It’s no secret that Barcelona were desperately trying to sign a new right-back during the summer transfer window, as they looked to address an area that has caused problems for several years.
They ended up signing Joao Cancelo on a season-long loan deal from Manchester City. The Portuguese became Barcelona’s top target when Ousmane Dembele left to join Paris Saint-Germain, although other options were considered before then.
According to Marca, Barcelona probed the possible signing of Nahuel Molina before going for Cancelo. They even offered multiple players as part of a player-plus-cash deal, but Atletico Madrid rejected all offers. As such, the deal was ruled out for financial reasons.
Molina, who helped Argentina win the 2022 World Cup, has become an indispensable player for Atletico over the last 12 months, and there was zero chance they would be willing to let him leave for anything less than an extremely lucrative fee, especially to a direct rival in Barcelona.
Atletico Madrid will continue using Molina for the foreseeable future, and they are hoping to agree a new contract with him in the coming weeks, although negotiations are at a standstill at this stage.
