Southampton have held talks with Barcelona with regards to signing Cristian Tello this summer. The Spaniard spent last season on loan with Serie A side Fiorentina.
Italian journalist Gianluca di Marzio has revealed Southampton officials travelled to Spain last weekend to hold talks with Barcelona and also Tello’s agent. With Sadio Mane leaving for Liverpool yesterday, Southampton need to bring in someone to fill the void.
The attacker looks surplus to requirements given the forwards ahead of him in the pecking order at the Camp Nou, and he may need to move on permanently this summer. A decision is expected in the coming days following the talks with the Premier League side.
However, Fiorentina are keen to extend his stay in Italy, but the Barcelona man is undecided at the moment if he wants to remain in Serie A. Tello was at FC Porto the season before and he may well prefer to settle somewhere more long term, rather than another loan.
La Liga giants Valencia have also been linked with Tello, and if the player wants a return to Spain then this could be his preferred option. Interestingly, Catalan newspaper Sport on Wednesday runs an article covering Barcelona interest in Andre Gomes.
It stated that Valencia may be happy to receive players as part of the deal, and named Tello as a possibility.
