Barcelona have failed to sign Paris Saint-Germain winger Angel di Maria and Atletico Madrid’s forward Saul Niguez this summer, according to reports.
Lack of success
The Catalan club had endured a difficult season and are keen to bounce back strong under new manager Ernesto Valverde. Despite winning Copa del Rey, the campaign was below their high standards that Barcelona have for themselves.
The club are even more frustrated as they lost out to their bitter rivals Real Madrid who managed to win La Liga for the first time in five years and Champions League, for the third time in the last four seasons.
Squad Overhaul
Ernesto Valverde is determined to make some big changes to Barcelona starting team as the club are tipped to spend big this summer to get back to winning ways.
Blaugrana are on a decline at the moment and Valverde have big shoes to fill after replacing Luis Enrique who had a remarkable three years with the club. Barca were linked with Paris Saint Germain’s Angel di Maria as well as few other big players at the start of the summer.
However, according to Spanish outlet Don Balon, the Argentine has rejected a move to Camp Nou as he had a terrific spell with Real Madrid.
He is one of the fan favorites at Bernabeu till date and had success winning the La Liga under Jose Mourinho in 2012 and Champions League in 2014 before moving to Manchester United in a British record deal back then.
The club had approached di Maria after their 6-1 win in Champions League against PSG but the Argentine had rebuffed the interest. On the other hand, Barcelona were also interested in signing Atletico Madrid star Saul Niguez.
The Spanish midfielder is one of the brightest talents in the world and has drawn attention from big clubs. However, he had decided to stay put with Atletico and have recently signed a nine year contract extension with the club which will see him at Atletico till 2026.
“I’m very happy because Atletico are my family and there is no better place that I could be,” he said.
“I will work just as always, to the maximum in order to develop my game on the pitch and to repay the confidence placed in me.
“I want to thank all of my team-mates and the coaching staff for their daily support to help make me the player I am.”