La Liga champions Barcelona are reportedly mulling over signing 18-year-old highly-rated Brazilian winger Matheus Goncalves.
According to a report by Spanish outlet Fichajes, Matheus Goncalves is the subject of interest from Barcelona. The reigning La Liga champions are in the market for a wide attacker heading into the summer transfer window. And they have set their sights on the 18-year-old highly-rated Flamengo winger.
Who is Matheus Goncalves
Matheus Goncalves is the latest highly-rated Brazilian prospect to rise in prominence in his homeland. The teenage prodigy has been with Flamengo for half a dozen years and has come leaps and bounds at the club. And after rising through the ranks in the Scarlet-Black’s youth division, he made his first-team debut in 2022.
The 18-year-old winger spent the second half of the 2023 season on loan at RB Bragantino, turning out 13 times for the Brazilian club. Meanwhile, the youngster has made 18 appearances thus far for Flamengo’s first team, finding the back of the net twice. Meanwhile, Goncalves’s progress has not gone unnoticed, capturing the attention of several high-profile clubs.
The teenage wonderkid piqued the interest of many European bigwigs ahead of the 2023 summer transfer window, including Barcelona. But a move did not materialise, with Flamengo preferring to send him on loan to RB Bragantino to gain experience at the first-team level. However, the reigning La Liga champions remain interested in him.
Barcelona Interested
Barcelona’s continued interest in Matheus Goncalves is understandable. The Blaugrana will likely part ways with a few high-value assets in the summer transfer window to balance the books and fund summer signings. Raphinha might be on the players departing from the Catalan club amid emerging speculation surrounding his future.
So, Barcelona might have to invest in a wide attacker in the summer transfer window. Goncalves has thus emerged as a viable target for the reigning La Liga champions. And they can secure his services immediately as he turned 18 last year.
It will be interesting to see if the Catalan giants step up their efforts to sign Matheus Goncalves in the summer transfer window. For now, the highly-rated Brazilian winger has emerged as a viable target to replace the exit-linked Raphinha.
