Barcelona have reportedly started negotiations with Juventus to offload Memphis Depay, who is surplus to requirements at Camp Nou.
According to ESPN, Barcelona and Juventus have held preliminary negotiations over a possible transfer for Dutch forward Memphis Depay, who has been told he can leave the Catalan club this summer.
Depay joined Barcelona only last summer, arriving on a Bosman deal after his contract at Olympique Lyon expired. The Netherlands international turned down more lucrative offers to move to Camp Nou and enjoyed a fairly impressive debut campaign, finishing with a tally of 13 goals across all competitions.
However, Depay’s game-time took a hit when Ferran Torres and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang joined in January. And it will only get much worse for the 28-year-old as Barcelona have recruited Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha this summer while also re-signing Ousmane Dembele on a two-year deal. And the return to full fitness of Ansu Fati is also bound to eat into Depay’s game-time.
All these factors have led to Barcelona deciding that the Netherlands international is surplus to requirements. And they have made the forward available for a transfer this summer. Depay is attracting interest from the Premier League, with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United keen, while Italian clubs are also casting admiring glances towards him.
Juventus, in particular, have shown a serious interest in signing Depay. The Bianconeri are on the lookout for attacking reinforcements after losing Alvaro Morata and Paulo Dybala. It has led them to look at several options, such as Timo Werner of Chelsea, Manchester United’s Anthony Martial as well as Depay.
And, as per the aforementioned report, the Bianconeri have already held talks with Barcelona over a possible transfer, albeit the negotiations are at a preliminary stage at the moment. The Blaugrana have set an asking price of €20 million for Depay, and it will be interesting to see whether Juventus are willing to match that price or try to negotiate a lower fee.
What seems certain is that Depay’s time at Barcelona has run out, and the former Manchester United forward is set to move on from Camp Nou. The Dutchman could be keen on a switch to Juventus, with reports stating that he has offered himself to the Italian heavyweights.
