Barcelona finalising midfielder transfer, decision to be made in the coming days

Miralem Pjanic could be the next player to leave Barcelona this summer with his agents in constant contact with the Catalan club about finalising a move in the coming days.

The La Liga giants are desperate to offload high earning stars as they look to cut the wage bill and reduce expenditure. Thus far, Barcelona have only managed to offload fringe players, raising €26.5 million in transfer fees and not making a big enough dent on their salary spend.

Pjanic could be the first among a number of first-team stars that have been made available for transfer this summer. The likes of Philippe Coutinho, Samuel Umtiti, Neto, Martin Braithwaite and Antoine Griezmann are also on the "for sale" list.

According to Spanish publication Sport, Pjanic and his representatives have been in contact with Barcelona and want to sort it out this week to ensure the player does not have to join the La Liga side for pre-season. There is considerable interest in the midfielder, with Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus all in the race for his signature.

Barcelona were initially pondering allowing the Bosnian midfielder to terminate his remaining three years with the club and leave on a free transfer. It seems that the player was uninterested in the offer, while the Catalan outfit have also decided that a loan will suit all parties better.

Despite Barcelona not recouping a fee for Pjanic, they will save considerably in terms of wages owed to the former AS Roma midfielder. Moreover, they are hoping a deal can be struck at the earliest as Pjanic has shown interest in seeking pastures new this summer.

The 30-year-old struggled in his debut campaign after joining from Juventus last summer. He made 19 appearances in the league of which just six were from the start, while he also failed to register a single goal or an assist.

Pjanic is keen to leave the Camp Nou this summer in order to play more football. The midfielder's preferred choice is to rejoin former club Juventus, but the Italian side are also struggling financially and will have to move on a few players before they can sign the Bosnia international.

Spurs were the first Premier League side to inquire about Pjanic, with new manager Nuno Espirito Santo also green lighting the move. Arsenal have only recently entered the race as manager Mikel Arteta looks for a replacement for Granit Xhaka, who is poised to join AS Roma in the coming weeks.