Barcelona want to keep misfiring forward at club amidst Arsenal links – Romano

According to Fabrizio Romano via Caught Offside, Barcelona do not have any intentions to let go of Ferran Torres in the ongoing January transfer window amidst interest from Arsenal.

Torres recently completed one year as a Barça player but has failed to deliver as expected following the €55 million investment made by the club to sign him from Manchester City.

In close to 50 matches for the Blaugrana, the former Valencia man has managed to net just 12 goals, with only five coming in the ongoing season from 26 matches across all competitions.

Torres put in a disappointing display in Barcelona’s most recent game against CF Intercity in Copa del Rey last night. The Spanish international’s performances have led to a lot of frustration among the supporters.

Amidst this, Arsenal have been credited with an interest in signing the 22-year-old forward. The Gunners are on the lookout for an attacking addition this month due to the injury to Gabriel Jesus. And Mikel Arteta has his sights on Torres as an option.

Romano, however, has put an end to any possibility of the Spaniard leaving Barcelona this month, stating that the La Liga leaders wish to keep their squad intact for the remainder of the season and will only make changes to their roster in the summer.

“Barcelona want to keep Ferran Torres, there are currently no negotiations for him. Their aim is to keep the same squad until the end of the season and then change some players again in July,” Romano said.

As iterated earlier, Torres has been unable to meet the expectations so far in his first year at Barcelona and has split opinions among the fanbase.

But, manager Xavi seems to have faith in the 22-year-old forward and could give him minutes in the coming weeks in the absence of Robert Lewandowski, whose three-match suspension was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).