Barcelona face transfer problems as Umtiti, Dest refuse to leave

FC Barcelona have big plans to offload some of their top earners in January in order to make way for the reinforcements deemed necessary by new manager Xavi Hernandez. However, it's not as simple as it sounds, with players like Samuel Umtiti and Sergino Dest refusing to leave the Camp Nou.

Football Espana reports that Umtiti is planning on renegotiating his current contract with club president Joan Laporta. The only way this would work is if he accepts a significant pay cut to help the club free up space in their salary cap. However, Umtiti has not figured much in Xavi's plans for the future, and it remains to be seen if he will warm up to the idea of keeping the player.

The Frenchman is now one of the highest-paid members of the squad after the departures of Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann, coupled with the pay cuts accepted by veteran stars like Gerard Pique. As such, Barcelona have been desperate to offload him, but suitors who are willing to pay that kind of money have been hard to come by.

Meanwhile, Dest has also been deemed surplus to requirements, and has been suffering with limited time on the pitch. Despite this, he is reportedly not keen on finding a home elsewhere. He is still confident that his fortunes could turn at Barcelona, even if Xavi thinks otherwise.

Other than those two players, Philippe Coutinho and Luuk de Jong are also on the chopping block in January. Barcelona had a hard time offloading high-earners in the summer, and they are hoping that January will be better.

Coutinho will be sitting down with the club to iron out his future in the coming weeks, while De Jong is rumoured to be involved in a long-winded deal that involves the return of former Barcelona star Alexis Sanchez.

If any of the exit deals push through, Barcelona will finally be able to go after their transfer targets. Until then, sporting director Mateu Alemany will have his hands tied.