Barcelona Transfer News Roundup: Joan Laporta says club cannot sign players in January, Barca eyeing Bayern Munich defender and more - 16 November 2022
Barcelona would ideally bolster their squad in January. But they might not be able to sign new players as per club president Joan Laporta.
Barca signed a number of world-class players and also managed to clear much of the deadwood at the club this past summer transfer window. Despite all that, they have crashed out of the UEFA Champions League. They are now laying the groundwork for future transfer windows.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories involving Barcelona from 16 November 2022.
Manchester City won't stand in the way if Bernardo Silva wants to join Barcelona
Barcelona have been linked with Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva for a long time now. As per Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Barca have now received a major boost in their pursuit of the Portuguese playmaker.
According to the report, Manchester City have decided that they won't stand in the way if Silva wants to join the Catalans. However, their asking price of €80 million could yet put Barca off.
The 28-year-old has burgeoned into one of the best playmakers in Europe under Pep Guardiola. In 22 appearances across all competitions for City so far this term, Silva has scored two goals and provided five assists.
Barca eyeing Benjamin Pavard
Barca are actively scouring the market for right-backs. With Sergi Roberto and Hector Bellerin expected to leave the club next summer, they are in desperate need of bringing a top player in. According to Mundo Deportivo, the Blaugrana view Pavard as a potential signing.
However, one of the major concerns at this point is that the Frenchman sees himself as a centre-back and wants to play at the heart of defense in the future. That is one of the key reasons why Pavard does not want to sign a new contract with Bayern Munich.
In an interview with La Gazzetta (via Mundo Deportivo), Pavard said:
“I’ve been playing in Germany for 7 years. I won everything with Bayern Munich. I play football to win and I’m willing to consider new interesting projects, but as a centre-back."
Benjamin Pavard: "I've been playing in Germany for 7 years. I won everything with Bayern Munich. I play football to win and I'm ready to consider new interesting projects, but as a centre-back" [@Gazzetta_it] https://t.co/7k3glHZcow
Joan Laporta admits Barca cannot sign players in January
Barcelona were expected to go all guns blazing in the January transfer window. However, club president Joan Laporta has said that they cannot sign new players unless they can bend the La Liga rules. The Catalans can only spend 1/4th of what they save because they have been spending more than they earned.
Speaking to EFE (as relayed Mundo Deportivo, Laporta said:
“We had to use some levers, which were economic operations that saved the club from ruin, and now the club is in economic recovery, it is now healthy with an expected income of €1.225b, a profit also budgeted for 274 million, but despite that, according to the rules of the financial ‘fair play’ of the Spanish league, we cannot sign.”
#FCB
Barça president Joan Laporta: "According to La Liga's Financial Fair Play, we can't sign players in January. We are trying our best to persuade La Liga to be more flexible", tells EFE. 🔵🔴 #FCB https://t.co/pzYQ8JpkGh