The players that could leave to finance Barcelona's move for Haaland
Stefan Bienkowski
- 10 Feb 2022 16:05 GMT
- 8 min read
Barcelona may not be challenging for silverware just yet but the club certainly seem to be back to their former glory when it comes to the transfer market.
The Catalan giants stole much of the attention in the January transfer window when they paid a handsome fee for Manchester City forward Ferran Torres, before loaning Wolves star Adama Traore and picking up Arsenal forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for free.
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As such, many would suspect Barca were finished buying forward players for the foreseeable future. However, according to a new report in Spain, that couldn’t be further from the case.
Spanish newspaper Sport are reporting that the club have made Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland their No.1 priority for the summer transfer window and have already drafted up plans to sell players to finance such an audacious move.
But what players do Barca have to sell or get rid of in the summer that could help them buy Haaland?
Barcelona summer sell sale
Memphis Depay
Perhaps the most obvious player for Barca to sell this summer is none other than forward Memphis Depay. After joining the club for free last year, the Netherland’s international has been rather underwhelming and certainly wouldn’t offer much next season if Haaland were to arrive.
The player is currently valued at a substantial €50 million and if another club were to offer that amount, Barca would likely accept it without having to think about it twice.
Ousmane Dembele
Although Barcelona wouldn’t be able to fetch a price for Ousmane Dembele due to his contract expiring at the end of the season, the Frenchman’s departure from the club would undoubtedly free up a huge amount of money.
According to reports in Spain, Dembele’s salary at Barca currently stands at just under €18m per year. And with him now set to leave the club, the Catalan giants can take that money and put it into convincing a player like Haaland to join.
Frenkie de Jong
Unlike Memphis or Dembele, Frenkie de Jong is neither out of form or set to leave the club through an expiring contract. And yet the Dutchman could also find himself moving on to another club in the summer.
Although De Jong is a fantastic player, he hasn’t exactly lit up the Camp Nou with his performances this season and with the emergence of Pedri and Gavi in the Barca side, Xavi no longer depends on the former Ajax wonderkid to pull the strings in midfield. Nor is he really needed in central defence either.
If Barca are intent on raising serious cash in the summer on players that other clubs may actually want to buy, they may end up having to turn to De Jong, who is currently valued at €84m and could potentially move for much more.
