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Report: Barcelona to Use Malcom to Land Longtime Target Willian of Chelsea
November 4, 2018
Barcelona are reportedly planning on using Malcom to finally land Chelsea winger Willian, swapping the two and sending an additional €20 million to London.
Per La Sexta (h/t Mundo Deportivo, via Naveen Ullal of Sport Witness), Willian's agents have already held discussions with the Catalans. He was previously a target in the summer, but the Blaugrana were unwilling to meet Chelsea's asking price, so they signed Malcom instead.
Malcom has struggled since making the move to the Camp Nou, barely seeing significant playing time and doing little when the opportunities to play arise. Transfer speculation has been rife, with almost daily reports coming from the Catalan press.
As reported by Guy Atkinson of Goal, the man himself remains committed to his current club:
"Regarding some news published in Spain, I want to clarify that I came to Barcelona with many objectives and those that know me know that I am a really determined person.
"I am happy with my evolution in my career and my dreams become a reality with each passing day. My family are also well adapted in the city. In summary, I am going to keep fighting for everything I desire from my career."
Mundo Deportivo's Ferran Martinez (h/t MailOnline's Ben Nagle) recently stated the Brazilian has asked to leave the club in January, crediting Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, AS Roma and Inter Milan with an interest in the former Bordeaux man.
Willian was something of a surprise target for Barcelona in the summer after a difficult 2017-18 campaign. He has been in solid form under new manager Maurizio Sarri, who has handed the 30-year-old nine Premier League starts already.
Chelsea are still believed to be looking for an upgrade at the right wing position, however, and have been linked with several options. Tuttosport (h/t IlBianconero, via Calciomercato.com) have reported Fiorentina's Federico Chiesa is a target, while TuttoMercatoWeb (h/t Sport Witness' Naveen Ullal) have said the Blues have already worked on a deal for Milan's Suso.
The 21-year-old Malcom would be an interesting long-term solution, as he's still tremendously talented and could simply be in need of more opportunities. It's hard to believe Barcelona would give up on the speedster this early, especially if it would cost them an additional €20 million to land the experienced but limited Willian.