With Barcelona soon needing to start working on player exits, there are several stars on the roster whose futures are yet to be resolved.
One such player who finds himself in an uncertain situation is Memphis Depay. The 28-year-old joined the club only last year and enjoyed a solid debut season, finishing with 13 goals across all competitions.
However, heading into the new campaign, Depay has been rendered surplus to requirements at Camp Nou, following the signings of Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, coupled with the re-signing of Ousmane Dembele and Ansu Fati’s return from injury.
And, according to SPORT, Barcelona are thus keen on offloading the 28-year-old forward this summer. The report further states that manager Xavi Hernandez has already had a word with Depay, explaining the situation to him in detail.
The 42-year-old Barça head coach is understood to have told the former Manchester United attacker that he will not be playing regularly next season due to the overloaded attacking department and has informed him that an exit would be the best option.
Depay, for his part, is open to leaving the club. However, the Dutchman wants Barcelona to let him leave on a free transfer as he had joined the Catalans on a Bosman deal last summer and had accepted a lower wage than he would have received elsewhere
But Barça have reportedly slapped a price tag of €20 million on the Netherlands striker, amidst interest from the likes of Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur.
So, it will be interesting to see of they are willing to heed to Depay’s request and sanction an exit for a free transfer, even though he still has a year left on his current contract with the club.