Barcelona have missed out on two top attacking targets as Kevin Gameiro has joined Atletico Madrid, with Luciano Vietto heading to Sevilla.
Luis Enrique had been keen to bring in additional competition and depth at Barca this season, with the attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar undoubtedly being first on the team-sheet.
As reported by The Sun, he had lined up Gameiro as one of his top targets, but the French man has opted to join rivals Atleti instead, which will give him the opportunity to pair up with compatriot Antoine Griezmann in the Spanish capital.
Given that he scored 29 goals in all competitions last season, that in itself was enough of a blow to Barca, but the report goes on to add that they’ve suffered a double setback with Vietto confirmed as being part of the deal, moving to Sevilla on a season-long loan deal.
In turn, Enrique will now have to look elsewhere to find a back-up striker, with various individuals around Europe likely to become their next top target.
It hasn’t all been negative for the reigning La Liga champions though, as they have been able to strengthen their squad already this summer.
Lucas Digne and Samuel Umtiti have arrived to shore up the defence, while Denis Suarez and Andre Gomes have been added to the midfield to add fierce competition for places.
The signing of Gameiro or Vietto would undoubtedly have been a key piece in Enrique’s work as he still seeks a quality alternative in order to rest the likes of Suarez and Messi on occasion. However, his search will now have to go elsewhere with Diego Simeone boasting his own prolific strike force next season.