Barcelona Transfer News: Xavi Says Adrien Rabiot Fits 'Perfectly' Amid Rumours

Barcelona legend Xavi has said Paris Saint-Germain star Adrien Rabiot could feature perfectly in the middle of the Blaugrana midfield and would be a "great signing" for his old club.

It's been three years since former linchpin Xavi left the Camp Nou for Al Sadd in Qatar, and he gave Rabiot his backing to thrive in Catalonia in an interview with Mundo Deportivo (h/t FourFourTwo):

"He's a player of an excellent level technically.

"He could play perfectly as a central midfielder at Barca. He could contribute a lot, but that's already entering the realms of speculation.

"I've been asked a lot about Griezmann this summer and, in the end, he stayed at Atletico. But if Rabiot comes, he'd be a great signing."

Barcelona have already added to their midfield this summer with the capture of Brazilian prospect Arthur, 21, from Gremio, but writer Andrew Gaffney pointed to the ongoing search for recruits in central midfield:

Sport (h/t Football Espana) recently reported Rabiot has agreed to personal terms with his potential buyers, but Barca still need to work out a transfer fee with current employers PSG. Rabiot is also said to have turned down talks over a new contract in Paris, per MundoDeportivo (h/t Calciomercato.com).

Xavi's stamp of approval could be seen as major praise for the player, although it's also unlikely the club icon would rail against a potential signing for Barca, with whom he still shares a close connection.

The arrival of Arthur means the non-EU slot in Barcelona's squad that was vacated by Paulinho's return to China has already been filled, but manager Ernesto Valverde also has to contend with the loss of Andres Iniesta.

Xavi's former long-term engine-room partner has departed for Vissel Kobe in Japan, and Football Radars displayed the passing strengths of Rabiot, whose characteristics do match up with those of Iniesta:

But disciplinary concerns have also followed Rabiot in the past few years, and he was most recently in the news for refusing a place on Didier Deschamps' standby list for France's World Cup, per the Mirror's Jake Polden.

Les Bleus went on to win the title in Russia without the need of PSG's rebel, and Deschamps recently touched on the player's attitude issues, per commentator Mark Rodden:

That's one side of the player that doesn't quite tout him as a successor to the humble likes of Xavi or Iniesta, but his talent may nevertheless make him too promising a candidate to pass up.

The 23-year-old is now in the final year of his PSG contract and could leave for free next summer if he remains at the Parc des Princes, though Xavi's recommendation is liable to only enamour him further among fans.