Adrien Rabiot to Barcelona: The Catalan giants take a huge step over the acquisition of French midfielder Adrien Rabiot.
Barcelona are struggling in the La Liga at the moment. The Catalan club dropped to second place in the league last weekend as they were held to a draw by Valencia. Sevilla have surprisingly taken the lead in the La Liga table.
Barca were benefitted from Real Madrid’s slump in form, but face a tough time in the league themselves.
Barcelona are winless since their last four matches in La Liga, and suffered a stunning defeat to the-then bottom-placed side Leganes last month.
International break couldn’t have come at a better time for the La Liga giants, as players return to start afresh in the domestic season.
In the meantime, Barcelona are also keeping tabs on the transfer market. According to Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have already taken a big step over the acquisition of Adrien Rabiot.
Adrien Rabiot to Barcelona:
The Catalan giants have been linked with Rabiot since the start of the summer, but no substantial deal was put in place for the midfielder. It was also reported that Eric Abidal the former Barca player and technical director of the club, visited Rabiot during the pre-season.
Adrien Rabiot has rejected PSG’s third and possibly final contract offer, meaning he could be available in January or next summer. The contract he rejected stands at around €7.2m a year + add ons.
— Mootaz Chehade (@MHChehade) October 2, 2018
Spanish reports claim that Rabiot is keen on the move and denied a third-contract offer from Paris Saint Germain.
Barcelona representatives were in attendance at the Parc des Princes for PSG’s Champions League clash with Red Star Belgrade to watch midfield target Adrien Rabiot (Mundo Deportivo)
— RumorsTransfers 24/7 🗞 (@rumorstransfers) October 4, 2018
Now, Mundo Deportivo reports that Barcelona are silently and relentlessly working on a deal to sign Rabiot. According to report, Barcelona wants to ‘shield’ the transfer at the start of the next calendar year to negate any other bid from other European clubs.
Adrien Rabiot rejected a 3rd PSG contract extension proposal last week, in a deal that would have seen the player earn €7.2m a year
— little promzy (@lilpromzy27) October 2, 2018
Manchester United, Chelsea, Juventus and Bayern Munich were among the other top European clubs eyeing a move for the player.
The report also says that Barcelona are ready to offer him better wages if he agrees to sign on a free transfer. Rabiot’s contract with Paris Saint Germain expires next summer.
Adrien Rabiot has turned down a third offer of a contract extension from Paris Saint-Germain.
The midfielder’s deal expires at the end of the current season and that has attracted interest in him from the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Barcelona (Mail) pic.twitter.com/6RgYOntWir
— Simon Phillips (@SiPhillipsSport) October 4, 2018
What next?
Reports also suggest that Barcelona are ready to enter the transfer market in January for a defender, and want Kurt Zouma. The central defender currently plays for Everton. The Catalan giants have also reportedly identified a replacement for Jordi Alba in Ferland Mendy of Lyon.