In terms of major priorities, FC Barcelona consider the arrival of top-level players in specific positions to be their immediate goal for the remainder of the summer transfer window, as the Catalan giants look to incorporate talents according to the preference of the coach.
Given that Xavi Hernandez believes that his Barcelona side urgently requires the incorporation of both a top-level right back as well as a reliable offensive midfielder, Barcelona continue to negotiate and work on finding players accordingly.
The most advanced negotiations are those with Manchester City for 29-year-old Portuguese fullback Joao Cancelo, who happens to be Xavi’s priority candidate as well in terms of the recruitment option for the right-back position.
However, despite the feeling that negotiations are on track, there are certainly hurdles to overcome in terms of the final transfer fee agreement that both clubs seem to be having a hard time in overcoming.
Consequently, according to Spanish outlet SPORT, Barcelona will be looking to work it out with Manchester City until the end of this week in order to find an agreement for Cancelo, or else they will have to continue their search for a fullback elsewhere.
According to the report, however, there are several factors that work in the favor of FC Barcelona. First and foremost, Pep Guardiola does not count on him and the system he has in application for Manchester City does not require players of Cancelo’s profile.
Moreover, having the word of both the player’s agent, Jorge Mendes, and a verbal agreement on personal terms with the player already, Barcelona believe themselves to be in a strong spot to land the Portuguese star.
Some difficulties in financing said the operation has evolved in the form of delays in the sales of both French defender Clement Lenglet and American fullback Sergino Dest, with the funds from their hypothetical sales being in the plans of FC Barcelona to finance other operations such as that of Joao Cancelo’s.
