Barcelona planning to overhaul the defence, transfer targets revealed

With the summer transfer window not very far away, plans are already underway for the next season at Barcelona.

The Catalans enjoyed a successful January window, with all the new arrivals already making a solid impact early in their tenure. And the Blaugrana will be hoping for more of the same come summer.

A move for Erling Haaland remains the top priority for Joan Laporta and Xavi Hernandez, but at the same time, the club are also looking at revamping their defensive ranks, claims Mundo Deportivo.

As per the report, Barça have sorted out their preferred targets for all four positions in the backline and are planning to overhaul the defence at very little cost.

With Dani Alves set to turn 38 and run down his contract in June, the Blaugrana will need to replace the veteran. Sergino Dest has shown improvement of late, but a new arrival is very much expected, with AFC Ajax’s Noussair Mazraoui very much on the agenda.

The Moroccan international will become a free agent in the summer and Barcelona have already held talks with his agent, Mino Raiola over a transfer. The 24-year-old’s age, pedigree and technical qualities have made him a favourite among the Barça staff.

Moving into the centre-back department, the Catalan giants are planning for Gerard Pique’s eventual retirement while Clement Lenglet and Samuel Umtiti are also expected to move on. Two transfer targets have been identified by the club in the form of Chelsea duo Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen.

Both defenders will be free agents in the summer, although in the case of Azpilicueta, Chelsea have a unilateral extension option for a year. However, the veteran defender is hopeful that the Blues will let him depart on a Bosman while Christensen is also leaning towards a switch to Camp Nou.

On the left side of the defence, Valencia captain Jose Gaya remains Barcelona’s preferred option, although signing him will be dependent on his contract situation. With his current deal expiring in 2023, the Spaniard could be available for a knockdown price of around €10-12 million.

But, in the scenario that he does decide to pen an extension, the Catalan giants will switch focus to Alejandro Grimaldo or Nicolas Tagliafico.