Report: Barcelona disappointed as Bastoni transfer from Inter fades away
Reports in Italy claim that Barcelona have been left ‘disappointed’ by the fact that a potential deal for Inter’s Alessandro Bastoni seems to be fading away, but there are also suggestions that the financially-troubled LaLiga giants should priorities the signing of a new striker rather than a new defender.
Why Bastoni’s move to Barcelona is beginning to look unlikely
For several weeks, reports in Spain and Italy have linked Barcelona with a summer move for Italy international Bastoni, who was part of the squad that celebrated Inter’s 21st Serie A title over the weekend.
Nerazzurri President Beppe Marotta has recently admitted: “I won’t deny there is interest from Barcelona (in Bastoni), but nothing concrete yet.”
However, according to the latest updates from La Gazzetta dello Sport, Barcelona’s interest in the left-sided defender is now beginning to fade away.
There are several reasons for this, but perhaps most importantly is the player’s apparent unwillingness to leave San Siro this summer.
La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that Inter value Bastoni in the region of €70m, but Barcelona had believed that they would be able to negotiate a discounted fee closer to €50m. In order for that to happen, though, they would have needed for Bastoni to express his desire to leave for Barcelona, thus forcing Inter’s hand into a sale.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, this has not happened, and the Nerazzurri have no intention of letting Bastoni go for a cut-price fee.
Whether a €50m or a €70m fee, it is still a significant investment for a club who continue to feel the impact of LaLiga’s strict financial rules. As a result of their recent financial troubles, the only new, permanent signings that Barcelona have been able to complete over the last two seasons have been Dani Olmo in a €58m deal, Joan Garcia in a €27m deal and youngster Roony Bardghji in a €2m deal.
Given that it has practically been a case of one new first-team signing per summer for Barcelona over the last two years, La Gazzetta dello Sport suggests that Bastoni would not be the best use of available funds during the upcoming transfer window.
That is because Barcelona will likely need a new striker too, as the high-earning Robert Lewandowski, 37, is likely to leave the club this summer, which leaves Hansi Flick with a big gap to fill at centre-forward, which would likely be Barcelona’s priority rather than the signing of a luxury centre-back.