Barcelona eye former PSG midfielder as a possible ‘wildcard’ signing – report

Barça are keeping their hopes alive in the final hours of the transfer window as they look to make the most of their current situation to strengthen critical positions.

The defensive midfield position has become a priority following the ACL injury to Marc Bernal, who is out for the rest of the season.

With the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, and Andreas Christensen also unavailable, manager Hansi Flick has little to no options in the position at the moment.

As such, Barça are hoping to bring in a player to reinforce the pivot position and while the chances of signing someone before the window closes remain slim, they are hopeful of carrying out an operation in the weeks after the market shuts.

Adrien Rabiot for free seen as a ‘wildcard’

Indeed, according to Toni Juanmarti of SPORT, former Juventus and PSG midfielder Adrien Rabiot has emerged as a ‘wildcard’ option for Barcelona, owing to his free-agent status.

The 29-year-old is on the market as a free agent after the expiry of his contract with Juventus on June 30 and is yet to sign for any club.

And, should Barcelona manage to return to the 1:1 rule of Financial Fair Play, they could tackle this operation even in two or three weeks, provided the French international has not yet signed for another team by then.

From Barça’s point of view, the essential requirement for La Liga to give the green light to the operation would be to close a major economic agreement that would increase the club’s income, such as the Nike deal, which has been pending for some time.

It would undoubtedly be enough to balance the accounts and open up Deco’s room for manoeuvre.

At present, Rabiot is not necessarily a priority, but he is on the agenda of Barcelona’s sporting department, as he is an experienced player with proven quality in his position.

The summer transfer window for the 2024/25 season will close on Friday 30 August for La Liga, as well as for Europe’s top competitions. However, as mentioned, Rabiot’s situation would leave open the option of signing him beyond that date.