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Barcelona have been dealt yet another major blow in their pursuit of Robert Lewandowski.
Barcelona finished second in the 2021-22 La Liga season, 13 points behind winners Real Madrid. It was a largely forgettable campaign for the Catalans. The board is now focused and actively working behind the scenes to deliver a successful summer transfer window.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 30 June 2022.
Barcelona confirm sale of 10% television rights
Barcelona announced via their club website that they have reached an agreement with investment firm Sixth Street over 10% share of the club's La Liga television rights. The club had decided after a general body meeting to sell off 25% of their television rights and this is the first major step in that direction.
The club statement (via Barca Blaugranes) reads as follows:
“FC Barcelona today announced a major step forward in the improvement of the Club’s financial resources and competitive positioning through a new investment from Sixth Street, a leading global investment firm highly experienced in the business of sport.
“With this transaction, FC Barcelona generates a total capital gain of €267 million for the current season. Sixth Street will initially invest €207.5 million and in return will receive 10% of the Club’s LaLiga TV rights for the next 25 years."
Xavi Hernandez allows five players to miss the start of pre-season
As per Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has given permission to five players to miss the start of their pre-season scheduled to start on July 4.
Riqui Puig, Oscar Mingueza, Samuel Umtiti, Martin Braithwaite and Clement Lenglet have been allowed to stay home so that they can continue to look for new clubs. Barcelona are open to offloading all five players and except for Braithwaite, everyone else's futures are likely to be resolved soon.
Umtiti is being linked with a return to France. Mingueza and Puig have been linked with multiple clubs in Spain and Italy. Meanwhile, Braithwaite does not want to leave Barcelona but has plenty of offers on his table. Lenglet is reportedly close to securing a loan move to Tottenham Hotspur.
Bayern Munich reject Barcelona's fresh bid for Robert Lewandowski
Robert Lewandowski is keen to leave Bayern Munich this summer. He has revealed the same via multiple interviews and Barcelona are interested in securing his services. However, the Bavarians won't let their world-class striker leave for cheap.
According to Bild, Bayern Munich have rejected Barcelona's €40 million (+ €5 million in add-ons) bid for Lewandowski. As per the report, Bayern Munich won't sell the Poland international for anything less than €50 million.
It is unclear at this point whether the Catalans will return with an improved offer for Lewandowski. They might just decide to sign him on a free transfer next summer instead of shelling out so much money in the middle of a financial crisis.
