Barcelona keeping tabs on 21-year-old Espanyol full-back – Report | OneFootball

Although strengthening the attack is the main priority of FC Barcelona in the upcoming summer transfer window, the Catalans would also ideally look to reinforce some other parts of the team as well.

As a result, recent weeks have seen the Blaugrana side being linked with the Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia, who perfectly fits the criteria of Hansi Flick’s team.

However, signing him will be very difficult as he has a release clause of €30 million, which will be reduced to €15 million in case of relegation, and there are two Premier League sides, Manchester United and Arsenal, also vying for him.

Meanwhile, according to SPORT, there is another exciting player in Espanyol’s ranks that Barcelona have been following for some time, i.e., the young fullback Omar El Hilali.

The 21-year-old defender has shown incredible growth in the last few years, and his release clause of €15 million makes him quite an affordable and attractive target for the Catalans.

Barcelona have been looking for a right-back for quite some time now. This season, Jules Kounde has been the fixed starter for Hansi Flick at this position and has been playing at a very high level.

However, his replacement in the squad, Hector Fort, is quite inexperienced, and the German coach reportedly wants the club to bring a more competent option for this role going forward.

Thus, Omar is one of the candidates in the Blaugrana club’s mind to strengthen this position. Although he is not the main option at this moment, Barcelona are still keeping a close eye on him, especially as he fits the criteria of youth and projection set by Deco.

It remains to be seen whether the Blaugrana side will make a move for him in the coming summer, especially as their economic situation is also quite uncertain and they have other priority areas to address.