Wolves intensify efforts to sign Barcelona midfield talent in deal to sell Ruben Neves

With the season coming to an end, Barcelona have kickstarted their pursuit of several top targets ahead of the summer transfer window.

While their interest in Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Cesar Azpilicueta has been well documented, the club are also in the market for Ruben Neves.

The Wolves midfielder has been targeted as the ideal replacement for the ageing Sergio Busquets, with the player himself reportedly keen on playing for Barça.

A recent report from Diario SPORT has offered an update on Barcelona’s pursuit of Ruben Neves. It appears the entire operation is being carried out by super-agent Jorge Mendes, who shares a good relationship with Barcelona and brokered deals with Wolves in the past.

Although Neves has informed Wolves of his desire to play for Barcelona, the Premier League outfit are not willing to lose their prized asset on a cut-price deal.

They are holding out for a fee of around €50 million for his services. The Catalans have no intention to even entertain the figure and are set to rely heavily on swap deals in an attempt to lower the cost of the operation.

Barcelona have already offered Wolves the opportunity to sign the likes of Oscar Mingueza, Riqui Puig and Martin Braithwaite in the deal to sign Neves.

But the Wolves have their sights on only one player, in the form of Nico Gonzalez. The Barça youngster is rated highly in the Molineux camp, with coach Bruno Lage keen on attaining his services ahead of the new season.

Barcelona coach Xavi also rates Nico highly and is a firm believer in the youngster’s potential. But he is willing to let him go in the summer, in lieu of signing Neves, who is the Spaniard’s desired replacement option for the ageing Busquets.