Barcelona Seeking Striker
Despite boasting the most formidable attacking trident in world football -– Luis Suarez, Neymar, and newly crowned Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi -– Barcelona are looking to buy a striker this month.
Club manager Luis Enrique said that ideally, he’d like to reinforce the team in several areas, but admitted the frontline is where they were thinnest.
“Right now, I think probably in attack -– if we are to bring someone in,” Enrique told Sport. “In all areas though, it would be nice to bring in reinforcements.”
Barcelona are coming off an 18-month transfer ban and have already had their squad bolstered by the addition of Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal.
But while Barcelona has plenty of attacking midfield options, apart from Suarez, who’s suspended for the club’s next two Spanish Cup matches, the only recognized forwards on the squad are academy products Munir el Haddadi and Sandro Ramirez. Despite showing some initial signs of promise, neither has proven a reliable option since being promoted from Barça’s B team.
Currently, the La Liga champions are being linked with a number of attacking players around Europe. Schalke winger Leroy Sane is one name that’s come up, but the 20-year-old is also reportedly being sought after by Manchester City and Real Madrid; Villarreal attacker Denis Suarez is another name that’s being mentioned in connection with the club.
However, Enrique admitted that signing quality players in the January window is always a challenge.
“It’s harder in winter because teams don’t want to lose players,” said the coach. “It’s not an easy time to operate, but we want to improve our squad and we are looking at players.”
In the meantime, Barcelona will be back in action in the Copa del Rey this week, heading into the second leg of their contentious tie with local rivals Espanyol.
Watch Barcelona vs. Espanyol at 2:55pm ET Wednesday on beINSports..