Barcelona may deal cruel double blow to Chelsea despite bidding less for Raphinha

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Barcelona may be dealt a double blow in their pursuit of Leeds winger Raphinha. The Spanish giants are keen to bring the Brazilian to the Nou Camp to team him up with Ousmane Dembele – describing the two as “compatible.”

But Chelsea’s interest in both Raphinha and Dembele could come as a double blow for Barca. Talks over a new contract for Dembele stalled at the club and he has now become a free agent, upon the expiry of his deal. 

The winger is reportedly yet to respond to the Catalan’s latest contract offer, but he is said to be wanting a better offer on improved terms from the financially troubled club. Thomas Tuchel is thought to have made the Frenchman a main target, being well familiar with the player from his time coaching at Borussia Dortmund.

Meanwhile, Raphinha is not short of suitors who are keen to secure his signature, though Barca are at a disadvantage. Given their financial situation, they have bid less than Chelsea and Tottenham who are both also seeking his signature. 

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The Catalan side has reportedly bid £43m for the winger, while both Spurs and Blues have bid £65m – but it now all lies in the player’s decision. According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, both the Brazil star and Barca had a full agreement with his agent Deco since February on a five-year deal, but the only thing that has stopped the Spanish side from securing a deal was due to not being able to meet was the price tag of around £60m, demanded by Leeds. 

Which has of course, given the chance for other clubs to pursue his signature, but nonetheless, Barca are still “optimistic” over his signing, because the player prefers a switch to the Nou Camp. 

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Whereas Tuchel is also keen on signing Dembele to add to his attacking options following the return of Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan on a season-long loan. Speaking about the forward, Barca boss Xavi said: “Negotiations are ongoing and we are going to be optimistic.

“I hope he can stay – he has helped us a lot during the last six months. He’s a decisive player with lots of assists and he has been excellent in many games. When he hasn’t played, we’ve missed him. He is a football player that I like, and we’d like to stay, but we’ll have to see.”

But that may just prove to be a difficult task for the Catalan side who are struggling to meet the demands of the player. The 25-year-old who enjoyed a period under the German boss at the Signal Iduna Park has been left with a long-lasting impression of Tuchel.

“Thomas Tuchel really convinced me, he is my favourite manager,” Dembele told BeIN Sports. “With Tuchel I played a bit more on the right side at the beginning of the season and then I was moved more centrally in the 10 position, sometimes even in the midfield three, and he told me to stay a bit more central, have an expresso as he used to say to me, the ball will come to you and then you will go.

“It would have been hard to leave Dortmund if Tuchel had stayed.”
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