Spanish midfielder Martin Zubimendi is on the verge of signing with FC Barcelona this summer. The 24-year-old has admirers in La Liga and the Premier League. Recently, Arsenal failed to secure his signature with a £53m transfer bid.
According to the Mirror, Barcelona have shown interest in securing Zubimendi's signature in the summer. The Spaniard has a £53m (€60m) release clause in his contract at Real Sociedad and will be a huge attraction in European football in the upcoming transfer window. Since his emergence from Sociedad's youth system, the 24-year-old has made 138 appearances for the club.
Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez is hoping to secure a new holding midfielder after the confirmed departure of Sergio Busquets. Although Frenkie de Jong was signed as Busquets' replacement, the Dutch midfielder has also been linked with a move away to Manchester United in the summer.
Moreover, de Jong has never taken the holding midfielder role constantly. He has usually played with Busquets in the middle with the Spaniard staying deep.
With two midfielders likely to leave in one window, the Catalans only have Pedri and Gavi in the middle, and both take advanced positions.
Xavi said back in January, “He (Zubimendi) is a more physical and faster player than Busquets, who is technically better. But not only Zubimendi, all of Real Sociedad’s midfield players. We are playing a great team and Zubimendi is a great footballer.”
“We work in the same way in grassroots football. But La Real works very well with the academy. We lack a defensive pivot who is the future replacement for Busquets.”
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