Latest reports claim that Barcelona are close to securing a loan to fund their transfer bid for Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski.
The 33-year-old Polish striker has been linked with a move away from Bayern after eight years at the club, eight Bundesliga titles, three DFB Pokal titles, Torjaegerkannone awards, and one UEFA Champions League title.
Lewandowski is said to be looking for another challenge after spending his prime years with the Bavarians and has been reported to be ready to take a pay cut to join Barcelona. Bayern Munich, however, continue to insist that their striker is not for sale at the end of the season and will keep him until 2023, the final year of his contract.
Barcelona, on the other hand, are looking for a marketable face who can also contribute greatly to their football project as they rebuild their club. Lewandowski and Salah are the two targets of president Joan Laporta, who has given up on his pursuit of Erling Haaland due to the economic implications of the Norwegian’s signing.
The Catalans have been makind do with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Lewandowski’s former striker partner from their Borussia Dortmund days. While the Gabon international has produced decent returns in front of goal for the Blaugrana, there are no indications that he will remain at the club beyond his six-month deal.
Laporta has also put every member of the team but his seven wonder kids – Pablo Gavira ‘Gavi’, Ferran Torres, Anssumane Fati, Eric Garcia, Pedri Gonzalez, Nico Gonzalez and Ronald Araujo – on the transfer list. This means that other attackers in the team could be leaving at the end of the season, necessitating the signing of a new striker.
To this effect, the club have reportedly made giant strides in securing a lucrative financial agreement with private equity firm CVC that will give the club the finances to pursue Lewandowski.
Lewandowski will only offer a short term solution for Barcelona’s striker issues which calls to question the need for the injection of funds to facilitate his switch from the Allianz Arena to Camp Nou Next season.
Mundo Deportivo reports that the CVC partnership would secure €270 million worth of investment for Barcelona. The primary aim is Lewandowski’s transfer, but the rest will go into settling some of the urgent needs in other areas of the club.
It has also been reported that Bayern could accept an offer of €40 million for the striker, which is considered to be a substantial cost for a player of his calibre and age.
