Saudi heavyweights plot €40m swoop for Barcelona midfielder with big-money packages already being structured.
The proposal underlines how attractive Barça’s academy products have become for ambitious Gulf projects seeking both sporting quality and global visibility.
For a club still walking a financial tightrope, any bid of that magnitude forces difficult questions about sporting plans versus economic necessity.
The midfielder in question is Marc Casado, a homegrown talent who broke into the first team last season but has struggled to maintain a prominent role in Hansi Flick’s crowded engine room, as reported by Diario Sport.
Limited minutes this campaign, coupled with fierce competition from Pedri, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, Dani Olmo, and rising star Marc Bernal, have reduced his influence and opened the door for outside interest.
Casado, now represented by super-agent Jorge Mendes, is understood to be open to listening to proposals from Saudi Arabia, where Spanish players like Aymeric Laporte and Gabri Veiga have already cashed in before considering eventual returns to Europe.
From Barcelona’s perspective, the operation is as tempting as it is delicate.
A fee above €40 million for a player who is not a guaranteed starter would provide vital fair play relief and fresh room for reinforcements in priority positions.
At the same time, letting go of a La Masia graduate who embodies the club’s identity risks further criticism that financial pressures are eroding the sporting project’s soul.
For Casado, the decision will likely hinge on trust and game time. If the club cannot guarantee a meaningful role amid growing competition from Bernal and other academy talents, the combination of a starring role and a lucrative contract in Saudi Arabia becomes harder to ignore.
As the summer approaches, Saudi clubs are readying their formal bid, and Barcelona’s directors know that how they handle this situation will send a loud message about the balance they intend to strike between economic survival and faith in their own youth.
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