Barcelona could sign Busquets’ replacement for €5-6 million – report

After months of deliberation, it appears Barcelona have finally decided on their ideal replacement for Sergio Busquets.

The veteran midfielder has joined Inter Miami this summer, leaving a gaping hole in the Barcelona midfield. In order to replace the Spaniard, Barça have been linked with many top-quality midfielders, including Joshua Kimmich, Martin Zubimendi and Ruben Neves.

But according to AS, Barcelona have identified Oriol Romeu as the ideal replacement for Busquets. They are ready to sign the former Southampton star as a short-term solution in the number six role.

The report suggests Girona would offload Romeu for a figure of around €5-6 million this summer, providing the negotiations speed up in the coming days.

Barcelona are in a position to afford such a figure. The club initially wanted stars such as Kimmich or Zubimendi, but both operations exceeded €60 million. As such, Barcelona have identified Romeu as an ideal cost-effective alternative.

AS suggests Romeu wants the two parties to speed up the negotiations as he wants to get back to Camp Nou as soon as possible. The player was trained in the famed La Masia youth setup in Barcelona and is quite familiar with the club’s style of play.

Barcelona are looking to lower the cost of the operation by offering players in return. One player they could offer to Girona is Estanis Pedrola, who is among the most talented attacking players to come out of the club’s youth academy in recent years.

Girona, though, are uninterested in accepting players as part of the deal and will negotiate a deal for Pedrola separately as they are interested in him.

All things considered, we can expect the negotiations to advance for Romeu in the coming days and a transfer could be completed before pre-season begins.