Barcelona have reportedly identified their main midfield target to replace departed club icon Sergio Busquets.
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Busquets bid farewell to the Blaugrana in the best possible fashion as he helped the club win their first league title in four years at the end of the 2022/23 season.
The La Masia alumni had been an ever-present in the Barca team since breaking into the first team under Pep Guardiola, and now, with the 2010 FIFA World Cup winner plying his trade with Inter Miami, the Spanish giants are still looking for a long-term replacement for the deep-lying playmaker.
A plethora of names who could succeed the defensive midfielder have been floated in recent months. Joshua Kimmich, Ruben Neves and Martin Zubimendi are all players who are said to be of interest to the five-time European champions, but now, according to Sport, the club's new sporting director Deco envisages Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz as that successor.
The 25-year-old has been an integral part of the Villans' surprise Premier League title charge this season, and his performances have put many elite European sides on high alert regarding his availability.
Arsenal tried to sign the Brazil international in the middle of the previous campaign but failed, leaving the door ajar for the likes of Barca to enter the fray this time around.
Given his displays, the same report suggests that Villa could ask for a fee as high as €100 million (R2 billion) for the player, an amount that could prove difficult for the LALIGA champions to match given their continuous financial woes.
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Despite this, Deco is said to have been to England on various occasions in recent months to watch the Rio de Janeiro native, and is believed to be a massive fan and wants to see him in the Barca uniform come next season.
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