BARCELONA and some Premier League clubs are locked in a transfer battle to sign Nico Williams – after an explosive row.
The 22-year-old scored the opener to help Spain beat England 2-1 to win Euro 2024 last night.
That capped an incredible few weeks for the winger, who has been one of the stars of the tournament.
The attacker came up through Bilbao’s youth system and he has since made 122 first-team appearances with 20 goals.
And yesterday’s Euros triumph capped a stunning season for the star after he played a key role in firing Bilbao to Copa del Rey glory.
Williams’ displays have led to huge interest in him – especially from Barcelona.
Their president Joan Laporta left Bilbao fuming when he admitted that he liked the attacker and that they could afford his £48.5million release clause.
Bilbao president Jon Uriarte slammed the Spanish FA (RFEF) in a strongly-worded statement just hours before the victory over England for constantly exposing their player to questions about his future during medi briefings in Germany.
But LaLiga giants Barca seem undeterred as they look to step up talks and try and secure Williams’ signing as soon as possible in order to beat their rivals from the Premier League.
That is according to journalist Fabrizio Romano, who wrote on X: “Barcelona are prepared to advance in talks with Nico Williams‘ camp starting from this week, as salary structure is key factor to move forward.
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“Hansi Flick has already approved Nico as top target for this summer. Timing is key as Premier League clubs are also there.”
Williams played six times at the Euros, scoring two goals and also grabbing an assist.
But while he excelled on the pitch, Bilbao chief Uriarte slammed the RFEF for not protecting him off it.
He said: “Nico, a player who is committed to Athletic, has been subjected to a bombardment of questions about his future in an excessive and uncontrolled manner while at the European Championships.
“The RFEF have not been able to protect him. Respect between all the actors who make up football is a fundamental basis, or that’s how we view it at Athletic, which does not include subjecting players with contracts at one club to public pressure to join other clubs.
“There are no limits to Athletic’s aspirations. We are demonstrating that we have an attractive project, a winning project for our players and our coach.
“The proof of that is that we have renewed the contracts of two of our internationals, Unai Simón (2029) and Dani Vivian (2032).
“Nico signed a new deal last year until 2027. Various other sought-after players have also committed their future to the club.
“Athletic are financially, socially and in sporting terms capable of keeping players of the caliber of those named in its structure, including Nico.”
But it did not take long for the Spanish federation to hit back themselves, saying: “RFEF has treated Nico Williams in the same way we have treated the other 25 players who travelled to Germany.
“The impact that any of his words might have had is totally related to his performances and the great level he’s shown, and not to RFEF treating him differently.”
Meanwhile, Laporta was once again quizzed on Barca’s interest in Williams today.
Only this time he opted to remain a lot more tight-lipped, instead only saying: “We respect Athletic a lot.”
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It could be all change at Manchester City with the likes of Jack Grealish linked with an exit and Julian Alvarez telling the club he wants to leave.
Pep Guardiola is also reportedly ready to trigger the release clause for Spanish Euro 2024 hero Dani Olmo.
Meanwhile, Arsenal and Manchester United are on high alert with Marc Guehi set to reject Crystal Palace’s new contract offer, SunSport can exclusively reveal.
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