BarcelonaBarça’s activity in the winter market did not end with the signing of Ferran Torres from Manchester City. Nor with the race to register the Valencian striker in the League, which had a happy ending thanks to the moves to cede Philippe Coutinho to Aston Villa and the surprising renewal of Samuel Umtiti until 2026. The Barça sports management, eminently technocrat and represented for the very tough Mateu Alemany, he has more open fronts to solve from now until 31 January, in the second part of a FIFA window which, for Barça, has become an opportunity to do his homework than the summer past were halved. Among the pending orders is the one related to Ousmane Dembélé, who has not accepted the renewal offer and seems determined to leave the Camp Nou for free at the end of the season. He has the pan by the handle on his future.
In the noble offices of Aristides Maillol, however, they want to exhaust all avenues to frustrate the intentions of the French extreme. The solution to the good ones, seasoned with generous praise from Xavi Hernández and Joan Laporta, was to sign a new contract. Extending the commitment beyond 2022 would have served to pass the player’s emoluments through the financial sieve of CEO Ferran Reverter. It would also have spaced out the outstanding repayment (27 million in the 21/22 academic year) of his signing, which would have served to obtain fair play in a context of excess in relation to the regulations established by the League. Now that the renewal has been almost ruled out, Barça are focusing more on convincing Dembélé and his representative, Moussa Sissoko, that the best possible outcome for them is to go out now in the winter and not in the summer. Without an extension, transfer, assignment or termination agreed in the middle of the course, the Mosquito runs the risk of no longer competing.
As it wants to save itself such a drastic measure – and that, to put it bluntly, does not generate internal consensus – Barça is looking for profitable ways to put an end to the soap opera for the next two weeks. Solutions valid in the first place for Dembélé himself, who had some signing bonus (signing bonus) for the summer and in no case wants to stop collecting them if he leaves the Barça cause five months before the end of the contract. “Everything we ask for now in the form of a transfer will be to the detriment of this premium,” Barça sources told ARA in relation to a factor that also empowers clubs interested in signing the Frenchman, who should find good reasons to make the effort halfway through –signing bonus and transfer – instead of waiting for the summer and only having to compensate the player. That is why Barça’s role in this whole puzzle is the least appreciated. Nevertheless, Alemany still hopes to get away with it, as long as the negotiations do not take a turn and Dembélé ends up renewing.
At this point, the Camp Nou admits contacts with at least two Premier League clubs to advance Dembélé’s change of air a few months and earn a salary margin to make more moves before 31 January. One of them is Manchester United, who need arguments to improve their situation in the league and want to advance round the Champions League. It is one of the teams that sigh for the French winger and tried to take it away without paying a transfer fee this summer. Aware of the interest, Barça negotiators are maturing contacts with the English to see if they would be willing to advance management in exchange for a small transfer for the six months of the neck, which coincide with the decisive stage of the campaign, or facilities to obtain the transfer of a footballer, such as Anthony Martial, of whom there are good reports in Sant Joan Despí despite his complicated character.
For now, to let out the former Monaco, the red devils they are asking for a loan fee and a half-season salary, conditions that frighten Sevilla, who had also shown interest in the player. The problem with Martial is that Xavi, who preferred Álvaro Morata, doesn’t just see him. His profile is too similar to that of Memphis Depay, who would not be the favorite of the Egarenco coach either. Nor does their salary – 7.5 million gross per half year – and their balance with it help fair play, as Barça is still overwhelmed in these terms. Still, his name is on the table.
‘Fair play’, key in the calculation of exchanges
On the other hand, within the Barça club there are voices in favor of looking for buyers for Dembélé who are willing to pay for a traditional transfer, without contributing players in return, more for accounting reasons than for sporting reasons. “The ideal would be to charge money. Then we’ll go and look for the players we want. fair playIn this sense, the English club with the most economic muscle to make a short-term effort for the Mosquito is Newcastle, which has just been acquired by a Saudi fund. magpies they have money, but their sports project raises doubts. In fact, Eddie Howe’s team is penultimate in the Premier League.
Dembélé does not renew, his agent is auctioning him off and Barça, who need to take off, are looking for a way to fall on their feet. You have two weeks to get it.
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