The latest reports coming from Spain indicate that Dani Olmo is currently the player who is closest to joining FC Barcelona. The Blaugranes have Nico Williams as their first priority for this transfer window, but the RB Leipzig forward is closer to a return to Barcelona than the Athletic Club winger.
However, the pursuit of the former La Masia gem has not been easy for the Catalans. They have already seen one of their offers for him rejected by the Germans. Leipzig are clear they want to get the full market value of the player from any club that is interested in getting him.
Still, according to a report from SPORT, the Red Bull side has started to believe that retaining the forward is going to be very difficult for them, and thus have already identified a potential replacement for him. This replacement is the Olympique Lyonnais forward Ryan Cherki.
The report indicates that talks for the €25m-rated Frenchman have already begun between the two sides and the starting point of the negotiations is expected to be in the €15-20 million range.
Although Leipzig have identified Cherki as their potential Olmo replacement, they might face competition for his signing from another Bundesliga team, Borussia Dortmund.
However, reports from Germany indicate that the new coach of the Black and Yellow side, Nuri Sahin, has ruled out his signing as there is no place for him in his team.
Meanwhile, Barcelona are still trying to reach an agreement with Leipzig for Olmo, but there is no greenlight in this operation yet. The latest reports on this operation indicate the forward’s agents are working as the intermediaries between the two clubs.
One point of disagreement between the two clubs is the payment mode, as Barcelona want to pay in installments, while RB Leipzig demand the full payment to come in one go.
