Joan Laporta took advantage of his appearance at a tribute to Johan Cruyff in order to give an update on Barcelona‘s situation in the transfer market, and insists that Frenkie de Jong is not leaving the Camp Nou this summer.
The president was optimistic about retaining De Jong, extended an olive-branch to Ousmane Dembele, and was cautious about Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha.
On De Jong, he broke from the trend of information that has been circulating in recent days and, despite indications that the Dutchman is close to a move to Manchester United, Laporta played it down.
“We have no intention of selling him and he wants to stay. Manchester United are not the only ones who want him,” Laporta insisted.
Regarding Robert Lewandowski, the Barcelona president acknowledged that Bayern Munich are not making it easy for him and thanked the Pole for making his desire to wear the Blaugrana shirt clear.
“Lewandowski is a Bayern player and I prefer to remain reserved on this. We thank him for wanting to come to Barcelona and we are very flattered,” Laporta added.
As for Dembele, the president explained that the offer presented to him by the club to renew his contract is still valid.
“If he accepts our financial offer, he will stay,” Laporta said. “We haven’t set time limits for anything.”
The Raphinha case
The president also spoke about the possible move for a player on the right flank. Raphinha is still waiting for the club to make a move despite having other offers.
“We have spoken to Leeds and I don’t think they will be offended. We have communication. What happens is that there are other clubs who want Raphinha and they are making their proposals,” Laporta said.
Gavi’s renewal
One issue that is still pending for Barcelona is the renewal of Gavi. Everything points to the situation being resolved, though.
“Gavi is doing very well. We are very satisfied with how everything has developed with Ivan De la Pena and with the player”, Laporta assured Blaugrana fans.
