Barcelona willing to offer Ronald Araujo as part of swap deal to sign 25-year-old star: Reports
FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta is reportedly insistent on signing AC Milan superstar Rafael Leao. The Catalan club is open to letting go off defender Ronald Araujo as part of a swap deal to bring the acquisition cost for the Portuguese attacker down.
According to Catalan based newspaper, El Nacional, Laporta has made Leao his biggest target of the transfer window after their rivals Real Madrid made a statement signing in Kylian Mbappe this summer. Initial contact over the signing of the 25-year-old attacker have already been made between Barcelona and AC Milan.
Leao reportedly has a release clause of €175 million and the Italian giants don't have a pressing need to sell their star asset. Laporta, in a bid to convince the Rossoneri, is also reported to be open to offer wingers Ansu Fati and Ferran Torres alongside Araujo to make the deal happen.
With just a few days left for the transfer window to close, it would not be an easy deal to crack. However, Barcelona are putting all their weight behind the deal to help them return to winning ways domestically as well as in Europe's elite competition.
"It's a dream to come back" - New Barcelona signing Dani Olmo
Rafael Leao, if he joins, will form part of Hansi Flick's new-look attack that saw Euro winner Dani Olmo join the Blaugrana. The 26-year-old spent a large part of his formative years at La Masia before moving to Dinamo Zagreb and RB Leipzig, where he established himself as one of Europe's most feared attackers.
Olmo spoke about how his mind was made up once his boyhood club came calling.
"It's a dream to come back to Barça. I had other options, but the way the club approached my transfer, their initiative, I didn't need to think twice," revealed Olmo via Barcelona's official website.
"I had some great years at La Masia, maybe the best of my life. I think of Barça as my home, it was here where I grew up and became a footballer," he added.
The Spaniard also spoke about how his journey has helped him hone his skills in a variety of positions.
"I'm an attacking central midfielder, but I can adapt to all kinds of positions. I play where I am most wanted. I started as a centre forward with 9 on my back, and as the years went by, I also played on the wing and it was in Croatia that they moved me to midfield. All these variations help you to improve as a player," Olmo said.
Barcelona began their LaLiga season with a come-from-behind 2-1 win away against Valencia with striker Robert Lewandowski finding the target in each half.