Chelsea ‘in Touch’ With Barcelona Midfielder Over Shock Late Transfer

Barcelona still need a cash injection to finish registering their full squad.

Fermín López has been an important depth player for Barcelona. / Eric Alonso/Getty Images

Chelsea’s summer spending may not yet be over following a report that the Blues are “evaluating the possibility” of a deal for Barcelona attacking midfielder Fermín López.

Chelsea have committed up to £293.7 million ($395.8 million) on nine players this summer, yet the club has managed to bring almost as much back in—£273.4 million if all add-ons are paid. Nicolas Jackson, Christopher Nkunku and Tyrique George also remain available.

Interest in López seems opportunistic. The 22-year-old La Masia graduate has scored 19 goals across his two seasons in Barcelona’s first-team and is a huge success story of the club’s renewed reliance on their academy due to the financial constraints of recent times.

The Athletic writes that Chelsea are “in touch” with López’s camp, considering him an option to boost the squad should there be further exits before the transfer deadline. No contact has been made with Barcelona at this stage.

López often chips in with goals from midfield. / JOSEP LAGO/AFP via Getty Images

The Catalans are still unable to register their full squad. Marcus Rashford and Joan García had to wait for approval to play in La Liga until just ahead of the season opener earlier this month. But Wojciech Szczęsny, Roony Bardghji and Gerard Martín are still sidelined by spending restrictions.

Home-grown midfielder Marc Casadó had been touted as a sacrificial lamb, but it could be tempting to cash in on López to unlock those final registrations if Chelsea opt to advance initial interest.

Barcelona likely have the attacking midfield depth to absorb an exit. Dani Olmo and Gavi can both play the No. 10 role, while Raphinha is more an option now that Rashford has strengthened the left flank. Hansi Flick also included 17-year-old Dro Fernández in the club’s pre-season squad.

López’s career trajectory was nearly very different. He spent the 2022–23 season on loan with Linares in Spain’s third division and almost signed for Polish club Raków Częstochowa in a deal that would have banked just €600,000 ($699,123). That transfer fell through and he was instead soon catapulted into the first-team after a strong pre-season from which he never looked back.

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