Barcelona ready to hand Spanish star Lionel Messi's iconic jersey no. if he joins the club next summer – Reports
Barcelona are reportedly set to reignite their pursuit of Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams and hand him the No. 10 shirt if he joins them next summer. Williams was one of the Catalans' primary targets in the 2024 summer transfer window, but the deal couldn’t materialize. This was due to Barca's financial constraints and the player choosing to stay put at Estadio de San Mamés.
Despite their initial disappointment, the Catalan club are reportedly still optimistic about obtaining the signature of the 22-year-old. They are planning to make another attempt at bringing him to the club next summer.
According to Sport, Barcelona are set to revive their interest in Nico Williams in 2025 and have set aside the No. 10 shirt for him if he agrees to join them. Wearing a shirt number that was once donned by Lionel Messi at Barca will be something that will arguably tickle Williams’ fancy. If this report holds true, Barca will have to strip academy graduate Ansu Fati of the iconic number as he wears it at the moment.
From the look of things, it is unlikely that Blaugrana’s honorary offer will tempt the Spaniard winger. Athletic Bilbao recently handed him the number 10 shirt after he decided to stay at the club earlier this summer.
Adding salt to injury, Williams' contract with Bilbao will expire in 2027. This means the Catalan club must be ready to splurge a significant amount of cash if they want to sign the player. As per Transfermarkt, his market value is €70 million.
Barcelona have chosen Wojciech Szczesny as replacement for the injured Ter Stegen – Reports
According to reports, Barcelona have opted for former Juventus and Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny as their target to replace injured goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Ter Stegen has been ruled out for months as he picked up a horrific knee injury in Barca’s 5-1 win against Villarreal on September 22. He was stretched off after he landed awkwardly in the first half at El Madrigal.
While the German shotstopper has gone through a successful surgery, he may not feature again for the club this season. Consequently, Barcelona are now looking for replacements and have identified retired shotstopper Wojciech Szczesny as an apt replacement, as per Sport. They are now working on trying to convince him to come out of retirement.
The Polish shot shopper announced his retirement from professional football last month. However, the player is reportedly ready to come out of retirement, according to Mundo Deportivo. Szczesny is likely to face competition from fellow goalkeeper Keylor Navas for the vacant position, as salary is reportedly not a concern for him.