Barcelona could enter race for £26.2m Bayern Munich winger Douglas Costa

Barcelona are reportedly ready to join the race for Douglas Costa, with Bayern Munich ready to cash in on the Brazil international for around €30m (£26.2m, $33.8m). The Catalans join a crowded field, with Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus all monitoring the situation.

New Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde has earmarked the signing of a pacy forward who can unbalance defences as a top priority for the coming season.

The Catalans' original idea were to bring Gerard Deulofeu back to the Nou Camp as they still have a €12m buy-back option to lure him away from Everton. However, recent reports have claimed Valverde's side are looking for alternatives as the Spain international is sceptical about returning to Barcelona as a mere back-up for Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

Earlier this week Samuel Umtiti revealed the La Liga giants are monitoring his compatriot Ousmane Dembele. They previously tried to sign the Borussia Dortmund starlet last summer.

Sport now reveals that Barcelona are also looking into signing Douglas Costa after discovering that Bayern have put the Brazil international up for sale.

The 26-year-old winger enjoyed an impressive 2015-2016 campaign under Pep Guardiola after being recruited by the current Manchester City manager from Shakhtar Donetsk.

However, he has been restricted to a secondary role by Carlo Ancelotti and the Bundesliga giants are reportedly ready to listen offers of around €30m.

Sport says Barcelona have been alerted about the situation as Valverde believes Costa and Neymar could form one of the most impressive wing pairings on the planet.

The presence of his friend Neymar could help the Catalans convince Costa to join Barcelona, but Sport still believes a deal won't be easy as there are a number of European clubs ready to battle for his services, such as Manchester United, Liverpool, City, PSG and Juventus.

Sport suggests Jose Mourinho could try to lure the Brazilian to Old Trafford after Antoine Griezmann rejected the possibility of moving to United by committing his future to Atletico Madrid.

Meanwhile, Liverpool have also been linked with Costa in recent times amid the Merseysiders negotiations with Roma to sign winger Mohamed Salah.