FC Barcelona will be forced to put an unexpected player on the transfer market this summer according to RAC1, which cited anonymous sources.
It is widely believed that Barca needs to make two big player sales ahead of the 2024/2025 given the club’s financial difficulties.
SPORT reported last weekend that the Catalans will prioritize offloading Jules Kounde and Raphinha, who were famously bought for fees exceeding a combined $110 million in 2022 when president Joan Laporta pulled his famous ‘economic levers’.
Elsewhere, there is also interest in Ronald Araujo and Frenkie de Jong from Bayern Munich and Manchester United respectively, though Laporta would reportedly prefer not to offload either player if necessary.
One reason for putting Kounde on the chopping block is because of the high transfer fee he can demand from the PremierPINC League
The Qatar 2022 World Cup finalist was on the verge of joining Chelsea from Sevilla, only for Barca to change his mind at the last minute.
Another factor, though, is the rise of 17-year-old Pau Cubarsi, which adds to a general ‘overbooking’ in central defense as the phrase goes in Spain.
This excess of center backs – six in total including loanees Eric Garcia and Clement Lenglet when they return at the end of the season, unless other arrangements are made – might also result in Inigo Martinez being put on the exit ramp as part of a surprise development according to RAC1.
Martinez joined on a free from Athletic Club in 2023, but has had his progress in Catalonia halted by a series of injuries.
His displays haven’t been bad when called upon, but any potential sale is interesting to Barca because it would represent pure profit. Above all, it might be needed to navigate Financial Fair Play limits and return to the 1:1 rule.
In comparison with Kounde, the Frenchman has more to offer than Martinez in that he is also able to play right back. This was frequently seen in the title-winning campaign of 2022/2023, and this season with usual choice Joao Cancelo placed on the left as soon as Alejandro Balde was ruled out for the rest of the season.
With Araujo rested for the Champions League on Tuesday, though, both Martinez and Kounde are expected to start against Mallorca in La Liga on Friday.
