Barcelona are tight up against their salary limit, and with a stacked forward line failing to hit the heights, there is no surprise that speculation surrounding those forwards continues to grow.
Memphis Depay is out of contract in the summer and expected to leave, the only question is whether it will be at the end of the season or in January. Following Xavi Hernandez’s recent comments, he looks more likely to stay.
The surprise candidate to leave is Ferran Torres. The young Spanish forward arrived just 12 months ago, and after a fast start, has faded into a shadow of the player that Barcelona expected.
After costing the club €55m and remaining on the bench, the Blaugrana may decide he is a logical sacrifice. Tottenham and Arsenal, managed by Torres’ former Manchester City coach Mikel Arteta, were rumoured to be interested.
However speaking to Caught Offside in his exclusive Substack column, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano shut down those rumours.
“Barcelona want to keep Ferran Torres, there are currently no negotiations for him. Their aim is to keep the same squad until the end of the season and then change some players again in July.”
It would be a remarkable call if Barcelona were to sell him after such a short period of time. However as their finances continue to bite, only a select few sales look out of the question for President Joan Laporta.
