Thirty-two players have accompanied Xavi for the pre-season tour to the USA, in which FC Barcelona will face a number of other European giants in friendly matches.
However, the futures of all these players are not guaranteed at Barcelona, and some of them may not be with the squad that represents the Catalan club in the upcoming season.
This is definitely the case with the midfielder Franck Kessie, who is traveling with the team to the USA, but whose future is still highly uncertain. The player joined FC Barcelona only the last summer, but he has been unable to get a starting position in Xavi’s squad, as the midfield is already stacked with highly capable players.
The player’s situation at Barcelona has alerted clubs across Europe and according to Mundo Deportivo, one of the most interested sides in the Ivorian is the Serie A club Juventus. The Italian club was considering a loan with a purchase option offer for the midfielder, which would have cost them around €15 million.
However, such a proposal could not convince Barcelona, who wanted a full transfer of the Ivorian. Now, the two sides are expected to meet in the USA around the time when they are scheduled to face off in a friendly match in Santa Clara. Juventus can bring a more palatable proposal to the table for the Catalans in this meeting.
Under this new proposal, Juventus will offer Federico Chiesa to Barcelona, in exchange for Kessie. The 25-year-old forward suffered a knee injury in the last season, but still made some impressive outings at the end of the season after recovering from this injury.
However, Juventus have already signed Timothy Weah and will also welcome Moise Kean and Arkadiusz Milik back from loan, making Chiesa a disposable asset.
Meanwhile, Kessie will also be struggling for minutes at Barcelona because of the arrival of Gundogan and Romeu. Thus, such a move can be in the interest of both sides, but it remains to be seen how much the long injury has impacted Chiesa before the Catalan club goes in for him.
