Five Barcelona stars, including ‘untouchable’ captain, attracting interest from Saudi Arabia | OneFootball

Barcelona recently returned from their trip to Saudi Arabia which proved to be an extremely successful one as they won the first trophy of the Hansi Flick era, lifting the Spanish Super Cup by beating Real Madrid 5-2.

The trip also allowed Barça sporting director Deco to meet with officials from Saudi Arabian clubs and agents in order to take stock of the transfer market and gauge their interest in some Barcelona players.

After all, the Blaugrana could be open to one or two sales this month in order to bring in Marcus Rashford from Manchester United. If not now, business can also be done in the summer, considering the Saudi market is flush with cash.

Five Barcelona stars in demand

As such, SPORT reports that as many as five Barcelona stars are attracting interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia.

The players in question are ace striker Robert Lewandowski, out-of-favour forward Ansu Fati, defender Andreas Christensen and club captains Raphinha and Frenkie de Jong.

De Jong and Lewandowski on Saudi Arabia’s radars. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Some of these deals seem implausible, for example, Raphinha is considered ‘untouchable’ by Barcelona given his form and importance.

Lewandowski’s sale also appears unlikely, although Barça are aware that he could fetch a substantial fee in the summer, even though he will be turning 37 years old.

The situation could be different for the other three players, however.

After all, Barcelona recognise that the contractual situations of De Jong and Christensen (both under contract until 2026), will need resolution at the earliest. Failure to renew could lead to sales.

Additionally, the Catalans are also keen to part ways with Ansu Fati, whose contract runs until 2027, to ease the wage bill.

Deco has been actively working to piece together the puzzle for January, while also laying the groundwork for the summer and deals with clubs from Saudi Arabia could be an avenue that Barcelona explore further.