Barcelona outcast rejects club offer to terminate his contract

Journalist Luis Miguelsanz has shared through SPORT that Barcelona are prepared to let go of Clement Lenglet on a free transfer this summer. However, the defender is not interested in ending his contract with the club.

Additionally, Lenglet also is not considering offers from Saudi Arabian teams. Instead, he is interested in handling offers from clubs like West Ham United, Borussia Dortmund, and a Spanish club on a loan basis.

It is suggested that Barcelona are keen to speed up the departure of players who are not part of their future plans and the club is particularly focused on Lenglet because of his high salary. 

They are looking for a permanent solution, but Lenglet has refused to end his contract with the club despite Barcelona offering him a free transfer option. 

He has also not shown interest in the proposals from Saudi Arabia. However, he is open to loan offers where Barcelona would have to pay a significant portion of his salary.

Barcelona want to resolve Lenglet’s future

It is to be noted that Lenglet extended his contract until 2026 after the pandemic, deferring part of his salary to help the club. Due to this arrangement, he is set to become one of the highest-paid players in the squad over the next two seasons. 

Clement Lenglet does not want to move to Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Adam Nurkiewicz/Getty Images)

Barcelona wanted to resolve his contract now for this reason. They had even approved selling him to several Saudi clubs for a relatively low price, but Lenglet and his team did not accept this option. 

Last summer, he turned down an offer from Al Nassr, which could have brought in nearly €15 million for the club.

Lenglet does not want to move to Saudi Arabia

The situation is repeating because Lenglet still has value in the European market, and he prefers to play in Europe. 

After loan spells at Tottenham and Aston Villa, Barcelona wanted to end his contract, but these termination offers have not been accepted so far. 

Lenglet has attracted interest from West Ham, Borussia Dortmund, and a Spanish club, possibly Sevilla, for his career continuation. However, none of these clubs can afford his full salary, and some cannot even cover half of it.

Barcelona want to resolve the clear cases of player departures before the preseason starts, but with Lenglet, there is an economic challenge. 

If the club cannot sell or terminate his contract, they will try to minimise his salary payments or hope that Lenglet agrees to reduce his salary.