Could Barca realistically sign Sterling in January?

Stefan Bienkowski

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:54 CDT
• 4 min read

The closer we get to the January transfer window, the clearer it seems to become that Raheem Sterling is intent on leaving Manchester City.

According to 90mins, the England international has informed the Premier League champions that he is intent on leaving on loan in order to pick up regular game time.

And Barcelona are apparently the main contenders to offer Sterling an ideal route out of Manchester.

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Indeed, his own manager Pep Guardiola recently admitted that if the Catalan side are interested in signing Sterling then there may be very little City can do to stop it.

"If Barcelona are interested in any of our players, I am convinced that they can get them,” Guardiola said to Mundo Deportivo.

“Barca continues to be an attractive club, more than attractive. The city, the club, the history and this for the trainers, for the players always seduces a lot.

So, with Guardiola’s quotes in mind, is a January move for Sterling to Barcelona a realistic idea or simply nonsense thought up by the press in Spain?

Could Barca afford to sign Sterling?

According to a new report in the Metro, Man City would be willing to sell Sterling for as little as £45m, or €53.5 million. But that does seem a little low for a player of his quality.

Despite being a bit-part player in Man City’s squad, Sterling is still valued at €72 million and could demand a fee anywhere between €54m-€90m if Barca were serious about buying him in January.

That, undoubtedly would cause a huge issue for the Catalan side, who remain engulfed in a financial crisis that still severely limits the club’s spending.

The Spanish giants could raise around €143m from selling squad players in January, but that would be a rather drastic measure for buying just one player. However, having said that, a potential departure for Ousmane Dembele could free up a huge amount of space on Barca’s wage bill for a player like Sterling to join.

Either way, it seems highly unlikely that Barca could afford to buy Sterling in January unless they can come up with some very creative methods.

How else could they sign him?

Selling Dembele would certainly go some way to Barca pulling together the funds to sign Sterling, but another option could be a straight player swap with one of the club’s stars that Man City may want.

According to El Nacional, that isn’t as far fetched an idea as it perhaps seems at first, with the Spanish publication suggesting that the English champions are keen admirers of Frenkie de Jong and would consider swapping Sterling for the defensive player.

This, naturally, then raises the question of whether Barca need the Dutch international more than they need a new winger. If not, such a swap deal could perhaps suit all parties involved come January.