Cavani and three stars Barcelona are lining up after Ferran Torres

Cameron Smith

• 28 Dec 2021 18:28 GMT
• 4 min read

Barcelona have completed their first piece of business of the January transfer window, with Ferran Torres arriving from Manchester City.

The forward joins for a fee of €55 million (£47m) upfront, although add-ons are included in the contract if certain clauses are met.

Torres only joined Man City from Valencia in 2020, but has decided to pursue a new avenue, with chances at The Etihad limited. He scored 16 goals in all competitions for the Manchester club, while his form for Spain has also caught the eye.

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The Spaniard has signed a five-year deal at the Camp Nou, and a €1 billion release clause has been written into the contract.

Despite their financial woes, that saw them lose Lionel Messi over the summer, Barcelona have been able to fund the move for Torres, but it's not the only deal they're looking to pursue.

Edinson Cavani, Cesar Azpilicueta, and Andreas Christensen have all been touted as potential options, although all three will be available for free in the summer, so won't cost the Blaugrana anything in terms of a transfer fee.

Mundo Deportivo have reported that Barcelona have set their sights on the trio as Xavi looks to stamp his authority and footballing blueprint on the team.

While doing that, he is reportedly keen to offload some dead wood in the squad in order to clear the wage bill for the arrivals of the aforementioned players.

Edinson Cavani

While Ferran Torres is an exciting young talent, he hasn't played meaningful club minutes since leaving Valencia, and hence it's unknown how well he'll fare when given a run of games.

Furthermore, while he has been an impressive goal-scorer for Spain, and his record for Man City was decent, the sample size is small, and he managed just four goals in 28 league starts in his final La Liga season with Valencia.

In addition to that, Torres' league goals for Man City all came against: Burnley, Newcastle, Leeds, Crystal Palace, and Arsenal.

Barring Arsenal, it's not a high calibre of team, and his double against the Gunners came in a 5-0 thrashing, so it's hard to quantify how impressive that feat actually is.

So, he can't yet be relied upon for regular goals, especially in big games, and he isn't an out-and-out number nine. He split minutes between playing through the middle and out wide at Man City, and so it's not yet known which role he feels more comfortable in, and which he plays better in.

Cavani would provide a goal-threat through the middle straight away, fill the hole of a number nine, and bring a vast amount of experience to a youthful team.

This move is a no brainer on a free.

Cesar Azpilicueta

Barcelona have become more and more Spanish over the past 18 months, and Cesar Azpilicueta would add to that. He's no longer a regular at Chelsea, and has seen his place taken by young Trevoh Chalobah.

Although he has taken a step back this season, he's still a talented player, and with Xavi unconvinced by Sergino Dest, he could be a good stopgap before a better player arrives.

He also provides cover at centre-back, which is a problem area.

Andreas Christensen

This would perhaps be the best deal of the lot. Andreas Christensen has been immense for Chelsea since Thomas Tuchel took charge at Stamford Bridge, but his contract situation has muddied the water. With the Danish international not signing a new deal yet, he's been demoted to the bench more often that not, with Tuchel prioritising those who want to stay at the club.

However, that has left Chelsea vulnerable to an exit, and it would be a huge loss. Christensen has kept an incredible 33 clean sheets for club and country in 2021, and has been a key part to almost every single one.

His composure on the ball would suit Xavi's coaching style, and he'd be a huge upgrade on Eric Garcia.

The other name that Barca have touted at centre-back is Lazio's Luiz Felipe, but the 24-year-old is also attracting interest from Real Betis.