Barcelona have reportedly made a contract offer for Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum, who will be a free agent in the summer.
According to an exclusive report from Football Insider, La Liga giants Barcelona have stepped up their efforts to land Liverpool star Georginio Wijnaldum in the summer transfer window by offering him a long-term contract.
The 30-year-old Wijnaldum has been with Liverpool since 2016 and has grown into a pivotal player for Jurgen Klopp. An ever-present in the middle of the park, the Dutchman has racked up over 220 appearances for the reigning Premier League champions so far.
However, his future at Anfield has been a hot topic of speculation since last summer as he entered the final year of his contract with the club. Liverpool had to stave off interest from Barcelona last year to keep hold of Wijnaldum, but they may be set to lose him come the end of the season.
Talks over a new deal for the former Newcastle United man have not gone according to plans, with the two parties said to be well apart in negotiations. This has led to a stalemate, with Liverpool now resigned to losing Wijnaldum when his contract runs out in the summer.
While it was recently claimed that Wijnaldum was close to agreeing a switch to Inter Milan, the aforementioned report insists that the midfielder dreams of a transfer to Barcelona. And the Blaugrana too have made him a top transfer target for the summer given his history with manager Ronald Koeman and his availability on a free transfer.
Barcelona have a stacked midfield unit with the likes of Sergio Busquets, Miralem Pjanic, Frenkie de Jong along with rising stars such as Riqui Puig, Pedri and Ilaix Moriba. Then there is also Carles Alena, who is currently out on loan at Getafe, although given how sparingly he was used by Koeman in the first half of the season, he may not have a long-term future at the club.
Nevertheless, with Busquets not getting any younger and Pjanic failing to make the desired impact since his summer switch, adding another experienced head like Wijnaldum would make a lot of sense for the Catalans.
To that end, they are now reported to have tabled a long-term contract offer for the 30-year-old, who has been free to sign a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs since January. It now remains to be seen if Wijnaldum decides to accept the deal from Barcelona or whether Liverpool manage to convince him to extend his stay with a last-minute offer.
