Barcelona have ruled out the signing of 18-year-old prodigy – report

Barcelona appear to have finally made a breakthrough in their bid to sign Joao Cancelo, with the club reportedly reaching an agreement in principle with Manchester City.

With Cancelo likely to arrive at Camp Nou on a season-long loan deal, Barcelona, it seems, have made a call on their pursuit of Ivan Fresneda.

Barça rules out the signing of Fresneda

According to Toni Juanmarti (h/t Martin), Barcelona have abandoned their pursuit of Fresneda this summer, as Cancelo closes in on a move to Camp Nou.

It appears there is no room for Barça to incorporate Fresneda into the team, even more so with Financial Fair Play crippling the club’s finances.

The youngster from Real Valladolid was keen on making a move to Camp Nou, but it seems the Catalans are not in a position to sign him this summer.

The idea for Barça was to sign Fresneda and then loan him back elsewhere, as it would have been a waste for him to play second fiddle to Cancelo.

Chelsea: A potential destination for Fresneda

With a move to Barcelona ruled out, Fresneda is likely to join some other top club in Europe this summer, as he looks to put an end to his spell at Real Valladolid.

Chelsea have emerged as the best-placed club to sign the young right-back lately. With Fresneda unlikely to wait for Barça anymore, the Premier League giants are set to seize the opportunity.

Chelsea’s idea is to sign Fresneda and loan him back immediately, as the club are not in imminent need of reinforcements in the position.

Fresneda, for his part, may also prefer a loan move elsewhere as he looks to gain some more experience at the highest level of football.