Reports: Liverpool & Man City battling it out for Barca starlet after recent verdict
Liverpool and Man City look to be open to signing the young Barca midfielder, after a Spanish judge’s ruling, which has thrown Barcelona into turmoil. The Catalan giants could lose the 18-year-old on a free transfer after a potential contract cancellation order.
The young prodigy is seen as ‘one for the future’ for the La Liga club and is already a key player in the team. At the age of 18, he has had 83 first-team appearances for Barca and has 17 caps for Spain.
Barca had offered a lucrative deal for the teenager in September but it is feared now that the necessary paperwork is not in order with regards to his registration.
Since the midfielder is a product of La Masia, he had to be registered as a senior team player. However, this had to be done by including the player wages (£7.1m) in their budget for the season.
This was overturned by La Liga stating that the club would go over budget. Also, the Mercantile Court of Barcelona overturned their efforts to appeal the decision due to the necessary paperwork not being completed in time.
Forbes stated that ‘Barcelona’s Commercial Court has lifted the precautionary measure which forced La Liga to register Gavi’s new deal’.
The teenager had agreed to a new deal in September with improved terms. The new contract saw him stay at Camp Nou till 2026 and had a release clause of €1 billion, whilst earning £135,000 per week.
Barca were given the benefit by a judge, who ruled in their favour on deadline day in the recent January transfer window. This allowed them to register the Spaniard and hand him the ‘iconic number 6’ of Xavi.
However, the La Liga president, Javier Tebas, has appealed against the ruling by the judge in the favour of Barca. This has, therefore, turned the justice system against the Catalan giants as they filed their claim a day after the deadline and have also failed to meet the economic control requirements.
Liverpool & Man City monitoring Gavi’s situation
As of now, Barcelona could appeal against the court’s decision but Gavi is not registered as a first-team player. However, he could still play for Xavi’s team in the upcoming league games.
Moreover, Barca would struggle to meet the salary of Gavi, which is rumored to be around €8 million per year. This would breach the Financial Fair Play (FFP) limits, for the next season.
Above all, Tebas has already stated that the Camp Nou club needs to reduce its wage bill by €200 million. Hence, it has been speculated that Gavi could leave the club for free, if not registered.
This is a major blow for Barca but not so for many clubs who would be willing to take the teenager, that too as a free agent.
Many clubs including Liverpool and Man City are monitoring the situation closely. It is also rumoured that they would be battling it out for the young starlet.
All said and done, it is yet to be seen how the Gavi story would eventually unfold.
