Barcelona have €50 million-rated Premier League star as top candidate for pivot midfield position

Having not reinforced the midfield department in the winter, Barcelona will go after a new pivot as a top priority for the summer transfer window.

Sergio Busquets’ departure left a big hole in the team that new signing Oriol Romeu has been unable to fill. It has forced Xavi to deploy either Frenkie de Jong or Ilkay Gundogan in the defensive midfield position quite regularly this term.

The idea is to sign a top player who can man the position for years to come and allow the likes of De Jong and Gundogan to be deployed in their natural positions as interiors.

Amadou Onana in pole position

A number of players have been linked with Barcelona as potential candidates for the pivot midfield position for the summer.

But, as per Luis F Rojo of MARCA, Everton mainstay Amadou Onana is in pole position on Barcelona’s shortlist for defensive midfielders for the summer transfer.

Onana, 22, joined Everton from Lille in 2022 and has grown into a top player in the Premier League and has caught the attention of several top clubs.

Indeed, in the recent past, the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal have shown interest in the Belgian international, apart from Barcelona.

Onana is a top target for Barcelona. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

But the Catalans are now understood to have him at the top of their wishlist for the summer transfer window.

Price could be an issue

Everton, owing to their FFP situation, will likely be forced into selling some of their players such as Onana, who is in high demand.

However, they will seek a significant sum for the 22-year-old, whose current market value stands at €50 million.

That could become an issue for Barcelona, who themselves are going through financial problems, and have reportedly set a limit of €35-40 million for a new pivot midfielder.