Barcelona aim to steal Arsenal’s ‘dream’ signing

Robin Bairner

• 14 Feb 2024 09:18 GMT
• 2 min read

Barcelona are ready to go head-to-head with Arsenal in the transfer market over a player who has been dubbed one of Mikel Arteta’s three “dream” summer additions.

Everton midfielder Amadou Onana finds himself in the viewfinder of numerous big clubs ahead of the summer, with the Toffees likely to be forced into a sale due to their perilous financial state.

Arsenal and Manchester United are two of the teams most regularly linked with the 22-year-old Belgium international but Barcelona appear to have joined the race as they seek a replacement for Sergio Busquets, who departed last summer but whose void has not adequately been filled.

According to Sport, sporting director Deco believes the team lacks “physical and athletic ability” and will take to the transfer market in a bid to solve the issue.

Onana has been placed at the top of the transfer shortlist of the Catalan side.

Barcelona, however, do not wish to pay more than €40 million for Onana, who has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €18.7m as well as more than three years to run on his Everton deal.

Onana’s peak ETV has been €35m while Everton are reportedly seeking a fee around the €50m mark for a player they bought from Lille in the summer of 2022, coincidentally for €35m.

Barca playing catchup on Onana

Barcelona’s chances of winning the race for the player appear to be slim. With the club still under significant Financial Fair Play restrictions, the Camp Nou outfit cannot hope to compete in the transfer market with Premier League giants like Arsenal and Man Utd. The Gunners have even made him one of Arteta's three "dream" summer signings.

Deco’s hopes of landing Onana therefore seem to hinge on their rivals dropping out of the race.

Barcelona may be forced to sell two or three major players this summer, having been warned that even one big-money sale may not be sufficient to ease the financial pressure that the club finds itself under.