The Barcelona board has closed in on their first signing of the summer after hearing Quique Setien’s opinion on the lack of squad depth.
Barcelona remains optimistic to complete their multimillion-dollar operation by signing Neymar and Lautaro Martinez in the coming summer transfer market. However, the current pandemic has led to the suspension of all major competitions and it has had an adverse effect on the economic status of the Catalan club.
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To curb the economic crisis the club faces, the board has decided to sell a few players such as Nelson Semedo, Samuel Umtiti, Arturo Vidal and the notorious Junior Firpo
Although the board at Barca prioritise to build a stronger attacking line, Quique Setien has his focus on the defensive line that has been highly inconsistent this season. The former Real Betis manager that Sergi Roberto is being overused, the Spanish player has been deployed as a winger, midfielder, and right-back as well in the past few seasons, Quique Setien believes that the club must sign a stable right back instead of rotating Sergi Roberto all over the field.
Don Balon claims that the Brazilian from Benito Villamarin has caught the eye of Quique Setien, Emerson Royal has hit the ground running in his debut season with Real Betis. The Betico man has taken the league by a storm, the Brazilian has played 24 games for Real Betis and has scored 3 goals along with 5 assists as a right back. The arrival of Emerson Royal would push Sergi Roberto higher up onto the midfield giving Quique Setien more options in the middle of the park.
The Brazilian was signed by Barcelona and Real Betis in a joint deal in 2019, as both, the clubs split the transfer fee and the economic rights of the player.
The joint contract states that Barca can require the player after 2021 for 6 million euros, however, to procure the player before 2021, the Catalan club must offer 12 million euros instead. Bartomeu does not consider the figure to be a stumbling block as they plan to sell Nelson Semedo for over 40 million euros to Manchester City.
The report states that the arrival of Emerson has been planned and the Brazilian will arrive a season before his actual arrival.