Barça closing in on Ferran Torres signing

BarcelonaHours after the last game of 2021 in Seville, which ended with a draw, Barça closed in on its first winter signing. It is no secret Xavi Hernandez needs strikers, and Manchester City's Ferran Torres is his most desired short-term fix. For that reason, the Spanish striker is about to move from Manchester to Barcelona.

Barça have already closed the deal with the player, and now the clubs have to agree on a transfer fee. The fixed amount has been set at €55m, but variables are yet to be discussed. These will range from €10m to €12m. The Barça has sought a player swap, in order to free up cash and lower the transfer fee. City, however, were unsure and, after valuing Torres at €70m, will sell it for more than double what they paid for him a year and a half ago (€25m to Valencia). The club managed by Ferran Soriano and Txiki Beguiristain, among others, will have made a killing.

Barça is able to make signings because a few months ago Goldman Sachs helped it secure loans. It has also recovered box office revenue from the Camp Nou after over a year in which the stadium was closed. However, the club's salaries continue to exceed the limits established by Fair Play rules. In fact, it was only able to register Dani Alves after Kun Agüero announced his retirement. The Brazilian will play his first game back in blue and red in the Copa del Rey against Linares; Torres, however, will not be able to play until Barça sorts its wages/revenue balance. Right now, the club can only register signings following the rule of one-tp-four, meaning it can only spend one euro for every four that are released.

All roads lead to CVC

So, in order to aim for bigger additions, such as Torres, Barça need to get rid of players earning higher salaries, such as Samuel Umtiti's or Philippe Coutinho's; renew players like Sergi Roberto on a lower salary; or sell players off in order to generate revenue and reduce the wage bill. The last factor puts the focus on Ousmane Dembélé, who, unless he accepts a renewal offer, will most likely be sold off, as is Sergiño Dest. Yusuf Demir hasn't played since Barça drew against Benfica (0-0), and Barça will most likely return him to Rapid Vienna to avoid the additional €10m payment should he play in ten official games. He has for now played in nine and has been suffering from mysterious gastric problems which have kept him out of the past two.