Barcelona keeping tabs on €60 million Chelsea, PSG midfield target – Romero | OneFootball

As the search for a new pivot midfielder intensifies, FC Barcelona are keeping tabs on Sporting CP mainstay Manuel Ugarte, reports Gerard Romero.

Barcelona have a gargantuan task at their hands as they scour the market for a proper replacement for captain Sergio Busquets, who played his last game for the club against RCD Mallorca on Sunday night.

Several names are on the radars of the La Liga champions, with Martin Zubimendi of Real Sociedad understood to be at the top of the wishlist for manager Xavi Hernandez.

However, La Real president Jokin Apperibay recently claimed that the midfielder will not be leaving this summer. With the signing of the Spaniard difficult, Barcelona have been forced to look at other options in the market, one of them being Ugarte, as per Romero.

The 22-year-old defensive midfielder has been with Sporting CP since 2021 after arriving from Famalicao. In two seasons at the club, he has made 85 appearances for the Portuguese giants standing out with his impressive displays in the No. 6 role, especially this campaign.

As such, several top clubs across Europe have taken note of the Uruguayan midfielder. PSG and Chelsea are understood to be very interested in Ugarte and are willing to match his release clause which stands at €60 million.

Some reports have suggested that Liverpool are also interested in Ugarte and now Barcelona are also keeping tabs on the 22-year-old midfielder.

As things stand, he does not appear to be too high on the shopping list at Can Barça. Furthermore, the €60 million release clause, like with Zubimendi, would make his signing difficult.

And competing with lucrative contracts that the likes of PSG and Chelsea would offer would be another major challenge.