FC Barcelona have received an offer of €60 million from Al-Hilal for one of their first team stars … [+]
FC Barcelona have received a €60 million ($66 million) offer from Al-Hilal for a transfer listed first team star which they could be willing to accept according to El Nacional.
El Desmarque reports that the player in question is close to signing for the Saudi Pro League outfit, but Catalan outlets including El Nacional and SPORT say he has no intention of moving to the Middle East.
Ansu Fati has been impressive in preaseason with important goals against AC Milan in the United States and Tottenham Hotspur in the Joan Gamper Trophy.
Shortly after the 4-2 win over the Premier
“We will see,” Xavi replied when broached on the topic. “The market is open until August 31. He is very good and has been at a very good level like Ferran [Torres].
“We can’t say anything. If, as it seems, Ousmane [Dembele] leaves, we have to strengthen ourselves,” the manager added.
Dembele has reportedly passed his medical in the French capital on Thursday and will complete a €50 million ($55 million) move to Paris Saint-Germain by the close of the weekend.
The development has Xavi short-staffed on the right wing, but Lamine Yamal’s mindblowing performance at Spurs’ expense, described as the best in the Gamper since Lionel Messi against Juventus in 2005, plus an assist in under two minutes by Raphinha, showed there might be no need to rush into finding a replacement there.
Fati’s left flank is a different matter entirely, and the four-midfielder system if deployed will see Gavi or Ilkay Gundogan positioned as a false winger in that area of the pitch as full back Alejandro Balde flies down the channel at will.
With their Financial Fair Play struggles well-documented, Barca need to make sales to register players with just 12 – now that Franck Kessie has joined Al-Alhi – legally allowed to feature against Getafe in the La Liga season opener on Sunday.
According to reports from Catalonia and Spain, Al-Hilal are keen for Fati to join Kessie in the Saudi Pro League.
The €60 million reportedly tabled by the club that chased Messi before he signed for Inter Miami is what Barca are missing from their accounts after the two buyers of 24.5% stakes in Barca Studios – Socios.com and Orpheus Media – missed June deadlines to hand over €30 million ($33 million) each and asked to pay at the end of the year instead.
Mundo Deportivo reports that the temporary loss will be made up for with a further sale of 16% in Barca Studios to German group Libero Football Finance worth €60 million, which could be announced as soon as Thursday.
Yet if Fati were sold for this sum, this would meet PSG’s asking price for Neymar according to The Independent or free up extra funds to launch an improved offer for Manchester City star Bernardo Silva.
With a contract until mid-2027, however, Fati has no obligation to up sticks amid interest from the Premier League and Saudi Arabia.
Despite El Desmarque reporting that he was “close to signing” for Al-Hilal, SPORT says he is keeping the door “firmly shut on a Barca exit” and El Nacional wrote that he “does not want to leave” for the Middle Eastern kingdom.
As things stand, Fati looks set to stay then try and convince Xavi of his worth by building upon impressive friendly showings in the past couple of weeks that indicate he has gotten his explosive finishing back in check following a testing, injury-plagued time since the turn of the decade.