Unveiling FC Barcelona's Winter Transfer Plans: Amadou Onana and Gui Ruck on the Radar
By Shree Desai
FC Barcelona is still in search of a midfielder following Gavi's injury and also in order to find a successor for club legend Sergio Busquets. Things haven't been so easy for the club since their financial doom and the same goes regarding the transfer market.
Barça had already identified a number of targets for this transfer window, but as the clock ticks, the club is running out of time to make a move. One of the major reasons for their lack of movements is the lack of funds.
After signing Vitor Roque, the Blaugranes are only left with a handful of money for the remainder of the market. This puts them in a tough spot and the club is currently only focusing on bolstering the midfield, which might be their last move for the window.
The Catalan giants have found another candidate for their midfield renewal, Everton's Amadou Onana. According to Football España, FC Barcelona was expecting a £45m (around €52m) release clause.
Unfortunately for the Spanish giants, Onana's demand and midfielders' hyper-inflation in the English market have raised the Belgian's price to a whooping £66m (around €76m). The Toffees have also made it clear that there will be no negotiations under £60m (around €69m).
Barcelona is still interested in 14-year-old Brazilian Sensation Gui Ruck
Guilherme Ruck or popularly known as Gui Ruck, is still on Barcelona's radar. The 14-year-old teenage sensation will help the club strengthen their youth team and can also be a great long-term investment.
Apart from Barça, PSG, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea and also a handful of Brazilian clubs are interested in signing the midfielder. The clubs from Brazil see it as an investment which they can leverage as per their wishes in the future.
If Ruck ends up moving back to Brazil, the clubs will keep him till the 14-year-old outgrows the league. And here exactly is where the profits lie. This is when Gui Ruck will become very keen to make the move back to Europe. To release the player, the Brazilians will then ask for an eight-nine figure number.
The Blaugranes are still following the youngster's movements, waiting for the right time to strike. Gui will be allowed to leave this June with a compensation of course, but Barcelona haven't made first contact yet.