Barcelona have faced frustration in their potential pursuit of Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans, and believe he ‘has already closed the deal with another club’.
That’s according to Marca, who say the Belgian may have already secured his move away from the Foxes this summer.
He has been a star for the side since an initial loan deal in January 2019, a move which proved to be so successful it was made into a permanent one that summer for €45m.
Tielemans has since gone on to make 187 appearances for Leicester in total, establishing himself as a key player under Brendan Rodgers and scoring 28 goals and registering 25 assists.
He has very much developed into the player many expected him to be from a young age, shining in Leicester’s successes in recent years.
Marca say that Barcelona are one of the clubs looking at him, with their financial situation meaning they need to explore as many free agents as they can to bolster their squad.
Tielemans falls into that bracket and would have been a ‘good option’ to cover for Sergio Busquets but those in charge at the Camp Nou ‘suspect’ that he has already finalised a deal to join someone else.
They make no mention of whom that club may be, just that the deal for him has already been finalised ahead of the summer.
Now, Tielemans has been free to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with clubs around Europe since January under the Bosman ruling but that does not include English teams.
Of course, that does not mean his agents haven’t been working and reports in England have stated Arsenal have recently been in talks, while Liverpool are another option as they plan to reinvent their midfield.
Whether it is either of those sides who have the player signed up remains to be seen but in Barcelona’s eyes at least, the Leicester man has already arranged his next club.
