Barca 'plan to raise €300m in sales as Coutinho, Rakitic & Umtiti could be sold'

Barcelona hope to bring in between €250 and €300 million in player sales this summer to balance the club's accounts and be able to make signings without risking themselves financially, according to ESPN.

Barca have already committed to paying an initial €75m for Ajax midfielder Frenkie de Jong and are also weighing up moves for Matthijs de Ligt, Luka Jovic and even Antoine Griezmann ahead of what is expected to be a busy summer.

However the club's hierarchy are aware that to push through with their plans, players must leave first.

There are two categories of players who could leave Camp Nou -- those regularly linked with big money moves away -- including Philippe Coutinho, Samuel Umtiti and Ivan Rakitic -- and others who do not feature in coach Ernesto Valverde's plans.

ESPN FC revealed last month that Barca are ready to let Coutinho leave, just over a year after he became the club's record signing, as long as they receive an offer over €100m. They paid Liverpool a fee which could rise to €160m last January for the Brazilian.

Coutinho still has a good reputation in the Premier League despite his struggles in La Liga and Barca are already aware of several clubs interested in signing him.

Umtiti's days could also be numbered. The centre-back didn't want to have an operation to fix a knee injury earlier this season, as had been recommended by Barca's medical team, and has instead missed the majority of the campaign undergoing conservative treatment.

The France international is now fit again but is the third choice pick behind Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet, while Barca are also pursuing a move for Ajax defender De Ligt.

Rakitic's case is especially complex. Sources have told ESPN FC that the Croatia international, who has a contract until 2021, was the subject of an offer worth around €80m from Paris Saint-Germain last summer and that only a late intervention from Valverde convinced him to stay.

The former Sevilla midfielder has since been hoping for a new deal to reward his loyalty but so far the club have not made any moves to begin negotiations for a new contract.

Valverde does not want to lose Rakitic but the club won't rule out selling if another big offer arrives this summer.

Malcom is another player who could bring in a sizeable sum of money. He joined from Bordeaux for €40m last summer but has failed to earn regular football. He turned down the chance to leave in January but there's still firm interest from China and around Europe in the young forward.

Goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen and midfielder Rafinha are two other players who could be sold.

None of the players out on loan, including Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez, have a future under Valverde and the club hope they will bring in some money as they look to move them on permanently at the end of the campaign.

Last summer, Barca managed to raise €121m by selling Paulinho, Lucas Digne, Yerry Mina, Gerard Deulofeu, Aleix Vidal and Paco Alcacer. This summer, the challenge is to get even more but the club are confident that is possible as long as they sell at least one big-name player.