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What's the story?
According to reports emerging in Spain, Barcelona are keen on signing Bayern Munich's promising young centre-back and US youth International Chris Richards.
The 19-year-old had impressed in the 2019 FIFA Under-20 World Cup, where the youngster was one of the driving forces behind the Yanks reaching the quarterfinals, narrowly going down 2-1 to the Ecuador Under-20 side.
In case you didn't know...
Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde is looking to strengthen his squad over the summer after a disappointing end to the 2018-19 season. Despite winning the La Liga, the Blaugrana were sensationally eliminated in the semi-finals of the Champions League by eventual winners Liverpool and also went on to lose the Copa del Rey final to Valencia.
Having already brought in midfielder Frenkie de Jong from Ajax and with rumored links to Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann and Paris Saint-Germain talisman Neymar, Valverde is also looking to recruit talented youngsters for Barcelona B to build a team with an eye on the future.
The heart of the matter
According to AS Sport, Barcelona, along with Valencia and some teams from Germany and Turkey are interested in signing US Soccer star Chris Richards, who was one of the best defenders on show at the 2019 FIFA Under-20 World Cup.
Signed on a one-year loan deal from FC Dallas in July 2018, the 6-foot 2-inch defender might get a chance to break into the Bayern first team in the coming season, with veteran centre-back Mats Hummels returning to Borussia Dortmund.
What's next?
Barcelona start their pre-season with a friendly against Premier League side Chelsea. The match is scheduled for 23rd July and is set to take place at the Saitama stadium in Saitama, Japan.
