Barcelona face uphill battle against Chelsea, Man City in pursuit of 16-year-old Argentine wonderkid | OneFootball

Barcelona’s economic hardship will force the club to make some tough decisions this coming summer, with multiple first-team stars in contention to leave Camp Nou at the end of the season.

At the same time, Barça must also act smart in the transfer market, knowing they are not in a position to offer big money for any star player.

To that end, Barça have doubled up their scouting missions across the world, hoping to land young, talented gems, who are yet to establish themselves in European football.

One of them could be Franco Mastantuono, the River Plate teenager making waves in Argentine football.

An attacking midfielder by trade, Mastantuono is regarded as the next big thing to come out of Argentine football and has been courted by several top clubs, including Barcelona.

Barcelona losing grip on Mastantuono pursuit

However, a recent report from Diario SPORT has painted a rather grim picture of Barcelona’s bid to sign Mastantuono.

The report indicates that there have been rapid movements from Mastantuono’s camp. It appears the player is determined to finalise a move to Europe as soon as possible.

One for the future? (Photo by Christian Alvarenga/Getty Images)

Despite being 16, Mastantuono holds an EU passport, meaning he can easily move to Europe without waiting until he turns 18.

That has put multiple European giants on red alert, with clubs such as Manchester United, Real Madrid and Chelsea keen on his services.

The report points out that Mastantuono’s future might be determined even before the start of the summer transfer window.

This does not bode well for Barça, who cannot make any notable economic effort until the financial year ends on June 30.

Do Barça have any chance?

As things stand, the only way Barcelona can still compete with top European clubs in the race to sign Mastantuono is if the player himself decides to wait for a move to Camp Nou.

Such a scenario would restrict River Plate from negotiating with other clubs, thus giving Barcelona enough time to make an offer for the Argentine whizkid.

However, given the lucrative offers coming in from other European clubs, it will be a surprise to see Mastantuono settling for a move to Camp Nou this summer.