How Aubameyang’s sale could help Barcelona sign a full-back – report

It is no secret at this point that Barcelona are interested in signing a new right-back and a left-back before the transfer window closes in a little over a week.

However, the Catalans have their hands tied due to their bloated wage bill which is still stopping them from registering Jules Kounde. So, any new signing would also find themselves in the same boat as the Frenchman and remain unregistered unless the club find a way to resolve the issue.

Player departures are seen as the best way forward for Barcelona in order for them to reduce their salary mass and register Kounde and whoever comes in next.

And, according to Gerard Romero, the exit of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could hold the key to Barcelona’s attempts of signing and registering at least one full-back, along with Kounde.

Aubameyang is heavily linked with an exit, with a move to Chelsea said to be advancing. The 33-year-old’s departure, as per the journalist, would free up around €18.4 million gross on the Blaugrana’s wage bill.

And Romero reckons that it should be enough for Barcelona to successfully register Kounde and a new full-back that the club plan to sign, provided his maximum salary is €4 million per year.

Barça have identified several targets to strengthen their options at right-back and left-back. For the former position, Juan Foyth (Villarreal) and Hector Bellerin are being considered while Marcos Alonso (Chelsea) and Javi Galan are the targets for the latter.

According to Romero himself, the salaries of each of those players, barring Bellerin, would be €4 million per year or lower. So, should Aumabeyang leave Barcelona, the club would be in a position to register Kounde and any one of their full-back targets.

However, talks with Chelsea are still ongoing over the transfer fee for the 33-year-old striker. The Blaugrana are demanding around €30 million for the ex-Arsenal captain, which the Blues seem reluctant to pay.

It remains to be seen how the talks progress as his departure could resolve Barcelona’s problems to some extent.