Cruyff and Xavi mount pressure on Laporta to get Barça to sign Martín Zubimendi
Both believe he is worth the effort for the club's future
Squads are built on top of a lot of discussions and debates amongst various members of the sporting management and the coach. At Barça, all eyes are currently on the midfield position.
With Busquets likely to leave, the club have begun the seemingly impossible task of finding his replacement.
The sporting director, Jordi Cruyff, and the coach, Xavi Hernández, are working together to push Joan Laporta to close the deal for Zubimendi, their most coveted player.
Zubimendi's name has been on the table since last summer and both Xavi and Cruyff consider him the ideal player to play in front of the defence. For his technical ability, vision and influence on the pitch.
There is consensus between the two of them and Cruyff has already reached out to the player's entourage. Zubimendi has the same agent that Jordi Cruyff had during his playing career.
Barça know first-hand that the player would be delighted to sign and accepts the challenge of playing at Camp Nou. What's more, he is flattered by Xavi's impressions of him.
He renewed his contract, taking care to place a 60 million euros release clause, keeping in mind the Catalan's interest.
In England, some big clubs have asked for him but he will hold out for Barça.
The main obstacle is that not all are convinced about Zubimendi. The board believes that negotiation with Real Sociedad would be complicated, as it would require almost the full payment of the clause. They see this as a risky move due to the age of the player.
The board would invest this money, if the league allows it, on a talisman as that is what they believe that the team lacks.
A lot eyes are also on Bernardo Silva. They believe that Barça need a top midfielder on the pitch to complement Lewandowski and to compete in Europe again at the highest level.
Zubimendi's name will be on the table until the end due to Xavi's absolute insistence.
Barça have other things to occupy them. They must first resolve the financial problems with La Liga. The future of Busquets is yet to be completely resolved. And finally, they have to find a way to fund a big money move. None of the targets have been ruled out yet.
