Barcelona have reportedly been handed a major blow in pursuit of Dani Olmo, with RB Leipzig’s high fee demands set to put a spanner in the works.
According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, Barcelona have faced a major setback in their pursuit of Dani Olmo. As things stand, it seems highly unlikely that the Catalan giants will manage to secure the services of the 23-year-old Spanish international in the January transfer window due to RB Leipzig’s transfer fee demands.
Dani Olmo is widely regarded as one of the best young attackers in the Bundesliga, having gone from strength to strength since joining RB Leipzig from Dinamo Zagreb in January 2020. A regular feature in a packed Leipzig roster, the player, has been a key figure for Die Roten Bullen in the last 18 months or so.
To date, Olmo has made 67 appearances for Leipzig while chipping in with 12 goals and 14 assists in the process. A key figure for club and country, the 23-year-old Spanish international has invariably captured the attention of some of the biggest clubs in Europe, with former club Barcelona being one of his prospective suitors.
Olmo spent seven of his formative years at Barcelona’s famed academy La Masia before making the brave decision to move to Dinamo Zagreb, aged 16, looking to secure a fast pathway to first-team football. While the Spaniard has been vindicated since, he is now eager to return to Barcelona, with widespread reports claiming he favours a return to Camp Nou.
Barcelona had also been interested in Olmo in the summer transfer window, only for their move to be left too late to pull off on deadline day. The Blaugrana have since made the 23-year-old their priority target, and for a good reason.
With Ousmane Dembele having one foot outside Camp Nou amid a contract standoff, the Catalan giants desperately need to sign a wide attacker. To that end, Raheem Sterling has been tipped to be a key target for Barcelona, with Xavi also weighing up the possibility of recalling Francisco Trincao from his loan spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
As far as the interest in Olmo is concerned, it looks like Barcelona will need to call off the pursuit for the January transfer window, with RB Leipzig slapping too high a price tag on him. While a figure has not been mentioned, SPORT suggest Barcelona will not be able to afford his transfer fee. So, it looks like any move for the Spanish international will need to be put off till next summer.