FC Barcelona are currently prioritizing the signing of a right-back after having strengthened other core areas of the team. The Catalans are mainly associated with two players for this position, Joao Cancelo and Ivan Fresneda.
Both these players have been linked to the Catalan club for the entire summer, but Barcelona have not been able to tie any of them yet. Joao Cancelo is the priority for the club right now, but the new Sporting Director of Barcelona, Deco, also likes the youngster, Ivan Fresneda.
Conflicting reports about Chelsea’s interest in Fresneda
Previously, it was reported that Chelsea are rapidly advancing in their pursuit of Ivan Fresneda, as Barcelona have not been able to work on his operation because of their pursuit of Cancelo.
However, the journalist Ben Jacobs has now claimed that Chelsea are not really looking at Fresneda, despite the reports linking the London side to the Spanish youngster.
The report published by Spanish outlet SPORT on Chelsea’s operation for Fresneda claimed that the Premier League side’s scouts were fully convinced about the fullback’s quality, and thus wanted to take advantage of Barcelona’s preoccupation with Cancelo to sign the Real Valladolid player.
However, this latest report denies any such possibility, as it claims that Chelsea are not even looking at Fresneda.
Barcelona remain the most likely destination for Fresneda
Thus, if Chelsea are not that highly interested in the youngster, Barcelona remain the most likely destination for Fresneda. The player himself wants to join the Catalans, and was reported to be willing to wait till late in this transfer window for Blaugranes to make an approach.
However, Barcelona have their hands tied with the Cancelo operation, which is going to cost Barcelona highly, and thus the Catalans cannot undertake both these operations simultaneously due to FFP issues. However, there is still a possibility that Barcelona will also sign Fresneda even if they sign Cancelo.
Thus, the future of Fresneda may depend on the outcome of Cancelo’s operation, but time is of the essence as only a few days remain till the transfer window closes.
