Barcelona’s pursuit of a highly regarded star has hit a snag, with Manchester City now involved in the race.
The Catalan club has been monitoring the 24-year-old for months to further their objective of improving their goalkeeper department going forward.
While Newcastle United’s withdrawal from the chase has provided Barcelona a momentary advantage, City’s sudden interest, largely a result of the uncertainty in their squad, adds more competition and uncertainty to Barcelona’s plans.
The player in question is Joan Garcia, Espanyol’s exciting 24-year-old goalkeeper, whose €25 million buyout clause has attracted the attention of some of the top clubs in the world, as reported by Diario Sport.
The reasons for Manchester City’s pursuit are largely due to Pep Guardiola’s goalkeeping plans and questions surrounding the commitment of Ederson, who has been receiving big offers from Saudi Arabia.
Manchester City could also lose their backup, Stefan Ortega, and they are thinking long-term with Garcia as a candidate for the future.
Barcelona, for their part, view Garcia as their replacement candidate for Marc-Andre ter Stegen in their succession plan.
Garcia met with his representative in Barcelona on Thursday to talk about his possibilities, but no decisions were made.
With interest from multiple clubs, the 24-year-old wants to take his time, talk to his family, and plans to make his choice early next week.
He is feeling the pressure, as this is going to change the way he approaches his career, and a club’s plans can be affected.
Barcelona is now facing a race against time to secure Garcia’s signature, before Manchester City’s financial power and prestige sway him.
Barcelona’s long-term interest in Garcia might not be enough if they don’t now do not act quickly.
Garcia’s decision is going to determine if a club can accomplish its goalkeeping future or if they have ultimately lost to an inevitable rival.
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