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Barcelona are interested in signing one of Manchester United's best players and are willing to part with one of their starters in order to secure his services.
Barcelona take on Real Madrid in a high-stakes El Clasico this Saturday. Barcelona could draw level on points with Atletico Madrid with a win against their arch-rivals. Meanwhile, Barcelona president Joan Laporta and co. are busy preparing ahead of what is expected to be a busy summer transfer window.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 9 April 2021.
Zinedine Zidane backs Lionel Messi to stay at Barcelona
Real Madrid will take on Barcelona this Saturday in an El Clasico that could have a huge impact on the La Liga title race this season. Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos and Barcelona captain Lionel Messi are both tipped to leave their respective clubs in the summer and as such, this Clasico could mark the end of an era.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has however backed Lionel Messi to stay put at Barcelona. Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Zidane said (via Marca):
“I don’t want it to be Messi’s last Clásico, I want him to stay at Barcelona. He’s fine there. It’s good that he stays for La Liga.
“We know the player that Messi is. He may not be scoring goals, but we know the player that he is. We are going to play against Barcelona. It is true that we know the player that he is, but they are all very good – they have many great players.”
He wishes the same for Sergio Ramos, who is out of contract in the summer.
“Hopefully it is not his last Clasico and he stays here.”
Barcelona dressing room would prefer Neymar return over signing Memphis Depay
Recent reports have suggested that Neymar has put his contract extension talks at Paris Saint-Germain on hold as he wishes to return to Barcelona. Neymar is out of contract next summer and if he decides not to extend it, this summer will be PSG's final chance to cash in on the Brazilian.
In addition to Neymar, Barcelona have been heavily linked with Georginio Wijnaldum and Memphis Depay. According to Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness), even though the Barcelona dressing room is divided on a lot of issues, they are united in wanting the club to sign Neymar instead of Depay.
The report adds that Paris Saint-Germain are interested in Ousmane Dembele and as such, Barcelona could possibly pull off a swap deal for Neymar.
Barcelona could offer 'pick of four players' for Paul Pogba
Barcelona have re-ignited their interest in Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba and as per Express Sport, the Red Devils could be persuaded into making a swap deal for their star man if they are offered of f
As per the report, Barcelona could offer one of Ansu Fati, Ousmane Dembele, Antoine Griezmann and Clement Lenglet to the Old Trafford outfit.
However, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made it clear just last week that he wants the Frenchman to stay at Old Trafford. He said:
"While he's been at the club Paul has always wanted what is best for Man United. He's been such an important part of the squad on and off the pitch. Paul is a player we want to see at Man United and play well. Just to have him back fit for the last two months, he’s going to be important to us.
"We know he can be the difference between many, many points or going through in Europe like we did against AC Milan. The focus is now on finishing the season strongly and Paul knows what my thoughts are."
