Negotiations between Barcelona and Liverpool have been stalled due to disagreements on a key attacking target.
Barcelona would like to add to their attack and would like to sign a midfielder despite their current salary cap problems, but they have little wiggle room to spend.
Meanwhile, Liverpool wants to receive all of their asking price for a player they both need, since they want to pay for some new signings themselves, like Florian Wirtz.
The player Barcelona and Liverpool agreed to talk about is Colombian international star Luis Diaz.
Diaz was very much wanted by Barcelona’s sporting director, Deco, and Hansi Flick as their head coach. Liverpool set a €80 million price tag on Diaz, as reported by Diario Sport.
That price is reflective of how important Diaz is to Arne Slot’s squad since Liverpool needs to finance the €80 million with optionals for Diaz.
Barcelona has capped their offer at €60 million, and they do not want to go over this price because they still have some salary cap issues.
Diaz has made it clear that he wants to be a player for Barcelona, and while there is some excitement within the Barcelona camp that they can strengthen their squad, it is clear neither team is going to budge, so unlikely an agreement will happen anytime soon.
This impasse could prompt Barcelona to shift its focus to other options, with Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams becoming a viable option.
The deal’s finances, including a release clause worth €58 million, will have their challenges, but if the negotiations with Diaz fall completely on their face, Barcelona could refocus their attention completely on another option.
Barcelona is facing more complexity and more risk as the transfer window moves on. The uncertainty hangs over the fans as to whether they will ultimately achieve a key signing or see this all result in nothing, and it reminds fans of how complex and risky modern football transfers are.
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