Barça received $14 million for Kessie and decided which player they will buy

One of Barcelona's main objectives this summer is to get rid of players that coach Xavi Hernández does not consider a priority, in order to reduce the total amount of the squad's salaries, receive money from their sales and be able to comply with the viability plan they presented to La Liga a few weeks ago. The first to leave was Samuel Umtiti, while others could follow suit, such as Clement Lenglet.

That is what happened with Franck Kessie. The Ivory Coast midfielder had joined Catalunya in 2022 from AC Milan, but his performances never lived up to expectations. This made him lose his place in the team, as the manager preferred Frenkie De Jong, Gavi and Pedri. Moreover, this year his chances of playing were going to be even less due to the arrival of Ilkay Gundogan and Oriol Romeu.

That is why his departure to Al-Ahli was greeted with joy by Joan Laporta. Kessie will partner Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino and Edouard Mendy at the Saudi Arabian club, who will pay $14 million for him. The Blaugranas have already decided what they will do with that money: according to newspaper As, they will try to sign Pablo Maffeo.

Xavi Hernández considers it necessary to bring in a right-back. Although the favorites were Joao Cancelo and Juan Foyth, their signings were ruled out due to the high value that Manchester City and Villarreal, respectively, placed on them. That is why Maffeo became an interesting option, winning the competition to Iván Fresneda.

The chosen one

Pablo Maffeo is 26 years old. He started his career in Girona in 2015, then went through Manchester City, Stuttgart and Huesca until arriving in Mallorca in 2021. There he played 73 games and showed performances that caught the attention of several clubs in Europe. His exit clause is €30 million, but according to reports the Spanish club is willing to sell him for €8 million.