La Liga champions Barcelona are the best-placed club to sign 29-year-old Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo, a target for Arsenal.
According to a report by Spanish outlet SPORT, Joao Cancelo will leave Manchester City in the summer transfer window. Arsenal and Barcelona are keen on signing the Portuguese full-back, whose market value is €60 million. And the Catalan giants are the best-placed club to land the player.
Joao Cancelo will embark on a new adventure in the summer transfer window. The 29-year-old has no future at Manchester City, especially in the wake of Pep Guardiola’s recent comments. In addition, Bayern Munich will not exercise the option to sign him permanently in the summer transfer window.
The Portuguese international has turned out 150 times for Manchester City, chipping in with nine goals and 22 assists. But the player has seemingly played his final game for the Premier League champions. Meanwhile, Cancelo’s situation has captured the attention of several high-profile clubs, including Arsenal and Barcelona.
The 29-year-old has been on Barcelona’s radar for a long time. And the report has claimed that he is prioritising joining Barcelona in the summer transfer window. The interest in the player makes sense, considering he can solve issues on both flanks for the Blaugrana. But in particular, he will be a long-term right-back solution.
🗣️ Pep Guardiola on Joao Cancelo: “The reality was that we decided that he had to leave and we didn't care where he was going, even if he wanted to go to United, which is our rival.” pic.twitter.com/azTy8PlRW4
— Football Talk (@FootballTalkHQ) June 20, 2023
Recent reports suggested Barcelona had opened talks to secure Cancelo’s services. And according to SPORT, the newly-crowned La Liga champions are the best-placed club to sign the Portuguese international. But Barcelona will face stiff competition from Arsenal for the Manchester City outcast.
Reports earlier this month suggested that Arsenal had gone ahead of the Blaugrana in the chase for Cancelo’s signature. But SPORT has contradicted such claims. That said, Arsenal will be in a better position to afford to meet his market value of €60 million, considering the Catalan club’s financial woes.
Barcelona will unlikely pay anywhere close to €60 million to secure Cancelo’s services this summer. But with the Blaugrana being the best-placed club to land the 29-year-old, a deal is on the cards. It will be interesting to see if they beat Arsenal to his signature by reaching a compromise with Manchester City.
