Barcelona considering €30 million-rated defender as replacement for departing Frenchman | OneFootball

According to journalist Daniele Longo, Barcelona are beginning preparations in case French defender Samuel Umtiti decides to leave the club. The 27-year-old, who is on rather high wages, may exit the club before the start of the season.

In case he does so, Longo has outlined that the Catalan club are looking into Borussia Mönchengladbach defender Matthias Ginter as an option to bring into the Camp Nou.

The 27-year-old defender, while not left-footed like Umtiti, is a quality centre-back with a transfer value of around €30m. His current contract at Borussia expires on June 30th, 2022, meaning there is only a year left for the German at his current club, unless he renews. Hopefully, this can work in Barça’s favour if they intend to sign him on a slightly reduced transfer fee.

Ginter, who stands tall at 1.91m, is an adept centre-back suited for Barça. Displaying many proactive qualities, he ranks in the 95th percentile among centre-backs in Europe for progressive passes in the last year. With his tall defensive frame, he can add some much-needed aerial reinforcement in Barça’s backline.

Furthermore, the Catalans’ current roster of central defenders needs change. With options like Gerard Pique and Samuel Umtiti having lost their top-level, Barça must look to the market for reinforcements.

In particular, Umtiti is on very high wages at Camp Nou. Joan Laporta and co are surely looking to move on the Frenchman, who can rarely even stay fit for an entire season.

Clement Lenglet, Oscar Mingueza, and Ronald Araujo have all overtaken Umtiti in the pecking order; therefore, the French defender cannot just stay on the bench on the immeasurably high wages he is on. Accordingly, Laporta and his team are looking at alternative defensive options in case of Umtiti’s departure.

Aside from Ginter, other defenders who are on the table are Lisandro Martinez, Pau Torres, Aymeric Laporte, or Alessandro Romagnoli.