Italian giants want Barcelona defender on a free transfer in January | OneFootball

As the January transfer window approaches, Barcelona will once again look to offload out-of-favour defender Samuel Umtiti.

The Frenchman, who is on a hefty contract at Camp Nou, has been out of favour for well over a year now but continues to remain a Barca player. Former manager Ronald Koeman wanted to sell him this past summer, but the defender was able to convince Joan Laporta to give him another chance in a meeting when the 28-year-old is believed to have got teary-eyed.

It has been almost six months since that went down though, but nothing has changed. Koeman did not count on him in the early parts of the season. Interim manager Sergi Barjuan did not use him in the short time he was at the helm. And now, Xavi Hernandez has also shown no inclination towards reintegrating him into the side.

Indeed, Umtiti has not played a single game this season, and Barcelona have now once again made the decision to offload him. There has been interest from AC Milan reports El Nacional, although they would be willing to sign the injury-prone defender only on a free transfer.

The Rossoneri are in the market for a new centre-back after Simon Kjaer suffered a season-ending injury. And despite Umtiti’s sketchy injury record, the Italians believe that he has the qualities to thrive in Serie A, which can be slightly less demanding than La Liga.

However, Milan are in no position financially to pay a transfer fee to Barcelona and match his wages. As a result, they are believed to have informed the Catalan giants that the only way they would consider signing the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner would be if he was made available for free.

Umtiti, for his part, wants to stay put at Camp Nou and see out his contract, which runs till the summer of 2023, knowing that he will not get a similarly lucrative deal anywhere else should he opt to move. As per the report, the Frenchman plans to run down his deal and move in 2023, when he can demand a signing-on fee from clubs.