On Wedensday it was revealed that Barcelona were interested in Almeria right-back Marc Pubill as a potential option this summer. The Blaugrana are reportedly preparing an offer.
Earlier on Thursday it was revealed that Manchester City had agreed a deal with Al-Hilal for Joao Cancelo, amounting to over €40m. He was tipped to return on loan this season, but in recent days, it has emerged that Barcelona have doubts about his attitude and the value of bringing him back.
ℹ INFORMA @JijantesFC
💼 El Barça trabaja para la cesión con compra obligatoria de Marc Pubill, lateral del UD Almería.
👀 La posible llegada del internacional español en estos JJOO de Paris 2024, implicaría la salida de Héctor Fort.
🔗 https://t.co/OGW0AKAWMl pic.twitter.com/mgAaK3R6Au
— Jijantes FC (@JijantesFC) August 22, 2024
Part of the reason might be their interest in Pubill. As per Jijantes, Barcelona are preparing a loan with an obligation to buy offer for the 21-year-old. It is not yet clear how much that offer would be.
The consequence of that movement going through is that youngster Hector Fort, who had been poised to play a role under Xavi Hernandez this summer, will leave this summer. It is expected he will join a La Liga side on loan, after agreeing to extend his contract this summer.
Survey: If one them has to leave, who would you prefer – Eric García or Andreas Christensen? 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/FXe27PV4BY
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) August 22, 2024
Since the story broke, Sport have added more details, explaining that the Blaugrana would pay €5m for the loan deal, and then have an option to buy of €12m. They also note that Sporting Director Deco has been a fan of Pubill’s since last summer, when he also took an interest in Ivan Fresneda. They also share an agent with Federico Chiesa, who Barcelona have also been linked with. They all belong to LIAN Sports Group, run by Fali Ramadani.
Pubill is coming fresh off the back of Spain’s Olympic gold in Paris as their starting right-back. He had agreed a deal to go to Atalanta for €15m plus €5m in variables last week, but the deal collapsed after the Italian side opted for Wesley instead at the last minute. While he was coming back from a lengthy injury, Pubill was inconsistent for the Andalusian side, playing 23 times, scoring once and giving three assists.
