Barcelona look as if they will be facing a tricky summer as they wrestle with their still large wage bill. It has led to plenty of speculation as to whether Barcelona may try to cash in on some of their assets this summer, but Fabrizio Romano maintains that their plans currently revolve around keeping two of their offensive stars despite Premier League interest.
Ousmane Dembele is out of contract in 2024, meaning that the period for Barcelona to get a renewal agreed and signed is into its last year. Their last chance to sell him will be this summer too, but Romano has told Caught Offside that all is set for him to stay.
“It’s still early to say, Financial Fair Play will be crucial for Barcelona; but they really want to extend Dembele’s contract. Xavi is very happy with him, at this stage there’s nothing concrete with Premier League clubs.”
Raphinha’s future has been the subject of significantly more speculation, given the Frenchman has benched him so far this season. However following Dembele’s injury, Raphinha has improved. The Italian transfer guru believes Barcelona are happy with his performance, as per his Daily Substack.
“I’m sure Barcelona are very happy with Raphinha. Again, let’s see what happens with Financial Fair Play but Barca want to trust Raphinha for present and future and he loves the club.”
Romano did caveat both of those statements with financial fair play, and it is certainly true that the La Liga salary limits will impose themselves at the end of the season. La Liga President Javier Tebas maintains that Barcelona must cut their wage bill by €200m, while the club believe they are close to meeting the limits imposed.
