La Liga club cool their interest in 26-year-old fringe Barcelona star – report | OneFootball

Time is running out fast, and Barcelona need to resolve Inaki Pena’s situation in order to register some of their players, such as Gerard Martin, Roony Bardghji, and Wojciech Szczesny.

The 26-year-old goalkeeper is destined to leave the club in the coming days and is negotiating with various clubs over a loan with a purchase option.

Celta Vigo out of the race

However, according to SPORT, one of Inaki Pena’s suitors, Celta Vigo, have decided to withdraw their interest in the Barcelona fringe player.

The Galician outfit had considered reinforcing the goalkeeping position, and Pena’s profile seemed to fit. As such, they had made enquiries about his availability, but have now ruled out any move for the Blaugrana player.

As per the report, Celta have no room in their wage bill and would first need to offload one of their two reserve goalkeepers – either Marc Vidal or Ivan Cuellar – before the window closes, something that is far from certain.

Pena’s other options

Como appear to be the most viable destination for Pena, but the Italian club are growing impatient and are already exploring alternatives. Cesc Fabregas wants the goalkeeping position resolved this week in order to finalise the squad ahead of the Serie A campaign.

What next for Pena? (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

The move would make financial sense for all parties, but it would not guarantee Pena a starting role, with French goalkeeper Jean Butez expected to be the first choice.

Girona are another club to have shown interest and could make a push late in the market. Their current number one is Paulo Gazzaniga, but the Catalans are considering bringing in strong competition for the position.

Barcelona, for their part, already have an agreement in place to extend Pena’s contract by one year, deferring part of this season’s wages to make the goalkeeper’s salary more affordable for potential suitors.

The aim is for interested clubs to cover 100 per cent of his wages, allowing Barça to secure significant savings against their salary cap.

Barcelona hope to resolve Pena’s departure this week to allow them to register Wojciech Szczesny in time for the Levante match. However, it is still unclear whether this target will be achieved