Barcelona prepare fresh push to complete the signing of veteran defender | OneFootball

Portugal’s World Cup hopes ended in dismay last night when the Cristiano Ronaldo-led side succumbed to a narrow defeat at the hands of Spain.

After the final whistle, Barcelona players were seen consoling Portugal’s fullback Joao Cancelo, who was on loan in Catalonia during the second half of last season. Gavi even had a message for the defender afterwards.

Nevertheless, Barcelona are keen on prolonging Cancelo’s stay in Catalonia. It was even reported that Portugal’s exit may only help Barça fast-track the pursuit.

Barcelona preparing fresh push

Now, a recent report from MARCA suggests that Barcelona are preparing a fresh push for Cancelo, following Portugal’s exit from the World Cup.

Portugal’s campaign ended after a defeat to Spain. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

Negotiations had already begun earlier in the summer, but they were put on hold due to the World Cup. Now, Barcelona have reinstated their pursuit of the defender and want to accelerate the deal.

A key driver behind the renewed push is Hansi Flick, who has personally asked Deco to keep Cancelo at the club.

The Portuguese international performed at a high level during his loan spell last season, to the point where he effectively took the starting berth from Alejandro Balde.

The Catalans remain confident that they can attain Cancelo’s services by the start of next season, although there are some obstacles.

What are the obstacles?

Will Cancelo return to Barcelona? (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

For Barcelona, the biggest obstacle is Cancelo’s high salary at Al Hilal, which makes it quite expensive to terminate the contract.

To help find a solution, Cancelo is expected to make his desire to leave abundantly clear to the Saudi club, in the hope of facilitating a departure that works for all parties.

Even so, Barcelona are under no illusions that this will be a straightforward negotiation.

The club acknowledge the deal could take longer than anticipated, not only because of the financial differences involved but also due to certain tax issues that need to be resolved.

Despite this, the optimism within the Barcelona hierarchy remains high that a solution can ultimately be found.