Barcelona chief 'flying to England for Raphinha talks'

With Ousmane Dembele expected to leave the Camp Nou in the summer, Xavi is looking to strengthen his side in the final third ahead of the 2022-23 season.

According to the Daily Mail, Barcelona are keen to sign Raphinha from Leeds, with sporting director Alemany set to fly to England this week to begin talks with Leeds about the possible signing.

Although Alemany is expected to travel to the United Kingdom, a deal is far from done, with the transfer fee an apparent issue.

The report suggests that Leeds are asking for a fee in the region of £55m, while Barcelona are hoping to pay no more than £35m for the attacker.

Barcelona could face competition from other clubs such as Liverpool, who have reportedly shown an interest, so the La Liga side could offer players like Oscar Mingueza as part of a potential deal.

In his 67 appearances for Leeds, Raphinha has scored 17 goals for the club, while he also helped Jesse Marsch's side avoid relegation in the 2021-22 campaign.