Barcelona are hoping to sign 29-year-old Manchester City defender Joao Cancelo in the ongoing transfer window.
According to a report from Spanish journalist Adrian Sanchez, Barcelona have now secured a pre-agreement with Manchester City for Joao Cancelo. The 29-year-old full-back wants to move to Spotify Camp Nou, and it remains to be seen whether they can get the deal done.
Cancelo has fallen down the pecking order at Manchester City, and he needs to leave the club permanently in order to play regular first-team football. He was on loan at Bayern Munich last season and will look to sort out his permanent future this summer.
The opportunity to join one of the biggest clubs in the world will be quite tempting for him, and he will look to make his mark in La Liga. He has reportedly already agreed personal terms with the Catalan giants.
Barcelona needed to add more quality and depth in the defensive areas, and Cancelo should prove to be a quality addition for the right price. The Portuguese international has proven himself as a capable full-back in the Premier League and in Serie A. He is certainly good enough to make his mark in La Liga now.
💣ÚLTIMA HORA: PRE ACUERDO PARA LA CESIÓN DE JOAO CANCELO
• Barça, Mendes y City (salvo giro radical) se emplazan a la semana que viene para sellar un acuerdo de cesión, con algunos flecos aún por resolver. #FCBarcelona #FCBlive #mercato https://t.co/ZyDzgiuQLK pic.twitter.com/AHl541lSKl
— ᴀᴅʀɪᴀ́ɴ sᴀ́ɴᴄʜᴇᴢ (@_AdrianSnchz) August 12, 2023
Barcelona are going through financial difficulties, and they will be hoping to sign him for a reasonable price. The Blaugrana managed to win the league title last season, but they were quite disappointing in the European competitions. They will look to do well in the Champions League next year and must strengthen their defence and attack this summer.
Cancelo could be a key player for them and his style of football should help him fit into the Barcelona philosophy as well. Xavi Hernandez prefers free-flowing attacking football, and Cancelo will certainly add a new dimension to their attack going forward.
The 29-year-old defender is versatile enough to operate as a right-back as well as a left-back. His versatility will be an added bonus for Barcelona. Meanwhile, Manchester City clearly do not view him as a key player. So it makes sense for them to cash in on him and spend the money on new signings.
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It will be interesting to see if the two clubs can work out the transfer before the summer transfer window closes. Barcelona recently made their move to sign the multi-time Premier League winner. And after securing a pre-agreement with all the parties, a summer deal should be on the cards.