Barcelona forced to target Championship star as NIGHTMARE transfer scenario strikes

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 7 Feb 2024 22:03 GMT
• 3 min read

Barcelona have learned the full extent of their financial problems ahead of what promises to be a testing summer transfer window in which they are set to raid the English Championship in order to make new additions.

The Camp Nou side are in the midst of a frustrating campaign in which they sit third in LaLiga, while head coach Xavi has already announced his intention to stand down at the end of the season.

There is scant hope of Barcelona clawing back the eight-point deficit they face to Real Madrid in Spain’s top flight, and while Los Blancos are preparing to arm themselves with the likes of Kylian Mbappe during the summer, it appears that Joan Laporta’s club are destined to be shopping in the bargain basement.

According to Fichajes, Barca are chasing Leicester midfielder Wilfried Ndidi are a potential summer arrival.

The source indicates that the club are already in conversations with the Leicester star, who is out of contract at the end of the season, to get a deal done.

These talks are said to be “speculative” for now, yet it is clear that this is the type of low-cost player that Barcelona will be shopping for ahead of the summer.

Barcelona's bleak transfer position

RAC1 has outlined just how desperate the situation is ahead of the summer.

If Barcelona are to return to the 1:1 rule, whereby they can spend what they bring in, they will need to sell two or three players and trigger another economic lever to ease the club’s financial position.

Underscoring the difficulty of this while remaining competitive, the Catalan source points out that simply selling one star, for example, Ronald Araujo, for €100 million, will not be enough to lift the club out of their difficult position.

Barca may need to make in the region of €200m worth of sales before getting back on a reasonable footing.

The Catalans have grown used to shopping for free transfers in recent summers, but with the quality of free agents this summer looking modest, it promises to be a particularly testing time as a new era beckons at Camp Nou.