Barcelona paying attention to Manchester City winger’s situation

One of Europe’s most in-demand wingers, Riyad Mahrez has reportedly made it to the list of players Barcelona are following. 

As reported by the Italian publication FootMercato, Barcelona are among five top teams, including Chelsea, Real Madrid, Milan and Paris Saint-Germain, who are keeping a close tab on Mahrez’s situation at the Etihad.

The Algeria winger has a valid contract with Man City until 2023, and while there is a verbal assurance in place, nothing substantial has been done over an extension. 

This has triggered an extensive tussle between the aforementioned sides, leading to the suggestion that the player will, in fact, be on the move in the summer.

City funding the Erling Haaland project

There is one particular aspect that explains why City might look to offload Mahrez in the first place.

At 31 years of age, the Algerian is at a time where he can only land one big contract. At City, there is a word of honour, but the bigger picture still remains a certain Erling Haaland.

City are said to be close to agreeing terms with the Borussia Dortmund frontman and if the deal is, in fact, struck, City will have to offload someone since this operation is rightly expected to cost them as much as €100 million.

The mentioned amount includes triggering his release clause followed by the signing-on as well as the agent’s fee. With the notorious Mino Raiola handling his case, one can expect City to spend much more than the anticipated figures.

Where does Barcelona come in?

Amidst all that has been said, the future of Ousmane Dembele still hangs in the middle of nowhere. Despite being the starter, there is still no agreement between the parties, and if he does decide to leave, the team will need someone to cover the position.

Now, at 31, Mahrez isn’t really the like-to-like replacement, but the winger has shown what quality he possesses by scoring an impressive 23 goals and seven assists across all competitions.

His tally is more than the combined total of Memphis Depay and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, both of whom have scored 11 goals this season.

It’s not to say that Barcelona’s chances of acquiring Mahrez are next to impossible. But as mentioned by the club president earlier, they will not throw money to land any big-name player who can disrupt the already troubled finances.

They will turn their head towards Raphinha should Dembele exit the club despite all efforts to make him stay.