Barcelona considering Fulham and Benfica midfielders as Busquets’ replacement | OneFootball

With Lionel Messi’s transfer officially out of the question, Barcelona’s biggest priority for the summer transfer window becomes finding a replacement for Sergio Busquets, who has left the Camp Nou after 15 years with the senior team.

Several names have emerged as targets for the role, led by Xavi’s priority Martin Zubimendi. However, any move for the Real Sociedad midfielder is farfetched at the moment, with his price tag set at a non-negotiable €60 million.

Barcelona have moved their gaze elsewhere, in the meanwhile, with SPORT reporting two new players that have come up on their radar. These are, namely, Fulham’s Joao Palhinha and Benfica’s Florentino Luis.

Both players have the backing of Barcelona’s new director, Deco, himself, and the Portuguese has already contacted the two clubs to ask about their availability during the summer transfer window.

Deco is convinced that Palhinha and Luis meet Barcelona’s requirements better than Sofyan Amrabat, and has made extensive report on all three players.

Palhinha was on Barcelona’s radar last summer, as well, but eventually the player ended up going to Fulham, who signed him for €20 million.

The London outfit will demand around €50 million for his services this time around, but would be willing to talk about any potential swap deals.

Luis, on the other hand, has a release clause of €120 million, but the Portuguese giants could offload him for around €40 million. They, too, could be interested in some of Barça’s out-of-favour players.

There are multiple clubs chasing Luis’s signature, but the player would be more than happy to join Barcelona in the summer.

Either way, though, Barcelona will have to start their exit operations before they can start making any moves to reinforce the squad.