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Barcelona are looking to be more cautious about their dealings in the transfer market and have shortlisted yet another player to be signed as a free agent.
Barcelona have a good chance to climb to third on the La Liga table if they can win against Granada tonight. Ronald Koeman is hoping that the club will back him in the January transfer window as we take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 9 January 2021.
Victor Font outlines the need to sell players
Barcelona presidential hopeful Victor Font has drawn attention towards the dire financial condition that the club is under in the COVID-19 landscape. He has outlined the need to sell players to raise at least €80 million before July.
As per ESPN Deportes, Font said:
Our shock plan is based on a budget with €100m of losses. We have already had conversations with strategic partners to restructure expenses. Sell players before June 30 for a value of €80m.”
Due to their financial crisis, Barcelona got their players to agree to a wage cut that has reportedly saved the club €122 million. The new presidential election will take place in January 24 and it will have a significant impact on the club's transfer plans.
Ronald Koeman finally admits he needs January signings
Barcelona presidential election will take place on the 24th of January and only then will we know who Josep Maria Bartomeu's successor is. Until then the club cannot make any signings and that is a huge impediment as far as the current Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman is concerned.
This means that Barcelona will just have one week to make any new signings in the January transfer window. Ronald Koeman finally admitted that the club requires new signings in January whilst speaking to the press ahead of their game against Granada. Koeman said:
'The best thing would be to get a president in place as soon as possible because it would give us negotiating time. In the short time, it's important that we get some reinforcements in because we want to improve the squad. We need to be more effective and increase competition for places.
'There's many reasons to make signings, but I also understand the situation the club is in and if we can't make any signings then we'll wait for next season.'
Barcelona planning to sign Melayro Bogarde on a free transfer
Barcelona are plotting to sign TSG Hoffenheim defender Melayro Bogarde on a Bosman transfer in the summer, according to Kicker. Bogarde's current contract will expire at the end of the season and as such, he has garnered attention from a lot of clubs.
AC Milan have also registered an interest in the 18-year-old. However, as things stand, Barcelona are favourites to sign Bogarde since their current assistant coach Alfred Schreuder used to be the head coach of Hoffenheim.
Though he is primarily a centre-back, what sets Bogarde apart is his ability to play in midfield as a no.6 or no. 8.
