Barcelona Transfer News: Rumours on Max Meyer and Luis Enrique's Top Targets

Schalke starlet Max Meyer has admitted that it would be a “dream” to one day don the iconic Barcelona strip.

The young midfielder has caught the eye this season with some intricate, effective displays for the Bundesliga club—most notably in a 4-3 win for the Gelsenkirchen outfit against Real Madrid in the Champions League.

Speaking with Bild am Sonntag (h/t Stefan Uersfeld of ESPN FC) Meyer has stated that he, like everyone, has dreamed of eventually joining one of the La Liga giants:

"

Every child dreams of playing for Real Madrid or Barcelona one day. They are the best teams in the year.

However, I'm very happy with Schalke and I'm getting my games here. That's going to be the case even if we only play in the Europa League next season.

"

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Meyer has been at the heart of this effervescent Schalke team this season, and during that match at the Santiago Bernabeu, he showcased exactly what he was all about. The German is extremely intelligent in his movement, a shrewd manipulator of the ball and someone who can glide past an opponent with a languid ease.

Here’s a closer look at some of his best moments this season:

Indeed, on the face of things, he does have all the requisite qualities to fit in at Barcelona. As noted by Uersfeld, Meyer also has a €25.5 million release clause in his contract; if he continues to develop at the rate he has been doing recently, that sum would potentially represent a major bargain for a team such as the Blaugrana.

Cristian Nyari of FCB Media believes the 19-year-old is the brightest of all of German football’s exciting young stars:

Schalke’s revered academy, Knappenschmiede, is renowned for producing exceptional talents, with Manuel Neuer and Mesut Ozil just two of the recent products of the club’s revered youth system. While they have gone on to new challenges, the time is not right for Meyer follow suit, of which he appears acutely aware.

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

The Veltins-Arena remains the most appropriate place to continue his development, but such is Meyer's ability, don’t expect it to be too long before European football’s juggernauts come calling for this magnificent young player.

Barcelona Keen on Miralem Pjanic

Andrew Medichini/Associated Press

The Catalan giants are reportedly keen on landing Roma playmaker Miralem Pjanic, according to BH Dragons (h/t George Bellshaw of Metro).

As noted in the piece, Liverpool have also been heavily linked with the Bosnia and Herzegovina international, but it looks as though the Blaugrana may have nipped ahead of them in the race for the Giallorossi metronome.

Here’s a closer look at the kind of qualities he could add to Barcelona’s midfield:

Pjanic is a player with all the attributes needed to seamlessly integrate at Camp Nou. He’s silky smooth with the ball at his feet, boasts an extraordinary range of passing and can make telling contributions when he does get into advanced areas. He’s also previously worked with Luis Enrique—the Barca boss being the one who brought him to the club during his brief managerial stint in Rome.

Alex Caparros/Getty Images

As we can see here courtesy of barcastuff, Pjanic has been very complimentary about Enrique:

"

Miralem Pjanic (AS Roma): "Luis Enrique is, together with Rudi Garcia, the person who has taught me most." [repubblica via md]

— barcastuff (@barcastuff) April 3, 2015"

While the influence of a player such as Xavi Hernandez will be tough for Barcelona to replace, in terms of stylistic principles, Pjanic would be an excellent option. The 25-year-old dictates games with a swagger and is the kind of player who would only get better operating alongside others on a similar technical level.

Barcelona would obviously be unable to have Pjanic in their squad for the start of next season, and as such, it’ll be intriguing to see if any other sides look to steal a march by moving for the player this summer. But for a midfielder such as Pjanic, playing at Camp Nou would surely be as good as it gets.