Barcelona Transfer News: Marco Verratti Reportedly Wanted, Latest Rumours

Marco Verratti will reportedly have to force his exit from Paris Saint-Germain if he's to join Barcelona this summer.

According to Sport's Toni Frieros, Barcelona want Verratti because he fits the bill as a top-level player who can improve their starting lineup. However, Frieros noted the Blaugrana are "aware of the economic limitations" they face in the transfer market. 

With PSG in a strong position—Verratti has a contract until 2021, and they "don't have to sell their stars for any price," per Frieros—Barca are relying on the Italian forcing the issue himself.

Verratti reportedly feels as though he has reached his peak with the Parisian outfit and that to take his career to the next level, he needs to move on, with his dream to turn out at the Camp Nou in Barca colours.

He has also attracted interest from Juventus, and his agent Donato Di Campli has told Tuttosport (h/t Football Italia) the Ligue 1 giants are starting to lose appeal by comparison:

"Verratti? There’s the will of PSG to keep him at all costs.

"Now it’s clear: money isn’t enough. Appeal is also needed, and in the last four or five years, the French club haven’t done enough to improve in that regard.

"Juventus are much more attractive because champions are attracted to winning teams."

Barcelona are in desperate need of midfield reinforcements this summer.

The area was perhaps once their greatest strength and is arguably their biggest weakness, with Xavi Hernandez gone and Andres Iniesta now 33, not to mention Andre Gomes' failure to make a positive impact in his first season at the club and Sergio Busquets' subpar 2016/17 campaign.

Verratti was among those to capitalise on that when PSG beat Barcelona 4-0 in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 clash, per beIN Sports' David Cartlidge:

As noted by football journalist Rafael Hernandez, Lionel Messi has had to drop deeper to compensate for their weakness in the middle:

As Hernandez acknowledged, it has made the Argentinian no less effective in scoring or assisting—he contributed 54 and 19, respectively, in 52 games—but it's hardly ideal to have the team's greatest attacking threat papering over those cracks.

Verratti would be an outstanding choice to serve the team as a deep-lying playmaker.

According to Squawka, he maintained a passing accuracy of 89 per cent in Ligue 1 last term and created 40 chances. He showed off his effortless dribbling skills by completing 58 of the 66 take-ons he attempted.

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The Italy international also won 68 tackles and made 22 interceptions, showcasing his defensive work rate.

If the 24-year-old does want to move to Barcelona, it will fall on him to do something about it, though, as PSG will be loath to sell one of their biggest stars to a Champions League rival.

Unless he's vocal about wanting the transfer, it's unlikely Barca would succeed with any attempt to prise him away.

Meanwhile, Sport also reported Barca duo Jeremy Mathieu and Cristian Tello could be set to join Olympiakos.

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The former is set to be offloaded and has been offered to the Greek outfit, who are seemingly the "most likely option" of the clubs pursuing him.

The Frenchman's exit is long overdue, as he's frequently proved to be a defensive liability. La Liga writer Andrew Gaffney criticised him during Barcelona's 2-0 defeat to Malaga in April, which was his last league appearance of the season:

As for Tello, he is set to leave after returning from 18 months on loan with Fiorentina, having failed to secure a permanent move there.

Olympiakos may be a significant step down for their pair, but they can offer Champions League football and the chance of further domestic silverware, so the Greek outfit would perhaps not be a bad option.