Barca receive offer from Serie A for defender – conflicting reports on amount

  /  autty

Barcelona appear to be holding onto central defender Ronald Araujo during the January transfer market, despite initial interest from Juventus. However that will have a knock-on effect on their plans elsewhere, and it increasingly looks like Eric Garcia could be the odd one out.

Garcia has been used as much as a central defender as he has a midfielder this season, and already early in January, Girona were linked with another move for him. The 24-year-old spent last season there on loan, and is a fan of manager Michel Sanchez, with Girona Sporting Director Quique Carcel openly acknowledging they are interested in a return for Garcia.

It was reported that Barcelona had agreed a deal with Girona, but now it seems that both clubs are holding out for a better deal – the Blanc-i-Vermells have offered €7m plus €3m in variables. Now Fabrizio Romano is reporting that Garcia is the latest La Liga target for Cesc Fabregas at Como and they have made a €7m bid for his services.

On the other hand, Sport quote Gianluca di Marzio, who says that Como’s offer is as much as €10m, with Fabregas keen to make the move happen. Real Sociedad were also interested in him in the summer, and they are also considering a move.

Hansi Flick was initially reluctant to let go of Garcia, due to his versatility and professionalism. Yet now with both Araujo and Andreas Christensen back fit, Flick is more open to a move. He is likely to be their fifth-choice defender in the second half of the season.

The key factor is that Barcelona are looking to strengthen their forward line, and Garcia’s exit could free up sufficient salary space in order to bring in Marcus Rashford on loan from Manchester United.

Related: Como Barcelona Fàbregas Flick
Latest comments
Download All Football for more comments