LALIGA
Barcelona miss out on transfer target Adeyemi
Karim Adeyemi could sign for Borussia Dortmund ahead of next season. His agent confirmed that he has rejected an offer to join Barcelona.
Red Bull Salzburg forward Karim Adeyemi is one of the revelations of the season. He tallies 18 goals in 28 games and a number of European clubs are keen to sign him. On Monday, he picked up the Web Golden Boy, an award give by fans through online voting, at the ceremny in Turin organised by Italian sports paper Tuttosport.
After the awards ceremny, the 19-year-old spoke about Barcelona's interest in signing him: "Barça is one of the best clubs in the world and that they want to sign me makes me feel very proud. Of course I can imagine myself playing for Barça at some point in the future," he said.
However, his agent Thomas Salomon painted a very different picture: "A few days ago we gave a definitive 'no' to Barça's offer. Barcelona is no longer an option for Karim. The best thing for him is to join a German club," he explained. He didn't rule out a possible move to Camp Nou in the future: "In two or three years we'll see what might happen". He also ruled out the possibility of a move to Real Madrid or Inter Milan as Ayedemi "wants to play in the Bundesliga".
Adeyemi is under contract at Salzburg until 30 June 2024 but according to sources in Germany, his next destination will be Borussia Dortmund, possibly as Erling Haaland's substitute. There has been talk of a five-year deal and a transfer fee of 35-40 million euros.
Barcelona seeking urgent solutions in January window
Barça desperately need to strengthen their attack and hope to do in next month's transfer window. After being turned down by Adeyemi, the blaugranas are weighing up two other options - Ferrán Torres and Edinson Cavani. Xavi Hernández's have to sign another striker if they are to salvage something from what is turning into a disastrous season, in which they are already out of the Champions League.