Barcelona put Pedri up for sale as Arsenal and Man Utd rumours swirl

Robin Bairner

• 18 Jan 2024 10:21 GMT
• 3 min read

Barcelona have put midfield sensation Pedri on the transfer market, with Arsenal and Manchester United having both been linked with the Spain star.

Although the 21-year-old is up for sale, according to a report from El Nacional, Barca have put a premium price tag on the player.

If they are to part company with Pedri, the Camp Nou side want at least €100 million in return.

It is stated that, at present, no one is willing to pay that figure.

Why Barcelona are willing to sell Pedri

Barcelona are willing to sell Pedri for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the economic situation of the club demands that they make sales in order to improve their Financial Fair Play position, and the former Las Palmas youngster is one of the players they can best profit from.

On top of the financial side of things, Barcelona are no longer convinced by Pedri from a sporting point of view. This is due to the constant injuries that he has succumbed to in recent seasons rather than any doubt over his technical capabilities.

“Barca need a reliable core and, to date, the only midfielders who have not been injured this season are Ilkay Gundogan, Fermin Lopez and Oriol Romeu,” El Nacional points out.

“Barcelona believe they cannot depend on chance and, by depending on Pedri, it depends on a coin tossed in the air that, if it comes up tails, means injury.”

Indeed, the midfielder has made only 13 appearances in all competitions this season and has featured for only 858 minutes because of a couple of muscular concerns.

He was, however, available for the Super Cup, in which Barcelona beat Osasuna before falling decisively to Real Madrid 4-1 in the final.

Despite his physical problems, Pedri retains an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €65 million, which is down from a peak of €76.5m in April.

With a contract that expires in June 2026, Barcelona risk seeing the player’s worth dropping if they hold onto him beyond this summer, particularly if the injury issues that have plagued him for the last 18 months persist.