Barcelona Transfer News: Latest on Miralem Pjanic and Juan Cuadrado Rumours

Barcelona are reportedly leading the race to sign Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic, seeing off the likes of Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain and Primera Division rivals Real Madrid.

According to Italian outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport, Barcelona have nudged ahead of the rest of Pjanic’s suitors and have held talks with the player’s agent, Michael Becker (via James Cambridge of Daily Express).

Luis Enrique and company are reportedly willing to meet the Roma man’s £30 million release clause, even though Cambridge writes that figure drops to £22 million in August.

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The 26-year-old was one of the Serie A giants’ standout performers in 2015/16, scoring 12 goals and chalking up 13 assists in all competitions.

Although primarily deployed as an attacking midfielder, Pjanic has the ability to tuck into a deeper role. Yet it’s his intelligent style of play that will really appeal to Barcelona.

Not only is Pjanic lethal in front of goal, but when it comes to playing that final pass no one else can see, he’s one of the best.

Here’s a look at what the Bosnian could bring to the Camp Nou:

Enrique worked with Pjanic during his time in charge of Roma, and he’s clearly a big fan, having signed the player for the Giallorossi and reportedly put the midfielder at the top of his wishlist this summer.

Elsewhere, Barcelona are looking to draft in Chelsea’s Juan Cuadrado as a replacement for Dani Alves, who ply his trade with Juventus next season after eight years with the Catalan side, per TuttoMercatoWeb, (via Cambridge).

Cuadrado spent 2015/16 on loan at Juventus after failing to impress at Stamford Bridge, but he recaptured the form on which he built his reputation before heading to the Premier League.

According to WhoScored.com, the Colombian scored four Serie A goals and created five more in an advanced role last term, yet Barca would want to use Cuadrado as a full-back if he were signed as a replacement for Alves.

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That’s nothing foreign to the 28-year-old, though, as he took up the right-back role during his time with Fiorentina and still occasionally lines up there for Colombia.

Many will see Cuadrado’s shift into a more defensive role as a negative move, but you only have to look at Alves’ career to know there are plenty of opportunities to get forward with the Blaugrana.

Barcelona were irresistible in 2015/16, but the fact rivals Real Madrid won this season's Champions League will leave a bitter taste.

Enrique has the personnel to reign supreme in Europe once again, but squad depth will be a huge factor in his mission to do so.

Landing the likes of Pjanic and Cuadrado would give Barcelona plenty of world-class options at their disposal.