Barcelona have reportedly been handed a major boost in pursuit of Renato Sanches, with Lille open to selling the 24-year-old midfielder.
Olivier Letang has handed Barcelona a major boost in pursuit of Renato Sanches. As quoted by Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, the Lille president has confessed that the 24-year-old Portuguese midfielder could be on his way out of the Ligue 1 club if a good offer is presented to them.
Renato Sanches has turned his career around remarkably since joining Lille from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2019. The move to Allianz Arena had clearly come too early for the Portuguese international despite showing a lot of promise in his formative years at Benfica.
However, the switch to Ligue 1 has worked wonders as he has been resurrecting a stuttering career quite well while also earning his place back in the Portuguese national side. To date, the 24-year-old has made 61 appearances for Les Dogues, chipping in with five goals and as many assists. His progress has alerted a number of clubs, including Barcelona.
In fact, Barcelona were heavily linked with Sanches in the summer transfer window as well before choosing to sign no midfielder. However, it looks like the interest has not waned, especially with the need to sign a central midfielder cropping up for the Blaugrana.
That is because Sergio Busquets is approaching the end of his glittering career, leaving Frenkie de Jong and Pedri as the only other reliable midfielders in the Barcelona first-team setup apart from up and coming midfielders like Gavi and Nico Gonzalez. With Riqui Puig also getting closer to the exit door at Camp Nou, Barcelona could be well served with signing a midfielder.
The Catalan giants have now been handed a major boost in pursuit of the 24-year-old, with Lille president Olivier Letang suggesting that the Ligue 1 champions would be open to selling him. As quoted by Mundo Deportivo, Letang said, “I’ve already talked about that. I’ve already discussed it with him, if an offer comes from a big club, Renato will be able to leave.
“We’ll see what happens. But for now, he’s with us and he’s happy to be here. We saw that he had been able to show an interesting level of performance during his return from injury at the end of the season, but also at the European Championship with Portugal.”
Barcelona have been linked with several midfielders in recent times, including Denis Zakaria, Paul Pogba and Franck Kessie. In Renato Sanches, Barcelona could have a player who is evidently on the upward trajectory again and might not cost a premium, although someone like Kessie might fit better amid their financial woes.
