Barcelona have been looking for potential sales all summer, and arguably no player has come into focus more than Ivorian midfielder Franck Kessie.
As a player with three years left on his deal, at 26 years of age, and having arrived on a free, he makes perfect sense for a sale, given he is not crucial to Xavi Hernandez’s starting XI.
On Wednesday Gerard Romero reported that Kessie was willing to leave the club after a conversation with Xavi Hernandez, if an attractive offer arrived. MD say he has an offer from Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, which would make Barcelona around €30m, a fee that Sport feel would tempt Barcelona. They go on to say that Galatasaray have had a loan offer rejected, as they would only be interested in a sale.
This is not the first time that reports have emerged about Kessie changing his mindset over an exit from Barcelona, and it is not the first time it has been denied. Kessie’s agency released a statement on Instagram singling out Romero for what they call unsubstantiated claims about their client, saying he is happy in Catalonia.
🚨 Kessié's agency on Instagram: pic.twitter.com/Luu4fdd5Xg
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) July 4, 2023
They asked him to desist in publishing information that is incorrect – this is the third time they have publicly denied reports about Kessie’s exit on social media in recent months.
What is clear is that there is certainly an appetite from somewhere to persist with the idea of a departure for Kessie. The Ivorian’s sale would loosen the purse strings somewhat at Barcelona, but as they discovered last season, the first step towards making a sale is ensuring the person with the contract is open to leaving.
