Barcelona are not about to derail Tottenham and West Ham’s attempts to sign Uruguayan centre-forward Maxi Gomez.
Gomez has scored 31 goals in just two seasons at Celta Vigo and aged just 22 he has attracted attention throughout Europe.
Earlier this week it was reported that the Vigo forward had been subject of a €25m bid from Barcelona but Sportsmail has been told Barca are not in for the striker.
In many ways Gomez fits the profile of the sort of striker Barcelona want this summer but he also serves as a reminder of why it will be so difficult for them to find the right man.
They want quality and versatility but they are about to spend €120m on Antoine Griezmann so they also want someone cheap.
The player coming in also needs to be willing to sit on the bench for most of the season because although 32-year-old Suarez needs back-up, he still wants to play most games and he second top-scored in La Liga this season with 21-goals.
The alternatives for Barcelona are simple – they can buy youth, they can buy a veteran, or they can buy no-one at all and use Griezmann as Suarez’ replacement when the Uruguayan is out.
Gomez would have represented the youth option. He could come in and learn from his compatriot, Suarez. But he would not have been cheap. His buy-out clause is set at €50m and while Celta are unlikely to hold out for the full price they are unlikely to sell him for half that fee.
Of the veteran options another Uruguayan has emerged as a contender after the recent relegation of Girona. But it remains to be seen whether Cristhian Stuani will want to see out his career from the sidelines.
Fernando Llorente is another option and would cost nothing having come to the end of his deal at Tottenham.
Those who argue for the veteran option harp back with fondness to the success of Henrik Larsson who won the Champions League with the club in 2006. Others point to the failure of the January recruitment of Kevin Prince Boateng to make the argument that the in-coming player should be young.