On Tuesday, many outlets were reporting an article from The Telegraph stating that Barcelona had targeted Southampton’s Cédric Soares as a summer signing to help bolster their defence.
The Catalan club need a new right-back for next season due to Aleix Vidal’s inability to stay fit for an entire season, and the fact that Sergi Roberto is a central midfielder and not a full-back.
Cédric Soares has been linked with a move to Barcelona in the past, so the link was nothing surprising, but Mundo Deportivo have specifically gone out of their way to dismiss the story on Wednesday.
The daily newspaper explain that the story in The Thelegraph [sic] isn’t true, and Barcelona ‘discarded’ the Southampton defender a while back.
They explain he was scouted extensively during his time at Sporting CP as a possible successor to Dani Alves, but they decided to ‘forget about him’ after, we can only assume, his move to St Mary’s.
That said, Mundo Deportivo do think Barcelona’s new right-back will come from abroad, but their main target appears to be Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin.
Southampton fans, and Claude Puel, should be relieved at that news, considering Cédric’s importance to the club this season, helping the Saints reach the League Cup final in the French manager’s first campaign.
