Barcelona will have to be creative in order to ensure they retain Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo beyond the end of the season, according to reports in Catalonia.
The two Portuguese deadline day signings have hit the ground running in Barcelona, and already the question is being asked as to how they will sign them on permanent deals. Neither seems simple.
Atletico Madrid allow a little more room for negotiation, say Sport, as they are open to including players in a deal for Felix which would allow the Blaugrana to cut the cost. Yet having seen Felix’s value plummet over the past year, a good season at Barcelona could put him back amongst the elite talents in the game, at which point Los Colchoneros will no doubt sell to the highest bidder.
Meanwhile Manchester City have little interest in player exchanges, unless Barcelona are willing to include star assets for Cancelo. That means Barcelona must find the money from somewhere, likely sales, in order to keep the veteran full-back, who could also recover much of the value he has lost in 2023.
The Catalan daily claim initial discussions have taken place with their representative Jorge Mendes about how they might approach the issue. It will involve ‘imaginative formulas’ if they are to pull off either or both of these deals. Nothing has been suggested yet, and these ideas will not take further shape until both agent and club have the green light from the players.
This was always an inherent risk for the Blaugrana of not including a buy option in the loan deals for Felix and Cancelo, but it might have prevented the deals from going through due to their salary limit restrictions. In addition, Felix has admitted he made financial sacrifices to be head to Barcelona, and he may not be willing to do so for a second season in a row.
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