Barcelona’s long-standing desire to acquire Joao Cancelo could finally be realized, as the Manchester City defender has reportedly agreed to personal terms with the Catalan club for a potential summer transfer.
Earlier, in January, Barcelona missed out on signing the Portuguese defender, as he opted to join Bayern Munich on loan, despite Barcelona being the favored destination.
Reported by Goal, Barcelona intends to utilize a portion of the funds gained from the impending transfer of Ousmane Dembele to Paris Saint-Germain to facilitate the acquisition of Cancelo.
Despite making appearances in Manchester City’s pre-season matches, the future of the former Benfica and Juventus defender at the Etihad Stadium remains uncertain.
Barcelona’s manager, Xavi, holds a significant admiration for Cancelo and desires to bring him to the club for the upcoming season. Similarly, the defender is keen on making the move to Camp Nou, having experienced differences with Pep Guardiola during the previous season.
Arsenal plan late Cancelo swoop
In a surprising turn, Arsenal might consider a last-minute attempt to secure the services of Manchester City’s Joao Cancelo, valued at £60 million, if the Portuguese talent remains available for transfer this summer, as reported by The Boot Room.
Having already invested approximately £200 million during this transfer window, including signings such as Declan Rice from West Ham and Juriel Timber from Ajax, Arsenal’s manager Mikel Arteta remains eager for further acquisitions.
Arsenal is aiming to disrupt the deal for Cancelo before he finalizes his move to Barcelona, who are currently leading in the pursuit of the former Inter Milan and Juventus defender.
According to a previous report by Sports Brief, Bayern Munich seems to be leaning towards not utilizing their option to convert the loan move of prominent defender Joao Cancelo from Manchester City into a permanent transfer during the upcoming summer transfer window.
The Portuguese talent, who departed Etihad Stadium in January to join the Bundesliga team on a six-month loan agreement, appears unlikely to make a permanent transition to Germany. It is expected that Bayern will not activate the £62 million clause required to officially secure Cancelo.
The report also suggests that Chelsea and Real Madrid are the two primary contenders if the 28-year-old decides to leave Manchester City this summer. Alternatively, Cancelo might continue to be a part of Pep Guardiola’s squad.