Barcelona Transfer News: Latest on Nolito, Pedro and Alen Halilovic Rumours

Reported Barcelona target Nolito is likely to stay at Celta Vigo this summer, according to his current manager Eduardo Berizzo.

The ex-Blaugrana man has been linked with a move back to the Camp Nou in recent weeks and has recently insisted that the only club he would leave Celta for is Barcelona, per AS. But Berizzo is confident the winger will stick around, per SPORT:

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I have the feeling that Nolito is going to stay. The option of Barcelona is very attractive for the player, but I am confident that he will stay with us.

He is a player with a special character, he is charismatic, very close with his teammates, I don't believe that all this is affecting him. I consider him to be a respected player, the club have told him that he is very valuable for us, so we will wait and see.

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As noted in the piece from SPORT, the forward has been touted as the man who could potentially fill the void left by Pedro should he leave the club this summer. There’s no denying that Nolito possesses the creative qualities to do so, as we can see here courtesy of OptaJose:

But there are pitfalls to any potential transfer. Not only would Nolito have to sit on the sidelines until January 2016, he’d be vying with a fine player in Arda Turan just to get into the starting XI, in which the trident of attacking options are filled by Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez.

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He’d add depth, though, and for Barcelona it would potentially be a very savvy acquisition. Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe ran the rule over the Blaugrana’s summer in comparison to their great rivals Real Madrid:

But at 28, Nolito is in the peak years of his career and, as was evident by his tremendous performances for Celta last season, he’s a player who has a lot to offer at the highest level. At Barca, there’d be a grave danger of fading into obscurity and as tough as it may be, the winger should resist any offer from his former club.

Pedro Edging Closer to United

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According to El Confidencial (h/t Jack Wilson of the Daily Star) Pedro has said farewell to his Barcelona team-mates as he gets set for a move to Manchester United.

However, Wilson noted that a fee has yet to be struck between the two parties and that a deal still remains “days away” as a result. Those reports were backed up by Bleacher Report’s Spanish football expert Guillem Balague, who said that while the Red Devils have yet to stump up the money, a transfer isn’t far off:

Pedro’s exit seems inevitable at this juncture and there’s been plenty of revisionism about his talents since he netted the winning goal in the final of the European Super Cup earlier this week. 

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A lot of Barca supporters had grown tired of the winger last season after some sluggish displays. But his strike against Sevilla has left plenty waxing lyrical about what he can offer, including his stellar work rate and goalscoring instincts.

As ESPN’s Alex Shaw noted here, he’s been a consistent source of goals for the Blaugrana in what’s been one of the standout periods in their history:

It’ll be a gamble for manager Luis Enrique to go without Pedro or a replacement until January. After all, he was the man who would typically step in if one of Messi, Neymar or Suarez were absent; without the Spanish international in situ, there are no standout candidates to step in should one of the illustrious trio be stricken with injury or suspension early in the campaign.

But it’s understandable that Pedro wants a move. Although it’ll be tough for him to say farewell to the club that has moulded him as a footballer, he has a professional duty to himself to find a team that will provide first-team football. In the end, it’d be no surprise if Barcelona missed him just as much.

Barcelona Still Hoping to Loan Alen Halilovic

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Albert Roge of SPORT wrote that Barcelona are so desperate to get Alen Halilovic minutes on loan that teams are finding it hard to meet the criteria that’d accompany any deal.

It’s claimed by Roge that the Blaugrana want a guarantee that the Croatian playmaker will play 60 per cent of matches with his temporary employers and that Hamburg have pulled out of a deal because of that particular condition. Borussia Dortmund, Celta Vigo and Sporting Gijon all remain interested, however.

Here’s a look at why there is so much hype around Halilovic:

Getting minutes in the Barcelona team is perilously difficult and it’s little surprise Barca are willing to send the 19-year-old prodigy out on loan. But there is certainly more to growing as a player than securing a regular spot in the first XI.

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If Halilovic went to a club and was made to work hard to get into the side, be professional when he’s out of the team and make a telling impact from the bench too, then it would only complement his development as a player. As such, perhaps the Blaugrana should be a little less stringent when determining the constraints of his loan deal.