Barcelona face major roadblock in race for Everton midfielder – report

Entering what could be the last stage of their team revolution, Barcelona have a crucial summer transfer awaiting them this year. They cannot, unlike yesteryears, afford to get transfers wrong, and must be patient and spot-on with their pursuits.

At this point, the two main areas of concerns are pretty well-known as the holding midfield and the left-wing position have proven to be evident cracks in the wall.

Oriol Romeu was brought in to fill in the pivot role, but has not done particularly well, with his performances taking a steep decline as the season has gone on.

Barcelona have, therefore, already started looking for a player that can take over the position in the long-term, and out on top has come a certain Everton talisman Amadou Onana.

However, unsurprisingly, Barcelona will face a few obstacles en route to his signing.

Barcelona’s financial competitiveness

According to a report published by Fichajes, Barcelona cannot afford to sign Onana on Everton’s price.

The Merseyside outfit have asked interested parties to shell out €60 million for the Belgian, which is impossible for the Catalan giants. Instead, Barça are ready to table €40 million for the player.

This is particularly a problem because there are other elite teams chasing Onana’s signature, including Bayern Munich.

The Bavarians are in a more flexible position monetarily than Barça, and could be looking to replace Joshua Kimmich with Onana in the summer.

Similarly, Manchester United are reportedly interested in Onana, too, but the lack of Champions League football could push them out of the race.

Can Barcelona sign him?

Barcelona should be desperately praying on Everton’s downfall as they are flirting with relegation this season. A fall to the Championship could mean that the Toffees will have to slash their asking price by a fair bit.

And while the likes of Bayern and Man United offer more money, Barça can always go down the Raphinha, Jules Kounde route, which would be to reach an agreement with the 22-year-old on personal terms, which could force Everton’s hand.

Alternatively, Barcelona can continue their scouting and potentially lose out on another priority target ahead of the summer.