- 20 Dec 2024
De Roon: I’m not thinking about Barcelona links
Robin Bairner
- Updated: 23 May 2023 08:47 CDT
- 2 min read
Atalanta star Marten de Roon says that he is not thinking about recent speculation that has linked him with Barcelona.
With the Catalans in the midst of a cost-cutting exercise, the 29-year-old midfielder could represent a low-cost addition to their team.
Furthermore, De Roon has Champions League experience, having featured prominently for his side over the course of the last two years.
He is not, however, thinking about a departure from Atalanta, where he has a contract that runs until 2024.
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“Barcelona? I’ve got no comments to make. At the moment, I’m concentrating on Atalanta,” he told the media on Tuesday. “I’m well here and my family is happy.
“I’m not thinking about the rumours.”
Atalanta have a critical Champions League clash against Ajax looming in Amsterdam. The Serie A club are in need of a point in order to book their passage through to the knockout stages along with Liverpool.
De Roon’s rise
Last term, their adventure finished at the quarter-final juncture in dramatic circumstances. As big underdogs, they led Paris Saint-Germain until the final moments of the game only to concede twice.
Such a setting was very different from what De Roon has typically been used to in his career.
He began with Sparta Rotterdam before moving to Heerenveen. Three years later, he was off to Italy for the first of two stints with Atalanta, which were interrupted by a spell with Middlesbrough in the Premier League.
De Roon has 15 caps for the Netherlands and was a regular in the squads that Barcelona head coach Ronald Koeman compiled when in charge of his country.
Nevertheless, with the presidential election looming at Camp Nou next month, there could be managerial change that would dramatically change the landscape of the club. It could also diminish the possibility of De Roon making the unlikely jump to Catalunya.
