Barcelona duo Sergi Samper and Munir El Haddadi sign contract extensions until 2019

Barcelona have confirmed contract extensions for young duo Sergi Samper and Munir El Haddadi. Samper, 21, has made just one appearance to date for the Barca first-team, but is a highly-regarded graduate of the club's famed La Masia academy.

Arsenal have long been credited with interest in the young midfielder ever since his exploits in the now defunct NextGen Series and last December, were linked with a loan move for the youngster by the Spanish press.

Samper still sits behind Ivan Rakitic, Sergio Busquets and Sergi Roberto in the pecking order at the Nou Camp, but will today (19 July) extend his current deal at his boyhood club to 2019, with his new release clause set at €50m (£41m, $54m), the club have confirmed.

His fellow academy graduate Munir has also committed his future to Luis Enrique's side. The 20-year-old took full advantage of Luis Suarez's ban from the first team in 2014, making his debut in stunning fashion with a debut goal.

His rise saw Barcelona quickly offer him an upgrade on his youth contract later that year amid growing interest from Arsenal and Chelsea. While last season saw him very much backup to Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar, Munir still managed eight goals in 26 appearances.

Barcelona have confirmed they are still in the market to sign a striker this summer but have moved ahead with extending Munir's contract which also runs until 2019. The Spain international has a release clause of €60m.

Barcelona have sought to strengthen their defensive options this summer, signing French duo Samuel Umtiti and Lucas Digne from Lyon and Roma respectively. The club have also resigned Denis Suarez from Villarreal and according to the Albert Soler, the club's director of sporting institutional relations, they have €23m or €25m left to spend before the transfer window closes.

The club's sporting director Robert Fernandez meanwhile says the money will be used on another forward, although it remains to be seen whether they will focus on a promising youngster or a veteran talent.

"We are going to sign a striker," Fernandez confirmed during the presentation of Digne. "There has been a lot of speculation and it's true that in terms of signing a forward there are two lines we could follow: a young player or a veteran one. We are looking at several options and it will not take long to make a final decision."