Barcelona to rival Real Madrid for €100m Lewandowski successor

31 Oct 2023 15:05 GMT
4 min read

Robert Lewandowski, Exit, Barcelona — © ProShots/FootballTransfers

Santiago Giménez has played himself into the spotlight for Barcelona.

The Feyenoord striker has appeared on the radar as a long-term option to replace Robert Lewandowski. In Spain, it is assumed that the Polish striker is in his last season at Barcelona, which means that sporting director Deco is already looking for a successor.

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Although the arrival of a new centre-forward is not a priority, according to Sport it can't be ruled out that Barcelona will make an attempt to pry Giménez from De Kuip in the coming transfer period.

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Deco believes that the Spanish giants should dare to take more risks in attracting such stars. The former player knows that Giménez is still a relatively cheap option compared to strikers from other top competitions such as Victor Osimhen.

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The arrival of Giménez to Barcelona actually depends entirely on the future of Lewandowski. The Polish striker was already of interest to clubs from Saudi Arabia in the past transfer window, and so Barcelona is taking into account that an offer will eventually be received for the veteran, who is contracted until 2026.

The Spanish top club previously invested in the arrival of Vitor Roque, who will come over from Athletico Paranaense in the winter. But to have more firepower, Barcelona want to have at least one reliable centre-forward should the 18-year-old Roque need time to acclimatise to life in Catalunya.

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If Barcelona actually decide to buy Giménez, it is still far from certain that the Catalans will actually have a chance. In recent weeks, the Mexican striker has been in the spotlight of, among others, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Newcastle United, AC Milan, Inter, Juventus, Napoli, Lazio, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid.

As a result, Feyenoord's asking price for the crowd favourite has also risen considerably. A sensational report recently claimed that the Rotterdammers could demand as much as €100 million, disproving Deco's theory that Gimenez is still affordable.