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Barcelona’s summer shake-up is set to continue with Arturo Vidal and Luis Suarez expected to follow Ivan Rakitic out of the Camp Nou.
The Catalan giants announced on Tuesday that Rakitic has left for former side Sevilla after six years and 13 titles with the club. The 32-year-old midfielder leaves for a fee of €1.5 million-plus €9m in variables and has signed a four-year contract.
Vidal could be the next midfielder to depart. The Chile international is in talks with Barcelona to terminate his contract early, according to Gianluca Di Marzio. The Chile international has already said yes to a two-year deal with Inter, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Meanwhile, Suarez could also be heading to Serie A in time for next season. The Uruguay international is wanted by several clubs, but Italian champions Juventus are leading the race currently.
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Suarez Exit To Cost Barcelona
Suarez has already been told he’s not wanted at Barcelona next season by new manager Ronald Koeman, but the Catalan giants may still have to pay to offload the 33-year-old.
According to Ruben Uria at Goal, Barcelona will have to shell out €14 million ($17m) if they want to cancel the striker’s contract before it expires at the end of next season.
Suarez has attracted plenty of interest since being made available. Former club Ajax have not ruled out the possibility of bringing him back to the Eredivise.
Sporting director Marc Overmars has even promised Suarez his club will make an offer, according to Tomas Andreu at Sport. Finance is an issue but Ajax are expected to complete the sale of Donny van de Beek to Manchester United shortly.
Vidal Talks Up Exit
Vidal has been happy to talk up his future amid speculation he will also wave goodbye to Barcelona. The Chile international is in the final year of his contract and has praised Inter boss Antonio Conte and new Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo in a chat with YouTuber Daniel Habif.
“Conte is like a machine, he is tactically the best. As for my future, I’m relaxed, we’ll see what happens. I am very fond of Barcelona, but we’ll see.
“Pirlo is also a wonderful person too, so I can only imagine he’ll be a great coach. We spent four years together and won the Scudetto four times, so if he were to call me, I’d be happy.”
Vidal and Suarez were both key players last season for Barcelona, scoring 24 goals between them in La Liga alone. However, new boss Koeman looks keen to rejuvenate an aging squad and does not seem afraid of making tough decisions regarding the futures of established stars.
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