News Focus
- Barcelona face growing difficulties in their pursuit of Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni
- Inter demand €70m for the Italy international but Barcelona only want to pay €50m
- Sporting director Deco identifies AS Roma’s Evan N’Dicka as a potential backup target
- Roma value the Ivory Coast centre-back at approximately €40m
- Manager Hansi Flick has not yet made a final decision on his preferred defensive signing
FC Barcelona are exploring other options in their search for a new centre-back. The Catalan giants have targeted Inter Milan star Alessandro Bastoni for several months. However, the transfer now looks increasingly difficult.
The Italian international previously showed interest in moving to Spotify Camp Nou. But recent reports suggest he plans to extend his contract at Inter for at least one more season. This news comes as a blow to the Spanish club.
Money is also a major problem. Inter Milan demand €70 million for the defender. Barcelona are only prepared to pay €50 million. This large gap makes the deal complicated.
Because of these issues, sporting director Deco has started looking at different players. According to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, AS Roma defender Evan N’Dicka is now on their radar.
Barcelona showed interest in the Ivory Coast international back in 2023. At that time, he played for Eintracht Frankfurt and could have joined for free. Now he would cost much more.
Roma want around €40 million for the 25-year-old. This price fits better with Barcelona’s budget. However, manager Hansi Flick has not decided if he prefers N’Dicka or Bastoni.
The club will only seriously chase N’Dicka if the Bastoni transfer collapses. For now, they remain focused on trying to sign the Inter defender.