Barcelona set for transfer embarrassment over ‘next Pedri’

Robin Bairner

• 10 Jan 2024 12:03 GMT
• 10 min read

Barcelona are set to be left embarrassed by Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt, who are showing more muscle than the Camp Nou outfit in the January transfer market.

Both clubs are chasing Djurgardens youngster Lucas Bergvall, yet Barca are set to be priced out of a deal by a team that sits sixth in the Bundesliga table.

According to a report from Bild, Bergvall appears to be heading to Frankfurt as they have been able to offer his Swedish employers a total package for the player worth €8.5 million.

In contrast, Barcelona have offered Djurgardens something in the region of €6.5m.

Bergvall is a 17-year-old central midfielder who has been rapidly gaining a reputation for being a leading talent in Sweden.

He has played 28 times for Djurgardens last season, scoring two goals and creating one more in what was a breakout campaign for the talented teen.

During that campaign, he rated among the top central midfielders in Sweden, showing particular qualities in terms of his defensive play, but also his ball retention in dangerous areas of the field.

Bergvall a midfield talent to savour

The leading players that he is most similar in style to include Real Madrid star Eduardo Camavinga, Dominik Szoboszlai of Liverpool - and Barcelona’s very own Pedri, according to the data analytics firm.

It appears, though, that the financial realities of the situation at Camp Nou will make it impossible for Xavi’s side to pay the going rate for the hot prospect, whose contract at Djurgardens still has another two years to run on it.

Frankfurt are in position to sign the midfield and will hope that he can flourish into the type of player Bergvall is forecast to become.

Despite the paper talk linking Barca with a move for Manchester City striker Erling Haaland, this is a stark reminder of the budgetary constraints that the club is presently working under.