Barcelona reactivate interest in Manchester City defender
Barcelona have reactivated their interest in Manchester City defender Joao Cancelo. Due to their economic situation, they had no plans to bid for the Portuguese defender. However, it is reported that the sale of Ousmane Dembele to Paris Saint Germain (PSG) has changed their plans.
According to the reports from Fabrizio Romano, Barcelona are talking with Cancelo’s camp and Manchester City’s representatives about a potential deal. The Catalans manager Xavi considers the Portuguese defender a priority target this summer. The negotiations are set to resume between the two representatives in the next few days.
Cancelo is contracted to Manchester City but spent the second half of last season on loan at Bayern Munich. However, the Bavarians refused to go for his permanent switch, allowing Cancelo to return to the Etihad Stadium. He was involved in the pre-season tour of the Premier League champions. However, Manchester City manager and former Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola hasn’t denied that he could leave the club permanently this summer.
Guardiola has evolved his football formation in the past 12 months, which has reduced the importance of Cancelo to his team. The former Barcelona manager has created a formation without the influence of full-backs. Hence, the full-backs become inverted midfielders and tend to get involved in the team’s build-up. Apart from Cancelo, even Kyle Walker has struggled to get into the first team despite his improvement in fitness and consistency. He is also been linked with a move to Bayern Munich this summer. It is reported that Walker’s decision to stay at Manchester City revolves around Cancelo’s fate this summer.
