Barcelona target left upset by club's initial proposal to sign him this summer: Reports

Bayer Leverkusen defender Alejandro Grimaldo is reportedly disappointed with Barcelona's first offer. The Spaniard has been at the Bay Arena since the summer of 2023.

Grimaldo, 29, is coming off a solid season for the Bundesliga side, registering four goals and 13 assists in 48 games across competitions. He contributed two goals and eight assists in 32 outings in the league as Leverkusen's Bundesliga title defence was ended by Bayern Munich, finishing second.

Despite being contracted to the club till 2027, Grimaldo has attracted attention from Barca, as per club insider Joan Fontes (via Yahoo! Sport). As per Fontes, Barca proposed a release clause of less than €100 million for their youth player, but the offer 'upset' Grimaldo:

"Barcelona have approached Alejandro Grimaldo about returning to the club. The release clause could be reduced to less than 20 million euros, but the offer to the player was so poor that the full-back was deeply upset by the proposal."

Overall, Grimaldo - a four-time Primeira Liga winner with Benfica - has played 99 times across competitions in two seasons for Leverkusen, registering 16 goals and 33 assists. The Euro 2024 winner has won a Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal title.

Currently, the Barca target is on international duty with La Roja, who play France in the UEFA Nations League semi-final in Stuttgart on Wednesday (June 5).

"Spain are the best team in Europe" - France boss praises Barcelona-target Alejandro Grimaldo's Spain

France boss Didier Deschamps waxed lyrical of Barcelona-target Alejandro Grimaldo's national team Spain ahead of their blockbuster last-four Nations League showdown.

The Frenchman hailed La Roja's quality, especially in attack, where they have Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams. Deschamps said (as per UEFA.com):

"Currently, Spain are certainly the best team in Europe, and in the world, and it's not just because they won the most recent EURO. They have a new coach, and new players with different characteristics.

"They've always had good ball control, but now they also have new abilities, especially attacking-wise, where they are very quick, especially (Lamine) Yamal and (Nico) Williams.

About his own team, Deschamps added:

"This French team has evolved over the last few years, with plenty of players retiring, and young, talented, players coming through.

"Since the EURO, the squad has got even younger, with plenty of quality, but they need game time, they need difficult periods as well, which we have had, in order to build and allow France to maintain its level."

The winner of the France-Spain game will take on 2019 winners Portugal in the Munich final on Sunday (June 8), with a first multiple-time Nations League winner guaranteed to be crowned.

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Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 20 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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