Barcelona set to miss out on teenage Swedish talent despite green light from player

Barcelona are set for another disappointing end to their latest transfer pursuit, as they seek to bring in some of the finest teenage talents before they reach Europe’s elite. Swedish midfielder Lucas Bergvall is keen on a move to Catalonia, but they are set to be priced out of his signature.

The 18-year-old is one of the premier talents in Swedish football, and has been earning starts for Djurgardens, but with his deal up at the end of 2024, his club are keen to agree a sale. Barcelona had been interested, and Sport say that Bergvall and his agent have agreed a deal – the Blaugrana are his priority club.

However Djurgardens’ demands look too high for Barcelona. Udinese are one of many clubs including Manchester United and Juventus that have been tracking him, and the former Italian side have had a €5m offer rejected. Barcelona have asked for more time to work out the structure of a deal, but the price tag will likely be €15m or more, meaning their chances of success are slim.

With the arrival of Deco as Sporting Director, there was a move to scouting and signing the best teenage talents in the world before they arrived at the top of their game. Not only is this obviously a sustainable model, but given their economic weakness, competing for top stars is out of the question. However thus far, with exceptions of Mikayil Faye and Noah Darvich, they are being priced out of that market too.