Stating reports in Spain, Barcelona are reportedly in the hunt for a long-term successor to midfield legend Andres Iniesta. And the Catalans seem to have narrowed down on the possibility of signing Real Betis starlet Fabian Ruiz.
The 21-year old is pipped to be the next Iniesta and Barcelona want to sign him in this window itself, rather than waiting for the summer window to start after 5 months. Barcelona are looking to complete the deal in the coming days and loan him back to Real Betis for the remainder of the season.
However, Barcelona are not the only ones in hunt for the Spaniard. Italian outlet Calciomercato claim that some of the Serie A giants are also keeping tabs on the Betis boy to give Barcelona a competition.
Inter Milan, AS Roma and Napoli are supposedly very interested in Ruiz and could offer a lucrative contract as well. Rising through the Betis youth academy, Fabian Ruiz currently has a release clause of €15mn but Real Betis are looking forward to offer him a new contract that’ll bump up the clause by double to €30mn.
Barcelona have already made huge investments for their future by getting in Ousmane Dembele, Philippe Coutinho and Yerry Mina. The Catalonia club has also displaced Arda Turan, Rafinha and Javier Mascherano to get in the youth to their first team.
Meanwhile, Ruiz has made 59 senior club appearances for Real Betis and a loan spell at Elche CF, scoring three goals. With a creative game play, Ruiz has been pipped to have huge future in the game.
Losing Neymar to PSG was a slap in Barcelona’s face, as the Catalan side could only stand and watch the French side take away one of their prized assets. Since then, Barcelona have responded remarkably well, as they brought in star players to offset the Brazilian’s loss.
They also revamped their defense, as Messi himself has admitted that the team looks more solid this season. With Dembele, Coutinho and potentially Griezmann arriving in the summer, Barcelona may only become stronger in a few months’ time.
