Barcelona and Liverpool are reportedly ready to battle it out in the summer to land Bayern Munich superstar Douglas Costa, who has been put on the market.
Spanish publication Sport have reported that Barcelona are interested in Bayern Munich superstar Douglas Costa, who has been put on the market by the Bavarians and is available for €30 million. And as per Daily Mirror, the player is also being tailed by Liverpool among other clubs.
Douglas Costa became a phenomenon with his debut season at Bayern Munich after a big money move from Shakhtar Donetsk in the summer of 2015. However, with the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti, the player has found chances hard to come by and has been very disappointing in his second season at the Allianz Arena.
7 goals and 9 assists from 34 games in all competitions are numbers that do not justify the talent the 26-year-old possesses. The explosive winger became a squad player under Ancelotti and is reportedly wanting a change of clubs after the player has seemingly failed to adhere to the manager’s philosophy.
The club has put him on the market for the same amount they invested in the player – €30 million. And there are several takers for the 26-year-old. Liverpool have been pursuing Mohamed Salah and have even agreed personal terms with the player. However, Roma’s continuously escalating demands may put the Reds off.
Liverpool have been named among several clubs in the chase for Douglas Costa. [Bild] pic.twitter.com/Mv95el64Z0
— Rousing The Kop (@RousingTheKop) June 6, 2017
Douglas Costa, in any case, can be a better alternative to Salah, possessing the same electric pace with the addition of raw skill and dribbling prowess – something that is ingrained in almost every Samba Boys’ attacker. The addition of the Brazilian could serve as a message of intent from Liverpool and the Reds could convince Coutinho to stay at Anfield.
Barcelona, on the other hand, are looking to sign the player as a deputy to his international teammate Neymar. The Brazilian has been on-off this season, producing magical displays such as the performance against PSG in the comeback win, with equally frustrating performances.
However, the club have no other quality alternative to Neymar in his position, that possesses similar skill and produces a similar result. The player is available for €30 million but Barcelona are looking to do a deal around the €25 million mark – tough considering Bayern Munich are looking to recoup their investment in Costa.
Ernesto Valverde is likely to make the final call, depending on whether Douglas Costa fits the profile of a player he wants to add to his squad. With Bayern keen to do a deal and Douglas Costa looking for pastures anew, we may see this transfer happening. Costa’s destination, though, is still up in the air.
