Barcelona delay hands rival advantage in pursuit of midfield target despite boost

Barcelona have been suspiciously silent in terms of transfer talk this week, in what may come as a relief to concerned fans. Yet as they bunker down, it could see them miss out on midfield target Mikel Merino.

According to Matteo Moretto, as revealed to Football España, Merino will not renew his contract with Real Sociedad this summer, with just a year remaining on his current deal. It means that in all likelihood he will be sold this summer, and had been identified as a potentially economic midfield option for Barcelona alongside the likes of Joshua Kimmich and Angelo Stiller.

Flick asked Márquez who he thinks his most reliable player is. The Mexican came up with Marc Casadó's name. The new coach already had this feeling from the outside, and today is the day that Casadó will pen a new deal. @ffpolo

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) June 21, 2024

Yet Merino has also been an option on the table for Atletico Madrid for several months, explains Moretto. The Spanish international is well-liked at the Metropolitano, and with Barcelona currently working out who to go for in the market, Los Rojiblancos are poised to pounce.

🇪🇸🧱 Robin Le Normand vs Italy:

– 90 minutes
– 2 clearances
– 1 interception
– 95% pass accuracy
– 63/66 accurate passes
– 2/3 long balls
– 2 fouls won

His second clean sheet in two games at Euro 2024. pic.twitter.com/rAkeyflCYO

— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) June 20, 2024

Certainly Barcelona would be chastised for rushing their choice of pivot this summer, given it is likely to go some way to defining their season. Equally it will come as a surprise to many fans that they have not decided on their transfer strategy ten days out from the transfer window. On the other side of things, Merino will be a major loss to La Real, who have based much of their success off the pairing of Merino and Martin Zubimendi in recent years. Currently, they don’t have a similar player amongst their ranks.