This could wind up being a busy summer for Joan Laporta and Barcelona.
The Catalans know that they have to spend wisely but spend big if they want to bring in the players who can transform them once more, and place them back firmly atop the European tree.
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A confirmed interest in Erling Haaland appears to have been the stake in the ground for Laporta in the sense that it’s a show of strength from him and his board that they mean business.
If Lionel Messi is to be kept hold of, then a winning team is a pre-requisite and Haaland certainly fits into that bracket.
Any move for the Norwegian won’t stop the club going after Lyon’s Memphis Depay, however.
The player has long been a target of Ronald Koeman’s, and Sport report that the board have agreed to bring the player to the club once his contract with the French club finishes at the end of June.
Depay’s hire will see Martin Braithwaite depart and, unlike the Dane, Depay can play in a number of attacking positions with aplomb.
With no transfer fee involved, the move is a no-brainer for the Catalans.