Barcelona are reportedly weighing up the possibility of making a move for Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek in January.
According to a report from Catalan publication SPORT, Barcelona are intent on bolstering their options in the middle of the park in the upcoming transfer window. To that end, they have prepared a four-man shortlist that includes the name of Manchester United midfield star Donny van de Beek.
The 24-year-old Dutchman arrived at Manchester United in the summer transfer window last year from AFC Ajax amid great expectations. However, the move has failed to work out as planned, as van de Beek has been relegated to bench duties by the Red Devils’ manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Indeed, the Norwegian tactician has failed to integrate the former Ajax prodigy into his team successfully and has starved him of minutes over the past year. So much so that van de Beek came close to leaving the club during the summer, only for Solskjaer himself to block a move to Premier League rivals Everton with the promise of handing the midfielder more minutes.
However, that has been far from the case as van de Beek has hardly featured in the new season, especially in the Premier League. All this has resulted into more speculations regarding his future at Old Trafford, with Everton among clubs who are keen on offering him an escape route mid-season.
Now, Barcelona too have emerged as a potential destination for the Netherlands international as per the aforementioned report. The Catalans missed out on the signing of van de Beek’s compatriot Georginio Wijnaldum during the summer transfer window and are keen on adding more options to the midfield department given the risk of burning out the likes of Frenkie de Jong and Pedri.
To that end, they have prepared a four-man list of targets that includes the likes of AC Milan’s Franck Kessie, Marcelo Brozovic of Inter Milan as well as Tottenham Hotspur’s Tanguy Ndombele. Van de Beek, while not being a player of the same profile as the other three players on the list, is also a target for the Catalan giants.
Considering his situation at Manchester United, an exit would benefit the 24-year-old, especially with the World Cup coming up next year. With a top club like Barcelona now willing to offer him a way out of Old Trafford, it will be interesting to see whether van de Beek would be willing to consider the switch come January transfer window.
