Man Utd target midfielder 'crazy' about Barcelona move says Fabrizio Romano

Stuart Telford

• 11 May 2023 13:12 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United are keeping tabs on Sofyan Amrabat but the Fiorentina midfielder has his heart set on Barcelona, according to Italian transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano.

Amrabat has been in high demand after helping Morocco become the first African team to make it into the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar last winter, with Barcelona, Manchester United and Chelsea among those credited with an interest.

United have bolstered their midfield since missing out on Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong last summer, signing Casemiro from Real Madrid before adding Marcel Sabitzer on loan from Bayern Munich in January.

READ: Agent confirms Man Utd made bid for Serie A star

But United sounded Fiorentina out about a move for Amrabat before securing the Sabitzer deal.

'Man Utd in for Amrbat'

"Manchester United were in for Amrabat in the final two days of the January transfer window, then they had the chance to sign Sabitzer on loan from Bayern so this was a perfect move for Manchester United," Romano told his YouTube channel.

"But Amrabat was an option. They tried for loan with buy option but that was a 'no' for [Man Utd]."

READ: Liverpool transfer target Amrabat spotted at Barcelona's Camp Nou

How open to a move to Old Trafford Amrabat might have been remains in doubt. The player was spotted at Camp Nou attending a match against Getafe "as a fan" in January, and Romano has reiterated his desire to play there.

"Sofyan Amrabat would love to play for Barcelona," he added. "This was the case in January and this has not changed. Amrabat is crazy for Barcelona Football Club."

Amrabat is valued at €20 million by FootballTransfers' in-house algorithm and Fiorentina might struggle to push for too much more than that, despite multiple teams interested, with Amrabat out of contract at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in the summer of 2024.

Amrbat has started 23 of his 28 Serie A games for Fiorentina this season, averaging eight progressive passes per game - a stat that might make him an ideal replacement for Sergio Busquets at Barcelona - if they can afford even €20m.