Barcelona have reportedly lodged an offer to sign Fulham prodigy Fabio Carvalho, also a target for bitter rivals Real Madrid.
According to reputed Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur, the race to sign Fabio Carvalho just became more interesting. Barcelona have tabled an offer to sign the 19-year-old Fulham whizkid, who is also being courted by bitter rivals Real Madrid.
Fabio Carvalho started his youth career at Benfica before moving to England to continue his footballing education. The teenage prodigy spent a year at Balham before ending up at Fulham, progressing through the south Londoners’ academy ranks for six years before earning his first-team debut last season.
The 19-year-old has stepped up a notch early in the 2021/22 season, raking in three goals and an assist in seven appearances in the EFL Championship. However, Fulham are in a precarious position over his long-term future, with Carvalho seemingly running down his contract with the club. Such a situation has piqued the interest of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Real Madrid have been heavily linked with Carvalho in the last couple of months, with their interest being understandable. While players like Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland are priority targets for Los Blancos, they might have to enter the market for multiple attacking players amid the continued struggles of Eden Hazard, Marco Asensio and Gareth Bale.
With Luka Jovic and Mariano Diaz deemed surplus to requirements, it is not surprising that Real Madrid have been linked with a gamut of forward, with recent reports suggesting that they are lining up a move for Carvalho. However, the Merengues are not alone in pursuit of the 19-year-old, who is also being tailed by Barcelona.
In fact, Barcelona have already made their offer to sign the Fulham whizkid. Such a development directly contrasts recent reports, which claimed that Barcelona and Real Madrid had turned down the chance to sign Carvalho. However, if the Blaugrana are indeed keen on signing the youngster, it would be a sensible decision to table an offer.
Carvalho, who can play out wide and through the centre, would theoretically be a handy addition to Xavi’s squad amid increasing uncertainty surrounding Ousmane Dembele’s future. With Martin Braithwaite touted for a summer exit, Barcelona would need to bring in at least one attacking reinforcement, making Carvalho a viable target.
What now remains to be seen is if Real Madrid respond to Barcelona’s offer by submitting a bid of their own to steal a march on their bitter rivals. For now, all that remains certain is that Carvalho is running down his contract with Fulham and could be a free agent next summer.
