Important meeting in Milan to advance Lautaro Martínez's transfer to Barça
Lautaro's agents will travel to Italy in order to kickstart a move which has stalled in recent weeks
Barça made signing a world class striker their main objective before the transfer window opened. With Luis Suarez on his way out of the club, that need becomes even greater. After spending months talking to Lautaro Martinez, this week is key to getting that transfer moving forward. Despite all the rumours recently, Lautaro remains the number one choice.
Lautaro's agents are expected to arrive in Milan this week and will meet with Inter. The idea is to get the transfer to Barça back on the table and for a compromise over the price to be reached. Following the coronavirus outbreak, the cost of every player has taken a major hit. Barça don't want to pay anything above €65m, plus a player, whilst Inter are asking for a starting point of €85m, Both sides agreed to take a break from negotiations but now things must move forward if a deal is to be struck.
Manchester City's interest in Lautaro isn't helping Barça's case as Inter don't need to sell. However, City were met with resistance from Lautaro as he would prefer to join Messi at the Camp Nou. If a move doesn't materialise, he is happy to remain at Inter.
In a gesture of goodwill, Barça are willing to release Arturo Vidal on a free transfer so he can join Inter. Once the Chilean's move to Milan is confirmed, talks will resume over Lautaro Martinez.
DEPAY IS ON STAND BY
Barça haven't hidden the fact they're in a strong position to sign Memphis Depay as an alternative to Lautaro. Ronald Koeman is a big admirer of the Dutch forward and he'll be brought in if a deal for Lautaro can't be finalised. Depay would cost just €25m because he's entering the final year of his contract. Samuel Umtiti could be loaned to Lyon as a way of driving that price even lower.
Lyon's manager, Rudi García, is open to the transfer. "If Depay has an offer from a side who can win the Champions League, I'll drive him there myself. He's a player of the highest level, who returned from a serious injury and has been incredibly important for us." As for Umtiti, Garcia said: "We've spoken about him at the club and it would be fantastic to have him, but on a financial level it's difficult."
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