Barcelona is allegedly interested in signing Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo but must trade two players first.
According to Mundo Deportivo, the Catalan club is attempting to recruit the Premier League defender, who has fallen out of favour with Pep Guardiola. The Spanish manager has placed his bet on Kyle Walker and stopped him from joining Bayern Munich, thereby ruling Cancelo out of the club.
Barcelona must, however, sell at least two players and utilise the proceeds from Barca Vision sales to complete the move. Clement Lenglet and Sergino Dest have been advised that their futures do not lay at Camp Nou, and the club is trying to move the defensive combo. Barcelona is also exploring a loan agreement for Cancelo with no obligation to buy or a purchase clause that would be activated only if specific criteria are satisfied.
AND WHAT’S MORE: Barcelona are facing an uphill battle to balance their books to comply with the Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations which have prevented them from registering players with La Liga. Hence, Inaki Pena, Marcos Alonso and Inigo Martinez had to be left out of the matchday squad against Getafe.
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WHAT NEXT? Barcelona have offered Dest to several clubs but none have shown interest so far because of his high salary demands and urge to get regular minutes. However, a Saudi Arabian club are reportedly offering Lenglet a deal and it remains to be seen if the defender moves to the Middle East. Until Barcelona have sold players or pulled in the money from Barca Vision sales, it will be difficult for them to get Cancelo.