Sridhar Bhamidi
Manchester United are looking to raid Barcelona for one of their youngsters, according to latest reports. News from Spanish media outlet Mundo Deportivo indicates that the Red Devils are interested in Barca’s ‘B’ team winger Jose Arnaiz.
The 22-year-old has been making waves with the Barcelona ‘B’ team and recently made his first-team debut. Turning up against Murcia in the Copa del Rey, Arnaiz scored on his debut in the 3-0 win for the Catalans.
Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde knows that the player is one for the future and has requested for calm from the player’s camp to help him with his growth.
Speaking after his sparkling debut, Valverde said about Arnaiz:
“He scored a great goal, he has a powerful shot. It’s a first step. We’ll see if he can help us more.”
Mundo Deportivo believes that the player’s agent has already received calls from United and Arsenal as the two Premier League sides believe the youngster has the skill to be a hit in England.
It is also reported that there is interest from other clubs namely Bayern Munich, Juventus, and Napoli. The Bavarians believe that Arnaiz can be a great replacement for Franck Ribery, who will turn 35 next year.
What sparks the huge interest is the relatively low release clause – which is currently set at €20m. The amount could get doubled if he decides to sign a new contract with the Catalans.
Arnaiz joined Barca in the summer after impressing at Valladolid, where he scored 12 goals and assisted thrice in 35 games. He signed a three-year contract when he joined in August but looking at the amount of interest he’s garnering, it won’t be long before he gets an upgrade.
Jose Mourinho’s penchant to add strength in the wide areas is well known as he unsuccessfully chased Inter Milan’s Ivan Perisic in the summer. Arnaiz wouldn’t be at the same level and won’t be straight away set for the first-team but he’d surely become a big player in the future.
In an inflated market as these days, €20m is almost next-to-nothing; let’s hope we can snap up the youngster.
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