him to respond beautifully to the team that paid a great value to include him without benefiting from him due to the large number of injuries.
In a related context, according to journalist Ruben Oria from Goal, Xavi is determined to renew Ousmane Dembele’s contract and has informed the Barcelona administration that this is his priority to support the offensive line this summer.

At the same time, Xavi’s huge support for Dembele makes the player want to stay with Barca, and he is closer to renewal than ever.

Paris Saint-Germain is already thinking about planning next season to try to create a competitive project that can win the long-awaited Champions League. According to “Le Parisien”, the current French champions have already designed a “plan” for the summer market that could lead to a revolution at all levels, starting from the bench and ending with the team.

In terms of the coach, one thing is clear in Paris: Pochettino will not continue at PSG. The Argentine coach was judged once he was eliminated from the Champions League round of 16 against Real Madrid and the board is already working on finding a replacement for him.

In terms of the team, Neymar’s future is one of the main unknowns. According to the newspaper, “Le Parisien”, the Emir of Qatar has run out of patience for the Brazilian, and in Doha they are discussing whether to sell him in the summer.

Juventus wants to include Neymar. This isn’t the first time but it looks like there are more options now. Massimiliano Allegri, coach of the black and white team, called for the team to be upgraded and the Brazilian could do so.

In addition, the status of the Brazilian striker in Paris Saint-Germain is not only certain, but it is not excluded that the French team will want to dispense with him. The only problem might be the Brazilian winger’s salary, which no team can afford.

With Di Maria and Pogba also in the Italian squad’s orbit, the return of Cristiano Ronaldo is also on the table. Jorge Mendes was proposing to the Portuguese to return to play with Juventus, which is not excluded today, although both Neymar and Ronaldo will have to cut their salaries drastically.

Source: sport

Spanish press reports revealed today, Wednesday, that Barcelona Club has already succeeded in resolving its first summer deals by contracting a defensive deal from the Spanish League.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Jules Conde may be Barcelona’s first deal this summer, as Sevilla prepares to receive the Catalan club’s offer.

And she said that, the Catalan club agreed with Jules Conde, the defender of Seville, to include him in the ranks of the Blaugrana, to be the first deals this summer.

And the newspaper pointed out, that Barcelona’s priority is to sign Jules Conde, but the club is facing difficulty with Seville’s demands.

In Barcelona, ​​there is optimism about the Conde deal, in light of the club’s current position after dealing with economic levers

El Mundo confirmed that Barcelona had already obtained the player’s approval for the transfer, as the Barcelona club management agreed with -Chelsea’s target- Jules Conde on personal terms, and the agreement remains with Sevilla.

And the famous newspaper reported, that Barcelona is waiting to complete the sale of 10% of the TV rights to the Spanish League before June 30, the goal will not be Lewandowski, but the kidnapping of Jules Conde, the defender of Seville, before Chelsea.

And El Mundo continued, Jules Conde is on Chelsea’s list this summer, as Chelsea entered into active negotiations to sign Seville defender Conde.

In the end, given Conde’s desire, which supports his move to Barcelona, ​​the Catalan club is actively seeking to settle the deal in the current transfer period, especially with Xavi’s need to strengthen the defense.

A Spanish press report stated, today, Tuesday, that the French Marseille has started monitoring three players from Barcelona, ​​​​in preparation for contracting with them this summer.

Barcelona is seeking to give up a number of its stars this summer, in order to reduce the salary bill and solve the economic crisis that the club is suffering from.

The Catalan club is trying hard to spread new blood in the ranks of the Blaugrana to enable it to return to the podiums and compete for titles during the coming period.

According to the Spanish newspaper, Mundo Deportivo, Marseille has set its sights on the Barcelona trio, Clement Lenglet, Miralem Pjanic and Nico Gonzalez.

And the newspaper confirmed, that Marseille had already inquired about Barcelona’s position on the three players.

Marseille will participate in the next edition of the Champions League, so it is looking for strong deals to strengthen its ranks before the start of the continental competition.

However, the newspaper pointed out an obstacle that Marseille may face, specifically with the duo Lenglet and Pjanic, which is their high salaries.

And she continued, “As for Nico, Barcelona has not decided his fate yet, but it is clear that he is out of coach Xavi’s plans.”

She said that Barcelona officials have distinguished relations with their counterparts in Marseille, which facilitates negotiations between them in general.

It is noteworthy that Marseille had signed Conrad de la Fuente, from Barcelona last summer, for three million euros.

Arsenal oust Barcelona from the race to sign the favorite Xavi deal

Arsenal is close to dealing a strong blow to its Spanish counterpart, FC Barcelona, ​​by kidnapping one of its most prominent contractual goals in the current summer transfers.

According to the Brazilian network Goal, Arsenal are close to signing the Brazilian winger, Rafinha, who is currently active in the Leeds United team.

And the network reported, that Rafinha has been in Barcelona’s search diary for some time, but Leeds’ stay in the Premier League complicated matters for Barca in the deal, at a time when the Catalan club is suffering from a difficult financial crisis that affects its movements in the players market.

The network indicated that Arsenal is leading the race to contract with Rafinha after the English club made an offer, which the network described as great, without revealing its details and numbers.

The network claimed that Barcelona was completely out of the race to sign Rafinha, after the player was tired of waiting for Barca in vain.

And the network said, that Rafinha will not wait for the La Liga giant and is ready to complete the move to Arsenal early this week. It is known that Leeds have asked for 43 million pounds (50 million euros) for his services this summer, and the Gunners are ready to meet these demands.

Barcelona had reached an agreement on personal terms with Rafinha, but he did not agree with Leeds, knowing that the value of the deal would be in the range of 65 or 75 million euros.

Girona, newly promoted to La Liga, intends to rid Barcelona of the headache of one of its players during the current summer Mercato.

Barcelona is still looking for a way out for French defender Samuel Umtiti in the coming period.

According to press reports issued today, Girona club aims to sign Barcelona and France defender Samuel Umtiti, who is suffering inside the “Camp Nou” castle.

The 28-year-old Frenchman has a contract with the Catalan club until June 2026, after the two parties agreed to renew the contract in exchange for a reduction in the annual salary.

Umtiti has left Barcelona and coach Xavi Hernandez’s plans since last season, and the Catalan club does not want him to continue in order to reduce the annual salary block.

Girona club chairman Per Guardiola, brother of Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola, said in statements to Cadena Ser radio in Catalonia: “We do not rule out the idea of ​​contracting with Umtiti during the summer Mercato.”

He added, “He has talked about deals with Kiki Carcel (sports director) and Mitchell (coach) about what they need next season.”

Girona had been promoted to La Liga, after beating Tenerife 3-1 in the second leg of the second-degree qualifiers, after a 0-0 tie in the first leg.

The defender, wanted in Barcelona, ​​​​displayed his face from Spanish coach Xavi Hernandez, by opening the door to move to play for another team, during the current summer Mercato.

And according to what was published by the Italian network Gianluca Di Marzio, today, the possibility of losing the French defender, Jules Conde, the center of the defense of the Spanish team Seville, from the hands of Xavi next season.

Conde is one of coach Xavi Hernandez’s priorities, to strengthen Barca’s defenses during the next season, after his decision after relying on Gerard Pique, according to Spanish reports.

Barcelona’s problem with not including Conde so far, is not in the high cost of the deal, but in the competition for the player from English clubs, most notably Chelsea.

Chelsea can offer more than 70 million euros to Seville, in addition to a large salary for the player, to support the Blues’ defenses during the next season, especially after the departure of German defender Antonio Rudiger to Real Madrid from the London team at the end of last season.

Xavi places Conde’s arrival among his priorities in the summer Mercato, to strengthen the back line of the Catalan team during the next season, but it seems that the player may not join the Blaugrana.

The Italian network indicated that Chelsea’s entry into the deal spoiled it for Xavi and the Barca men even more, as the London club puts it as a priority in the summer Mercato, armed with the money of the new owners.

And the Italian network said, for his part, that Conde does not mind the idea of ​​​​moving to play in the English Premier League from the gate of the Stamford Bridge team, which can be considered a strong blow to Xavi’s contractual plans at the present time.

Barcelona, ​​once the economic leverage needed to resolve the delicate financial situation is agreed, will attempt to formalize the first five deals for next season.

These are five players that have already been agreed for months, and that in some cases only need to negotiate their departure with their clubs. Barcelona sports management asked them to be patient while they wait until they can submit official offers that they can fulfill. The time has come and the last attacks will begin next week.

The sports department has done practically all of its work while waiting for sufficient financial resources to close those deals. Barcelona already know the money they will be able to invest – with the sale of a major player like Frenkie de Jong – and are now focused on cutting the salary block to start registering new players.

They are convinced at FC Barcelona that they will be able to raise the salary limit by generating more profits, but they still want to get rid of as many players as possible because they do not have many seats available on the roster. More than 10 players will be sold and a salary cut will be negotiated for the rest.

Christensen and Kessie are waiting

From now on things will start to happen. The first two deals have already been closed for months and only the official announcement remains, which may happen in the coming days. They are defender Andreas Christensen (Chelsea) and Milan midfielder Franck Kessie.

The two will arrive with a letter of freedom and can be registered. It will be necessary to know the duration of the contracts, but they will extend from three to four years.

Lewandowski is the priority

These two deals have been completed since January and the absolute priority now is the Lewandowski case. Barcelona and the player reached a pre-agreement in February for two seasons plus an optional one and Barcelona was limited to waiting for events. Lewandowski has come out publicly requesting his departure and has already made it clear to Bayern that he only wants to leave for the Camp Nou. A declaration of intent means a significant reduction in the price of a player whose contract expires in 2023.

Barcelona didn’t take any action because they didn’t know what resources they could get. But Lewandowski and his agents were reassured by making it clear that they would not be left stranded. Next week, it could be the first direct official contact between Bayern and Barcelona to put the deal on the right track once and for all.

Despite the souring of statements, they are convinced at Barcelona that Lewandowski will be able to leave for just over €30m. And negotiations could be swift, although everything is likely to be announced as of July 1. In any case, Xavi Hernandez will have his top scorer to start pre-season safely.

Marcos Alonso and Azpilicueta’s options

The other two cases that Barcelona will tackle in the early days of starting deals are Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta. Full-backs are the next priority who were signed weeks ago in the absence of an agreement with Chelsea.

At the Blaugrana club, they thought that their departure would be easier, but the London club faces a lot of problems, especially in the case of Azpilicueta. Barcelona will have to compensate in the form of a transfer of players. It will not be a high price but there will be a sale.

Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso are in constant contact with Xavi, who has been conveying their calm and confidence. The two got other offers, but they waited patiently for FC Barcelona and would soon see their reward. Two signatures are also priority.

With these deals closed, the club will continue to work on strengthening its defense and attack lines without forgetting the midfielder in the event of De Jong’s departure. These efforts will be slower due to the increased number of players on the team roster.

Source: sport