Haaland, Pogba and six players Raiola discussed with Laporta
Carlo Garganese
- Updated: 23 May 2023 08:55 CDT
- 4 min read
Mino Raiola and Joan Laporta met in Italy on Monday to discuss the transfer market.
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Barcelona president Laporta was in Turin as Blaugrana wonderkid Pedri was picking up the Golden Boy Award, a prestigious prize given to the best youngster in the world each year.
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While in the Italian city, he met with super-agent Mino Raiola.
According to reports in Italy and Spain, the main subject of discussion was the future of Erling Haaland.
Haaland is the most sought-after player in European football and will almost certainly leave Borussia Dortmund next summer when a release clause in his contract is activated.
Barcelona, despite their financial situation making a deal difficult, are one of the frontrunners for his signature.
But Haaland is not the only Raiola client that came up on the menu. Here are five others who were reportedly discussed.
Paul Pogba (Man Utd)
Paul Pogba’s contract at Manchester United expires at the end of the season and it now seems inevitable that he won’t be renewing.
For the second time in his career, Pogba will depart on a Bosman transfer. The three favourites for his signature in this order are Real Madrid, PSG and former club Juventus.
But Barcelona are also considering an offer as we have seen over the last year that their transfer policy has moved towards signing top players on free transfers.
Matthijs De Ligt (Juventus)
De Ligt was very close to joining Barcelona from Ajax in 2019 during the summer in which Frenkie De Jong made the same move.
In the end, Juventus offered superior wages but the Dutch central defender has remained a target of the Blaugrana ever since.
De Ligt hasn’t quite lived up to his potential in Turin so a move away can’t be totally ruled out, even if his transfer fee (likely above €75 million) may pose a problem.
Gigio Donnarumma (PSG)
Donnarumma has publicly complained about his lack of regular first team action ever since making a Bosman move to PSG this past summer.
Both Raiola and PSG have played down there being a problem, with Donnarumma expected to be the long-term number one as Keylor Navas moves into his mid-thirties.
But Barcelona could offer Donnarumma a get-out route, especially given the poor form of Marc-Andre Ter Stegen over the last year or so.
Stefan de Vrij (Inter)
De Vrij has been one of the most underrated defenders in all of Europe over the last five years and one of the best in Serie A during that time.
He played a pivotal role in Inter winning the Scudetto last season but his contract expires in 2023 and it appears he would like a new challenge abroad as he turns 30 next year.
The Dutch have a long association with Barcelona and with De Vrij potentially available for a much-reduced fee, this is a deal that isn’t impossible. However, it is understood the central defender prefers a transfer to the Premier League.
Alessio Romagnoli (Milan)
Romagnoli is a player who has been heavily linked with a move to Barcelona many times in the past.
The Italian centre back sees his contract expire at San Siro at the end of the season and, while he could pen a new deal, he could also quite easily move on if a good offer comes about.
Romagnoli perhaps isn’t at the level required to be a first-team Barcelona player but given the lack of depth the Blaugrana have he would be a useful squad rotation player. He would also be free.
