Barcelona Transfer News Roundup: Barca offer star defender to Atletico Madrid, Ronald Koeman tells three players they will be sold and more - 5 August 2021
Barcelona are in dire straits financially and are desperate to offload quite a few of their players over the next couple of weeks.
Barcelona's financial troubles have been well documented. The Catalans will not be able to register their new signings until they've brought their wage bill under the La Liga salary cap. Club president Joan Laporta and co. are working on renewing Lionel Messi's contract and a number of other deals as well.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 5 August 2021.
Frenkie De Jong suffers calf injury
Barcelona have released an official statement regarding the injuries of two of their players. Midfielder Frenkie De Jong has pulled a right calf muscle. The return date is yet to be fixed. The medical team is assessing the situation and have stated that the “evolution of the recovery will mark his availability.”
17-year-old Pedro Gavi is another player who has been sidelined. He has a fractured right jaw after coming off worse in a rash challenge in Wednesday's friendly against Salzburg. Just like De Jong, the medical team is yet to provide a return date for Gavi.
Ronald Koeman tells three Barcelona players they will be offloaded
The 2021-22 season is fast approaching and Barcelona are yet to offload several players and trim their wage bill. As per AS, Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman has told three Barcelona players that their time at the club has come to an end.
Koeman has reportedly told Martin Braithwaite, Samuel Umtiti and Miralem Pjanic that they will be offloaded this summer. Pjanic is the closest to securing an exit with Juventus the most likely destination.
Samuel Umtiti faces an uncertain future at Barcelona. But the medical team has confirmed that his knee problem has been fixed. This is expected to lure potential suitors.
Martin Braithwaite is the third player the club wants to sell this summer. With Memphis Depay and Sergio Aguero added to the frontline, the club are looking to make some money through the sale of the Danish striker.
Barcelona offer Samuel Umtiti to Atletico Madrid
Spanish publication El Gol Digital claim that Barcelona have offered Samuel Umtiti to title-rivals Atletico Madrid. The Catalans are now accelerating their efforts to get the Frenchman off their books.
Umtiti had a great debut campaign with Barcelona after joining from Olympique Lyon in 2016. However, his constant injury issues have seen him fall down the pecking order. He struggled with a knee injury for the majority of last season and made just 16 appearances across all competitions.
With Mario Hermoso linked with an exit, Atletico Madrid are on the lookout for a new defender. However, the Rojiblancos are not entirely convinced about Umtiti because of his injury record. They will only sign Umtiti if Barcelona are willing to sell him for less than €8 million.