Earlier today, Fabrizio Romano reported that Manchester City and Joao Cancelo are certain to part ways in the summer transfer window. He also added that Barcelona held the strongest interest in the Portuguese right-back as he stares at an exit from the Etihad, although a move would depend on their Financial Fair Play situation.
Building on those claims, SPORT is now reporting that Barcelona are the best-positioned club to sign Cancelo in the upcoming transfer window.
The Blaugrana have been chasing the 29-year-old’s signing since the January transfer window. Efforts were made to sign him on loan in the winter, but the move fell through as Cancelo ended up joining Bayern Munich.
With the Bavarians opting against triggering the €70 million purchase option on him, the right-back is back at Man City, where he has no future following the falling out with manager Pep Guardiola.
Barça, who are maintaining a strong interest in Cancelo, believe that they have the best chances of signing him, as long as a good offer for his permanent signing does not arrive.
Arsenal, for one, had shown an interest in taking the former Juventus ace permanently. However, the report claims that talks between the Gunners and the Cityzens have somewhat stalled of late, leaving the door open for Barça.
The La Liga champions intend to sign Cancelo, whose market value is €60 million, on loan and have conveyed their interest to the Premier League title holders via superagent Jorge Mendes.
They are aware that the Portuguese star’s registration could pose some challenges due to his high wages and the club’s salary limit issues.
However, the defender is prioritising a move to Barcelona and knows that he will have to reduce his salary if he wishes to secure a transfer to Catalonia.