FC Barcelona is targeting an Arsenal winger as a contingency plan should their pursuit of two Premier League stars.
FC Barcelona is trying to recruit a major left winger to strengthen their attack for the new season, and they are interested in two Premier League players to do so.
Given that FC Barcelona has limited finances and is dealing with different transfer requests from the clubs of the players, it would be advisable for FC Barcelona to prepare for the eventuality by having a backup plan in place to try to complete a transfer if the options should fall through and the summer transfer window closes.
The Arsenal winger would be Gabriel Martinelli, a 23-year-old Brazilian, if FC Barcelona does not sign either Marcus Rashford from Manchester United or Luis Diaz from Liverpool, as reported by Diario Sport.
Rashford would be open to moving to Spain, and his agent recently met with FC Barcelona’s sporting director Deco; however, Manchester United are asking for a permanent transfer and not a loan deal may halt negotiations.
There is also a question of Diaz’s asking price, especially if he is sought after by clubs in Saudi Arabia, and Liverpool should be attempting and hope to extend his contract too.
If all else fails, FC Barcelona will likely consider players like Martinelli and possibly Kingsley Coman at Bayern Munich.
Martinelli had signed a deal with Arsenal in December 2020 that runs until the end of the 2026-2027 season, with an option to extend until the end of the 2027-2028 season too.
Arsenal’s plans for Martinelli were confirmed to Sport by Andrea Berta, Arsenal’s new sporting director.
However, reports state that if any club were to make a clear £ 50 m+ bid for Martinelli in the summer, it could force Arsenal to think about selling.
There is now the obvious question whether Barcelona can even afford to present a value close to any type of valuation over £50m with their current financial situation.
Barcelona must now reassess the viability of signing Martinelli or even Kingsley Coman, with Martinelli as a potential Plan B.
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