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Barça's first sale of the summer set to be Lenglet's move to Tottenham

The Catalan club need to bring in cash before June 30

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L. Miguelsanz

Barcelona need to achieve record revenues this summer in terms of sales in order to solve their issues with LaLiga's financial fair play rules. The aim is to save on wages and move players on to cut back on €150 million in the best-case scenario.

The sporting department has been working for weeks on various scenarios and the first transfer is taking shape with Clement Lenglet. The left-sided centre-back is convincing Tottenham and a definitive sale of a player who is not going to be part of the club's future plans could be formalised.

Lenglet joined Spurs last summer on loan without an option to buy. It was not an easy operation because the player's salary had to be adjusted, but in the end a favourable agreement was reached for all parties.

The French defender, requested by former coach Antonio Conte, has performed at a good level in the Premier League and the London club are clear that, if the fee is adjusted, a good deal could be done as long as the player gives the OK.

The two clubs are already talking to formalise a transfer of around €14 million. Barça have already amortised a good part of his signing, so they would be willing to sell him and save a significant amount of money.

There is a good predisposition between the two parties because, despite Conte's departure, Tottenham's internal reports on Lenglet are excellent on a personal and professional level. And the market for left-sided centre-backs is very expensive, so finding a defender with his experience is difficult.

The institutional crisis that Spurs are going through at the moment has somewhat paralysed the operation. Conte has departed and they are looking for a new coach, while the club will also have to do without their sporting director, Fabio Paraticci, who is sanctioned by FIFA for the open investigation into his years at Juventus.

Tottenham need to change part of their structure, but it seems the decision to keep Lenglet is firm.

Barça's priority was not to prolong his loan spell in order to make a profit with Lenglet. The absolute priority is to sell players who are not going to be part of the sporting project and the club are also very optimistic about Samuel Umtiti as they are in talks with clubs willing to pay a transfer fee, even if it is minimal.

 

There is a rush because it is very important for Barça to formalise this type of operation before June 30.