Barcelona have unlikely plan to sign top striker wanted by Manchester United and Manchester City | OneFootball

Barcelona are set to scout Sporting CP forward Viktor Gyokeres this week as the Portuguese champions take on Arsenal. The Catalan side have not yet ruled themselves out of signing the Swedish forward who has impressed everyone over the past year.

In Portugal, the news is that Manchester City, Manchester United, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich have all requested seats for their scouts for the clash, with all eyes set to be drawn to Gyokeres. The 26-year-old has announced that he will not leave in the winter transfer window, but it seems all but certain he will leave next summer.

That is where Barcelona have an issue. The Blaugrana will have Robert Lewandowski’s contract extended for another year next season, at which point he will reach 37 years old. The Polish striker reportedly feels he has enough in the tank to go until he is 39. Sport say that Barcelona still believe they can sign Gyokeres for around €70m, despite his €100m release clause, and they see him as Lewandowski’s successor.

Their plan is to sign Gyokeres in the summer of 2025, and then leave him on loan at Sporting CP next season. This would obviously delay the cost of the deal too, as they did with Vitor Roque, and ease the timeline of handover with Lewandowski.

This seems rather unlikely to happen, as Gyokeres might not want a third year in Portugal, as he appears to be reaching his peak. The fact that there are a number of giants interested in him, and that he is 26 years of age, mean Barcelona are not in a position to make him wait. Equally, there is little harm in floating the idea. It should also be noted that as little as a week ago, the same outlet reported that Barcelona had more or less given up on the idea of signing Gyokeres.