Barcelona may be given a reprieve in their interest in Brazilian teenager Gabriel Moscardo.
The 17-year-old Brazilian has caught the eye this season, with numerous scouts drawn towards the Corinthians starlet in his scarce showings in Serie A. Making just 11 appearances, reportedly he is one of Sporting Director Deco’s favourite emerging talents. Playing in the pivot position, he already appears to have won himself a starting role.
However it has been reported that Chelsea are in talks with Corinthians over Moscardo, and seemingly were close to a deal. Yet Sport now say that talks have cooled off in the last 24 hours, with the Blues reluctant to reach Corinthians’ €30m asking price. Their latest offer was €21m plus €4m in variables, which has so far been rejected.
The Catalan daily claim it has opened the window for Barcelona potentially to get involved in the race for Moscardo. The 17-year-old is currently with the Brazilian under-20 team, alongside future Barcelona forward Vitor Roque.
However this news will have to come with a pinch of salt for Barcelona. The chances that they would have the ability to compete with Chelsea in terms of a fee seem rather slim. If they want to sign Moscardo, Deco will probably need to follow a similar strategy to that of Mateu Alemany and Jordi Cruyff with Roque, first convincing the player that Barcelona is the only place to go. That way Barcelona were given time to negotiate a more favourable structure to the deal that fell within their financial capabilities.
