Barcelona Transfer News: Marco Verratti Comments on Latest Camp Nou Rumours

Marco Verratti has left the door open for a move to Barcelona after revealing there is a possibility Paris Saint-Germain could sell him.

He said he hopes to remain at the Parc des Princes but did not shut down the speculation surrounding a potential move to the Camp Nou, per Premium Sport (via AS): "Barcelona? I don't know. I am happy here in Paris. I believe in this project, and I hope to stay here long. Maybe PSG will sell me, but let's see."

It was widely reported last summer Barca wanted Verratti. However, they failed to persuade PSG to sell the Italy international, per Joseph Walker and Ben Topliss in The Times.

The Blaugrana could arguably still do with some added quality and depth in central midfield, though, so they may return for him at the end of the 2017-18 campaign.

In their attempts to replace Neymar, who departed for PSG for £200 million in August, Barcelona have signed Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool and Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund in huge-money deals in the past two transfer windows.

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They also added Paulinho to the engine room last summer, and the former Tottenham Hotspur man has been impressive this term.

However, there is a lack of depth in the middle of the park, especially as Andre Gomes continues to disappoint and is surely not long for the Camp Nou.

Andres Iniesta will be 34 by the end of the season, while Ivan Rakitic and Paulinho both turn 30 before the start of the 2018-19 campaign.

By contrast, despite having been an established PSG first-teamer for the past six seasons, Verratti is only 25.

He is entering the peak years of his career, and as an accomplished defensive midfielder who is also comfortable on the ball and creative going forward, he could be the ideal signing for Barcelona as manager Ernesto Valverde looks to strengthen his central-midfield unit.

The Blaugrana may have a task on their hands to persuade PSG to sell Verratti, but the player has not ruled it out.