Barcelona are looking to bring in a midfielder that go some way to replacing Sergio Busquets, and the latest name doing the rounds is Bayern Munich lynchpin Joshua Kimmich.
News broke this week that Barcelona feel that there is a real possibility of signing Kimmich this summer, and that it will work out cheaper than activating the €60m release clause that would be required to bring in Martin Zubimendi.
Bayern leaked out on Wednesday that Kimmich is not for sale at any price, but Barcelona are convinced they can do a deal for him, as per MD. They feel that like their signing of Robert Lewandowski last summer, it will be tricky, but possible.
The Blaugrana would be relying on a similar strategy as they did with Lewandowski, asking the player to declare his unhappiness and forcing a move out of the club. The Catalan daily also mention that the likes of Ansu Fati could be included in a deal to make it cheaper.
There are however a number of factors that change the equation. Kimmich is only 28 years old compared to Lewandowski’s 33, and has two years left on his deal, compared to the Polish striker’s one year. When Barcelona came in for Lewandowski, it was likely their last chance to extract a large fee for him. They would also need to convince Kimmich to declare his desire to leave, and burn bridges. If Barcelona can pull it off, it would be a significant feat.
