Barcelona transfer news: English giants want Vidal, Battle with Madrid for Torres, and more - 18th January 2018

English giants in talks for Aleix Vidal

The right-back joined Barcelona in 2015 on the back of a Europa League victory with Sevilla for €17 million. However, he has failed to make the necessary impact during his time at Camp Nou and finds himself behind Sergi Roberto and summer signing Nelson Semedo in the pecking order.

Now, Spanish news outlet, Estadio Deportivo reports that the player is looking for regular football elsewhere, having made only three starts in the La Liga this season.

The report further states that Vidal's agent is already in England and has held talks with clubs in Manchester and Merseyside, implying the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Everton are interested in the speedy full-back.

Vidal's versatility to play on the wings apart from the right-back position makes him a useful player for any of the aforementioned clubs. While the Manchester clubs and Liverpool have good first-choice right-backs, the 28-year old can definitely add another dimension to Sam Allardyce's Everton.

Meanwhile, for Barcelona, the sale will help trim the wage bill and balance the books after the big-money signing of Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool. Further, the Blaugrana have good depth for Vidal's position, making this a win-win for both the club and the player.

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Barcelona fighting with Real Madrid for Ferran Torres

Ferran Torres is a wanted man

The 17-year old wonder-kid has made teams sit up and take notice since his debut for Valencia last month. He has featured regularly on the bench ever since and now Spain's big two - Barcelona and Real Madrid are interested in him, as per Don Balon.

The Spanish news outlet claims Blaugrana president Josep Bartomeu is running a recruitment drive for younger players as he is worried about the drastic reduction in La Masia players graduating to the first-team.

Torres has been likened to Real Madrid's Marco Asensio due to the similar style of play and no wonder, Madrid president, Florentino Perez, wants to sign the player.

The Madrid supremo eyes Torres as a long-term replacement for Gareth Bale, whose sale looks inevitable as per the report. While the two giants are looking to go head-to-head for the youngster, Valencia can only expect to get the best deal out of the situation.

Hence, the La Liga outfit are set to offer him a new contract at the end of January with an increase in release clause from €8 million to €25 million, as per reports from AS.com. However, the price will not dissuade either Barcelona or Real Madrid and this could turn out to be a bigger battle than expected in the upcoming transfer windows.

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Barcelona reject Inter Milan's Rafinha bid

Barcelona reject Inter Milan's bid for Rafinha

The Brazilian is yet to make a first-team appearance this season due to injury and the arrival of Philippe Coutinho further dents his chances of regular first-team football. Hence, the versatile midfielder is looking for new pastures, as he needs to play frequently at the age of 24.

Italian side, Inter Milan, reportedly bid £22.2 million to sign Rafinha but the Blaugrana rejected the bid, as per Spanish news outlet, Mundo Deportivo. The player is unlikely to have a future under Ernesto Valverde and the Catalan side are looking for a transfer fee of around £35 million, as per the outlet.

Now, it remains to be seen whether Inter will be interested in shelling out that sum to secure the player's signature. The report states that they see Rafinha as a valuable asset and do not want to sell the midfielder on the cheap.

If the deal does not go through, then Rafinha will have to contribute in the second-half of the season as he still has two-and-a-half years on his Barcelona contract.