Why Barcelona need €120m to sign Lewandowski
Robin Bairner
- Updated: 3 Jun 2022 13:46 BST
- 3 min read
Barcelona economic vice president Eduard Romeu has explained what the club needs to do financially to push through a transfer for Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski.
The Poland international striker has long been linked with a move to Camp Nou and has made no secret of his desire to leave Bayern Munich is recent weeks.
Although the Bundesliga champions are intent to put up a fight to prevent the prolific hitman, whose contract is up in 2023, from leaving, reports of a move persist.
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Lewandowski, though, appears to be growing impatient with the scenario and has reportedly put a deadline on a move. Furthermore, he is said to be awaiting the outcome of the general assembly, which will be held on 16 June and is set to outline the club’s difficult financial position.
Romeu, meanwhile, has explained how a deal could still be possible.
Speaking to Maria Garrido, he said: “In order to sign Lewandowski, it would first be necessary to release three times the price of his signing plus the cost of amortisation. If you can't do this, it won't be possible.”
With Bayern putting a €40 million asking price on the head of the striker, this means that Barca will need to raise at least €120m, but probably more like €130-135m once the amortisation of the deal is taken into account.
Selling players is the obvious way to do this. Frenkie de Jong to Manchester United is one possibility, while Clement Lenglet is linked with Tottenham, too.
Romeu, meanwhile, claims that Barca “have not budgeted for the sale of players”.
Why Barcelona rejected CVC deal
He also discussed the club’s unwillingness to commit to the CVC deal, which would see them lost just over 8% of their television rights over the next 40 years and, crucially, forfeit the possibility of playing in any European Super League.
“CVC is a good deal for a small club. For a bigger, international club, it's not a good deal,” he said before going on to discuss the possibility of a new competition. “The European Super League is in demand... And they will win. What is clear is that all of this will end up changing for the benefit of football.”
In the short-term, meanwhile, the reality of the situation at Barcelona is stark, with reports that the club may struggle to pay June’s wages.
