AS have dug into Barcelona’s long-standing interest in Giovani Lo Celso, revealing that Tottenham refused to negotiate with the La Liga giants for the midfielder last summer.
Over the last week, Spurs Web has relayed various reports which have claimed that Xavi Hernandez is keen on bringing Lo Celso to the Camp Nou.
This includes an update by Sky Sports, who stated at the start of this week that the Barca boss views the Catalan club’s pursuit of the 27-year-old as a test of their support for him.
AS have now explained why Barca’s move for Lo Celso failed in the summer and whether the move could succeed in January.
They state that while the Blaugrana were in constant contact with the midfielder’s agent last summer, Spurs refused to negotiate with them.
This is because Barca sporting director Mateu Alemany did not want to ‘pay a single euro’ to take him on loan and wanted the Premier League side to pay part of his salary, which was not a formula that pleased Tottenham.
The outlet adds that while Xavi continues to put pressure on his higher-ups to sign Lo Celso, Barca have not restarted contacts over the player yet.
The publication points out that the Argentine could be ‘essential’ for Ange Postecoglou next month since Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr will be at AFCON, which is why a transfer seems unlikely.
Spurs Web Opinion
The only way Spurs would consider offloading Lo Celso is if they receive an offer of around £20m for the midfielder, which Barca are in no position to pay at the moment. I do not see a straight loan deal without an obligation to buy would interest Spurs.
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