Barcelona and Manchester City planning major swap deal

Barcelona working on a 2-for-1 deal with Manchester City.

The upcoming transfer window is going to be very unique for Barcelona and for the majority of the usual teams involved.

The pandemic has certainly impacted how business will be done with many claiming that we might not see as much business as usual and the business we do see will involve reduced rates in terms of what teams are paying.

Barcelona have already done one player-swap deal with Juventus and are reportedly planning another such deal.

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According to Sport, Barça is interested in a deal that would see Nelson Semedo go to Manchester City in exchange for Joao Cancelo and Eric Garcia. However, the report claims that any such talks would happen after the Champions League so as to avoid any distractions.

An exchange of right-backs between these two sides had been discussed previously with nothing ever materializing. Jorge Mendes, the agent for both players, is the one that proposed this potential move going so far as to telling the club that a deal could be possible if no extra money was involved.

Semedo had been linked with a move away last season but Barcelona, at the time, considered him untouchable. That has changed despite the Portuguese finally staking claim to the starting right-back position.

Still, he hasn’t reached the potential that the club saw in him when they signed him from Benfica back in 2017. Under Ernesto Valverde he was often second choice behind Sergi Roberto.

There are still question marks when it comes to Cancelo and his ability to defend but Barcelona believe he can improve with the right coaching. He, too, perhaps has not had the impact at City that they imagined he would have.

He’s been the back-up this season to Kyle Walker despite City sending Danilo to Juventus in exchange for Cancelo.

Another reason why Barcelona are so high on Cancelo is they believe he can offer more going forward than Semedo and he has prior experience in La Liga with Valencia. Therefore, the adaptation process should be quick.

As far as Garcia goes, Barcelona already had him in their sights and are heavily interested in bringing him back to his former club. The center-back only has one year left on his contract and has yet to sign an extension.

According to Sport, they’ve notified Samuel Umtiti that they do not count on him for next season and are working on moving him even if it means sending him out on loan. Garcia would be his replacement and be a signing for the long-term as well.

City may also think that he is leaning towards leaving as they are close to completing a deal for Bournemouth center-back Nathan Ake. Shoddy defending was one of City’s downfalls this season and it is likely that Ake won’t be the only defender they sign this offseason.

Should both sides pull this deal off, it would be a deal in which on paper it looks like everyone gets what they want.

City get Semedo who will challenge Kyle Walker for a starting spot. Barcelona get a replacement for Semedo in Cancelo as well as Garcia who will bolster that Catalan defense for years to come.