It has been widely reported that Barcelona secured a preferential option to sign Atletico Madrid winger Yannick Carrasco in the summer transfer window as part of the deal that saw Memphis Depay join the Rojiblancos in January.
There have been contradicting claims over the price that was agreed between the two clubs, with some outlets stating it was €15 million and some others reporting it to be €20 million. A few publications have even quoted the amount to be around €9 million.
But the essence of the matter is that Barcelona are understood to be unwilling to pay the €15-20 million fee that was initially agreed for Carrasco and are not planning on offering more than €9-10 million for his services.
Now, though, a fresh report from David G Medina of MARCA, is claiming that the price agreed between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid for the transfer of Carrasco was €19 million. And the Rojiblancos will demand for it to be paid in full if the Catalans wish to sign him this summer.
Carrasco and his agent, Pini Zahavi, tried to engineer a move to Barça during the January window itself. The player was keen on the switch to Spotify Camp Nou, where Xavi Hernandez and his coaching staff were also interested in his arrival.
But, Atletico Madrid stood firm on their stance and refused to sanction an exit. In turn, an agreement was arrived at for Barcelona to sign him in the summer, with the report stating that the fee was set at €19 million.
As iterated earlier, Barça have no intentions of paying that amount as Carrasco is entering the final year of his contract in the summer. It has been reported that the La Liga leaders will try and negotiate a lower fee for the Belgian international.
But, Atletico Madrid are clear that they will accept nothing less than the €19 million fee that had been agreed upon in January and believe that it is more than a fair price for Carrasco. In 38 games this term, the 29-year-old has scored seven goals and set up four more.
There have been talks of a possible swap deal involving Carrasco and Ferran Torres, but such an arrangement would not make sense for Barcelona. So, it remains to be seen what approach they take as they look to sign the Belgian winger come summer.
