A few days ago Sport put together a list of Barcelona players who are, more or less, for sale in the upcoming windows, beginning with January. The club want to trim the squad, bring some money in, and do something about their wage bill being 84% of turnover.
One of the players mentioned was Gerard Deulofeu, who it’s believed has a good market in Italy. Deulofeu went to AC Milan last season on loan from Everton, and probably would have returned had it not been for Barcelona’s buying option.
Any sale needs Everton’s permission, and will see a big chunk of the fee going to Goodison Park.
Former Everton manager Roberto Martinez explained the clause back in 2015: “If they take him back they can’t sell him for a season, so he has to stay in the first-team squad for a season. At the end of that if they decide to sell him we have got first rights of getting him back or we have got a big percentage of that deal. There is nothing we can do if they activate it. That was the deal and the only way we could access the player in the terms that we wanted. I’m delighted with the deal.”
Tuesday’s edition of another Catalan newspaper, Mundo Deportivo, reiterates that Deulofeu is being edged towards the exit, now that Barcelona’s ‘patience has worn out’.
The 23 year old isn’t doing anything particularly irritating behind the scenes, he just hasn’t fulfilled his potential, explain Mundo, and isn’t at the required level for Barcelona.
That would lead to Everton being asked for permission over a sale, something they have no obvious reason to hold back, and then Deulofeu needs to find a new club. However, with the recent managerial change at AC Milan, it’s stated that route is now less likely.
Mundo Deportivo don’t believe, perhaps wrongly, Deulofeu is the type of player Genaro Gatusso, Milan’s latest manager, will want.
Everton will be watching the situation closely.
