No Verratti? Better Call Saul! Or Kovacic!

  Ernesto Valverde's side, FC Barcelona, are looking to bolster their midfield this summer. They want to find a suitable replacement for ageing Andres Iniesta.

   The Catalans have had a tough season, winning only Copa Del Rey. They lost La Liga to historic rivals Real Madrid, and got kicked out from Champions League quarter final by Italian giants, Juventus.

   Barca's midfield was disasterous, with Andre Gomez failing to make an impact, and the diappointing form of both, Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitic.

   There have been rumours linking Marco Verratti with the Blaugrana, but Paris Saint Germain will refuse any offer for the dynamo.

   The French giants have a clear plan. Their objective is to succeed in Europe and if that is going to happen, they must keep their key players.
   
   Moreover, the club is one of the richest clubs in the world which means they don't have to sell players for money, and no price can lure them.

   This barrier led Barcelona to search for other options to strengthen their midfield.

   According to Sky Sports, the Catalans are keen on signing Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez. Barcelona are ready to pay €80 million for their long-time-target. But Atletico Madrid are banned from bringing new players to the Vicente Calderon, by FIFA. This means that the Madrid side are desperate to keep their players which makes the deal unlikely.

   In this case, Barcelona will switch their interest towards Real's Mateo Kovacic, who's being tipped to become a long-term-replacement for Croatian team-mate Luka Modric.

   Don Ballon reports that Ernesto Valverde will work hard to make Kovacic one of the few players who switch from the Santiago Bernabeu to the Camp Nou.

   It also claims that the 23-year-old has no intention of leaving Los Blancos, as he is considered to be one of Real's big stars in the years to come. Moreover, he was reliable when needed in the center of the park in the absence of the star players, which contributed to Real winning the Champions League and La Liga.

Barcelona Ask Veratti To Force His Way Out!

   New Barcelona coach, Ernesto Valverde, who was appointed last month hopes to leave his mark by signing new players to bolster the squad. Reports say that Marco Verratti is from the club's priorities.

   According to The Sun, Verratti wants to move away from PSG, but the club isn't willing to sell the player, whose contract ends in 2021. Barcelona could also face financial complications, for Juventus and Chelsea are also interested in the star, and are ready to pay £55 million. Reports in Spain indicate that entering a bidding war isn't a choice for Barca who "are aware of the economic limitations" they face in the transfer market. The club may be one of the richest clubs in the world, but at the same time its the highest-wage-paying club.

   Verratti, who once declared he's happy at Parc de Princes, is now desperate to take his career to next level and win more trophies. And Barcelona happens to be the right place for such dreams. Meanwhile, the Catalans are having hard time replacing Xavi, and soon enough aging Iniesta,33. This means the Italian will be the perfect fit in the Blaugrana's suffering midfield, and could be the solution for their problems.

   The 24-year-old's desire is Camp Nou, deducing from Blaise Matuidi's question to Iniesta if Verratti is his successor, during the famous UCL game which ended 4-0 in favour of the Parisians. Iniesta gave Matuidi a positive answer! Therefore, if Verratti really wants Barca switch, he should force his way out, by informing the board of directors of his wishes, so that the Catalans can start negotiating, lowering the price. Chelsea's interest in Monaco's Bakayoko, could open the doors for Nemanja Matic to leave for Juventus who are interested in signing the Serbian, thus the battle for Verratti won't be fierce, and Barca would land him easily.

   Barcelona used this strategy before with Cesc Fabregas, who ended his transfer saga by joining his former local club. Arsenal refused to sell back then, but Fabregas revealed his desire to leave the club, so the deal took place eventually. Reports also claim that the Spanish giants will repeat the same scenario with Hector Bellerin.

   

Lionel Messi Hails Phenomenal Cristiano Ronaldo And Hints On Contract Renewal

   There has been a debate in the past decade about the best player in the world. The competition is limited between the two incredible players, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

   According to The Telegraph, Lionel Messi hailed the Portoguese's title winning season, and insisted that the rivalry between the two has been created by the media.

   Ronaldo was exceptional in the 2nd half of the season, netting his 600th career goal, and his 105th for Los Blancos. Although he struggled at the beginning of the season, his performances later on were impressive. His efforts helped Real Madrid win La Liga for the 1st time in a while, and brought back the Champions League trophy to the Santiago Bernabeu for the 2nd time in a row. Now he is the #1 nominee to win Ballon d'Or.

   Messi also admitted to Tencent Sports, while on international duty, that he was overwhelmed by Ronaldo's recent performances.

"He is a phenomenal player who has many qualities that  he improves year after year  and that is why he is one of the best in the world,"

  And about their rivalry he added:

 "That thing about our rivalry is something more invented by the press than by us.What we want is to do our best every year, to do the best for our teams and what is spoken from outside is not something I give importance to."

   Meanwhile the 5-time-Ballon d'Or-winner revealed his desire to stay at the Camp Nou, to assure reports claiming the Argentine is ready to sign a 5-year-deal with Barcelona.

  "Today, I only think of my day today, in Barcelona, where I am at," Messi said.

  "To strive to achieve and get the most titles that we can, because in football, we don't know what could happen in the year to come. So I like to take it calm and little by little."

  "Staying with Barca is what I have always wanted, what I have always dreamt of. I said that I would like to end my career in Barcelona, and we will see if it ends that way."

   And by this declaration, Messi played down all speculations about his future. The 29-year-old was linked with a move to Manchester City where he can rejoin his ex-mentor Josep Pep Guardiola, who was keen on the debatably best player in the world. Moreover there has been talks about him jheading to China when Football Espana reported the Chinese were willing to offer unbelievable £500 million per year, tax free, for the ace."
 

Ousmane Dembele to Barcelona?

    Barcelona-based newspaper Mundo Deportivo claims the Catalan giants have set their sights on the French international Ousmane Dembele, after going cold on Gerard Deulofeu.
 
    The La Masia graduate may be out of Valverde's plans. The winger has had a great season with the Toffees, and even a better one with Italian giants AC Milan, which fueled talks about getting him back to Camp Nou, especially with the clause in his Everton move which allows Barca to rebuy him for a decent amount of money. But the drama that has happened recently in Borussia Dortmund, by sacking Thomas Tuchel despite winning the German Cup, created an atmosphere of uncertainty for the players, which made Barcelona renew their interest in the starlet who scored 10 goals and claimed 18 assists in 47 games.

   Ernesto Valverde is said to take advantage of the situation and sign the player. Barcelona are in need for players with Dembele's skills. With Coutinho doubting his ability to fit in Barcelona, and Turan leaving alongside with Rafinha and Dennis Suarez who are rumoured EPL targets, the deal looks likely to happen. If Barcelona propose an offer in these circumstances, it's hard for the 20-year-old to say NO to one of the biggest clubs in Europe. Meanwhile other reports claim even the player has showed interest in a Barcelona switch.
 
   Few hours ago, Samuel Umtiti, Dembele's France team-mate revealed to L'Equipe that the winger would thrive at the Camp Nou even jokingly offered to join him up. He added:"We get on really well. I know Barca are interested in his profile, but all the parties need to reach an agreement. Dembele would do well with us, with the quality he has, he's capable of adding a lot. If he comes, he will be welcome, but it still needs to be official to talk about that. If he comes, he can sleep at my house!"