Barcelona are spying a raid on Arsenal
Barcelona are spying a deal for Arsenal winger Gabriel Martinelli if they miss out on two of their main attacking targets this summer, according to a report.
Barcelona have had a hugely successful season under Hansi Flick, having completed a domestic treble of the LaLiga title, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana. The Blaugrana made history by beating rivals Real Madrid four times in the same campaign, scoring an incredible 16 goals against them in the process.
Wingers Lamine Yamal and Raphinha have been unstoppable and are both in contention for the Ballon d’Or, while striker Robert Lewandowski continued his remarkable scoring record by netting 42 goals in 52 appearances.
Barca were hopeful of adding yet another Champions League win to their honours list, though they were knocked out by Inter Milan in the semi-finals after two extraordinary games.
Despite Barca re-emerging as one of the best teams on the planet this season, sporting director Deco is eager to bolster Flick’s attack further by signing another winger.
This forward needs to be a player who has bags of experience at the top level and can provide Raphinha and Yamal with competition and cover next season.
As per Catalan newspaper Sport, Barca have added Martinelli to their shortlist amid their hunt for winger recruits.
Deco likes the profile of the Arsenal star as he is already a top player but has the potential to get even better given the fact he is still only 23 years old.
Martinelli is one of the quickest players in the Premier League and can breeze past opposition full-backs before either shooting at goal or crossing for a team-mate.
He has been criticised for his finishing at times but this should improve as he heads closer to his peak years.
Barcelona monitoring Prem trio
The report explains how Liverpool ace Luis Diaz and Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford are still Barca’s main targets for the left wing position.
Rashford is pushing United to let him join Barca as he would love to represent the Catalan giants.
It emerged on Wednesday that Deco has held a new meeting with Rashford’s brother and agent, Dwaine Maynard, to try and speed up a move.
As things stand, Barca are only willing to agree a loan-to-buy deal, which is not overly enticing for United. The Red Devils would rather pick up £40million (€47.5m / $54m) for Rashford this summer in order to increase their own transfer budget.
This sticking point has seen Barca identify other targets such as Martinelli, Diaz and Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman.
Diaz, like Rashford, would love to join Barca, though Liverpool’s demands are proving prohibitive.
The Colombian star could instead go to Saudi Arabia and reunite with one of his former Anfield team-mates.
Should moves for Rashford and Diaz fall through, then Barca could turn their attention to Martinelli and Coman.
While Arsenal are already on the hunt for a new left winger, manager Mikel Arteta would still be sad to see Martinelli go.
He loves the Brazilian’s attack-minded style and has played a key role in the development of both him and fellow winger Bukayo Saka.
On May 18, Arsenal were told which forward they should swoop for if Martinelli leaves.