FC Barcelona Agree First Summer Sale To Premier League Club

FC Barcelona have agreed their first player sale of the summer to a Premier
PINC
League club, SPORT has reported.

The Blaugrana are beset by economic woes, and have been publicly warned by La Liga president Javier Tebas that they must shed €200 million ($217 million) from the wage bill to navigate Financial Fair Play.

This has prompted rumors of a big player sale being required in the mold of someone like Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres or Raphinha. But the Catalans should also look to offload several stars that are surplus to requirements in order to balance the books.

On Thursday morning, SPORT has reported that Barca are already close to reaching an agreement with Tottenham Hotspur for a player that was once a key feature of their defense.

Clement Lenglet was signed by former president Josep Bartomeu when the Catalans triggered his €35 million ($38 million) release clause at Sevilla in 2018. Immediately winning the La Liga title under Ernesto Valverde, the former France international later fell out of favor on current coach Xavi Hernandez’s watch and was shipped out to Spurs on loan in January 2022.

Lenglet has impressed in north London, to the extent that the two clubs involved in negotiations are looking to finalize a €14 million ($15.2 million) permanent switch for the 27-year-old.

The Catalan daily newspaper says that internal reports on Lenglet are “excellent on a personal and professional level”, which would suggest that there will be no hold ups in getting a deal over the line in the coming weeks.

Furthermore, the quoted fee is pocket change for Premier League clubs, who may also come in for the likes of Fati, Ferran, Raphinha and misfit defender Eric Garcia.

With Andreas Christensen, Ronald Araujo and Jules Kounde currently Xavi’s favorites in central defense, getting rid of Lenglet and then Samuel Umtiti before Garcia possibly faces the chop is a wise move ahead of looking at the wings.

As Fati and Ferran struggle for form, Ousmane Dembele’s injury has shown that Raphinha is often the only valid backup. Put simply, a knock or suspension suffered by the Brazilian can potentially leave Xavi short-staffed.