Barcelona ready to turn to Angel Di Maria if rumoured fourth bid for Philippe Coutinho fails

Sport360 staff 22:39 19/08/2017
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  • While there are rumours Barcelona will return with a fourth bid of around €150m to prise Philippe Coutinho away from Liverpool, Blaugrana have another go-to option.

    And that man is Angel Di Maria.

    Despite a fractured relationship between Barca and Paris Saint-Germain following the world-record transfer of Neymar, the Spanish giants have weighed-up a deal for the Argentine.

    According to Sport, Barca hierarchy have become increasingly frustrated in their pursuit of Coutinho and Borussia Dortmund’s Ousmane Dembele – despite having big transfer funds at their disposal.

    With neither of those sagas seemingly close to a conclusion, the club are under pressure to satisfy a frustrated fan base with a big-name signing.

    “Barca are not going to sit twiddling their thumbs if they don’t sign their two main objectives for this summer,” a Barca source is reported as saying by the Spanish news outlet.

    The recent purchase of Paulinho has not filled the void left by Neymar and sporting director Robert Fernandez is ready to switch his attention to Di Maria.

    The 29-year-old, who signed for the Parc des Princes side in 2015 following a disappointing season with Manchester United, has two years left on his current deal in the French capital and a bid in the region of €50m could land the winger.

    PSG are looking to recoup some of the €222m they spent on Neymar, helping the Parisian club stay in line with Financial Fair Play regulations.

    Di Maria’s past Real Madrid connection may be a sticking point in any transfer but Barca are desperate for extra firepower in forward areas.

    The talented winger certainly fits that criteria.

    It has also been reported that Barca could sign Nice midfielder Jean-Michael Seri as early as next week.

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