Barcelona midfielder seen as Plan B by Al Nassr if Brozovic move fails, contacts made

Not very long ago, it appeared that Al Nassr were all set to beat FC Barcelona to the signing of Marcelo Brozovic from Inter Milan.

A €23 million transfer fee agreement was in place with the Nerazzurri and after much negotiations, they had managed to meet and satisfy the player’s demands as well.

But just when it seemed like the transfer was imminent, reports earlier today in Italy suggested that the move has stalled as Al Nassr lowered their transfer fee offer from €23 million to €15 million, which did not sit well with Inter.

Now, with the move hanging in the balance, Giacomo Iacobellis is reporting that Al Nassr have identified Barcelona midfielder Franck Kessie as a possible Plan B if they are unable to close the Brozovic deal.

The report even suggests that the Saudi Arabian giants have already contacted the Ivorian midfielder’s entourage.

Kessie has been linked with a summer exit from Barcelona, just a year after his arrival. The club need revenue from sales and given that he is far from a regular starter and can fetch good money, the 26-year-old has been made available for transfer.

The former AC Milan ace has been reluctant to leave, but a tantalising offer from Saudi Arabia could prove to be alluring.

Al Ahli are already pursuing his signature and have offered to double his current salary at Barcelona.

Now, Al Nassr, too, could potentially join the race for his signing, provided they fail to sign Brozovic, who remains the priority target for them.

As far as Barcelona are concerned, it appears that they have moved on from Brozovic and are already working to sign Oriol Romeu from Girona. But if the Croatian’s move to Al Nassr does end up collapsing, it will certainly be intriguing to see if the Blaugrana consider rekindling their interest.

As for Kessie, as iterated earlier, he remains keen to stay at Barcelona. But a lucrative proposal could change that stance, given that he will not have many minutes under Xavi, especially with Ilkay Gundogan also joining the team.