Barcelona President Joan Laporta may not have much spending power this summer compared to Europe’s other giants, but what he does manage to secure, he will look to make a splash with.
The latest coming out of Spain is that Laporta wants to make a big signing this summer to lay down as a mark of intent and ambition. That has catapulted Nico Williams to the top of their priority list, off the back of his electric performances for Spain at Euro 2024. While the left wing position is a priority for Barcelona, one of the key reasons Laporta wants to beat Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool to Williams’ signature is the excitement his arrival would generate.
That information comes from Marca, but they also note that there is unlikely to be enough money for Barcelona to be able to make a top signing in midfield and up front. Hence Barcelona will have to choose between addressing a key need in the middle of the pitch – Amadou Onana, Joshua Kimmich and Javi Guerra are cited as the best-positioned – or going after Williams.
Breaking: Laporta dreams of signing Nico Williams and believes that within a few weeks he will have fixed the club's financial situation to be able to do so. @Luis_F_Rojo
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) July 2, 2024
If the Basque winger is signed, then Raphinha is likely to leave, while the plan is also for Ansu Fati to leave permanently or on loan, and the return of Joao Felix would also be considered carefully. Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres and Robert Lewandowski seem set to remain come what may.
It is interesting that the heavily Mikel Merino appears to be off their list of priorities if their information is accurate. Most Barcelona fans will remind that without a more defensively able midfielder, it is difficult to picture success next season. All the same, Williams is a seductive prospect, and Laporta has based much of his time at the helm of the club on star signings.
