Ideal Barcelona target asked to leave, denied £35m+ move from England

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Arsenal right-back Hector Bellerin asked to leave the club earlier this summer, amid interest from former club Barcelona.

Having been fiercely frustrated by Liverpool in their very public pursuit of Philippe Coutinho, it seems as though they weren’t the only club that denied Barcelona one of their primary targets.

While they eventually went on to sign Nelson Semedo from Benfica to solve their long-standing issue at right-back, BBC journalist David Ornstein has revealed that Bellerin asked to leave Arsenal, one of many issues that Arsene Wenger faced this past summer.

The Sun previously reported in July how Bellerin told the Gunners that he wanted to rejoin his former club, with Barcelona said to be willing to pay £35m+ for the Spanish international.

However, they went on to add that Wenger stepped in and rejected his request to leave and so Barcelona were in turn forced to look elsewhere and wrap up a deal for Semedo.

That would suggest that Bellerin has now missed his opportunity to return to the Catalan giants, but it will now be up to him to be professional and continue to develop at Arsenal to help the club make progress and secure success on the pitch.

As for Barcelona, they’ll have to hope that their alternative targets deliver for Ernesto Valverde with Ousmane Dembele and Paulinho also having plenty to prove.

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