Barcelona given hope to complete defender deal, new offer on the table

Lionel Messi may have departed Barcelona but the Catalan club's financial troubles still continue to haunt them. The failure to sign the Argentine superstar did not ease their woes and the club are still looking to offload a number of first-team stars to slash their over-inflated wage bill.

Samuel Umtiti has been in the forefront of players that Barcelona want to move on this summer. The La Liga club's director of football Matheu Alemany has openly declared the need for the Frenchman to find a new home, but offers have been few and far between.

The 2018 World Cup winner is keen to join a club that is challenging for titles in one of the top leagues in Europe, but thus far interest has come from Besiktas in Turkey and French clubs Monaco and Nice. Barcelona are at the mercy of the player, who still has two years remaining on his deal, and is not agreeing to a termination.

There could be light at the end of the tunnel for the Spanish giants, according to Record in Portugal. The report claims that Benfica have shown interest in signing the France international defender this summer, but could face a stumbling block when it comes to the player's wages.

Barcelona are ready to allow Umtiti to move for a very minimal fee, but the Portuguese giants will require the defender to take a pay cut. If he is unwilling to do so, the La Liga outfit will have to pay a portion of his wages, in order to get a reprieve from paying the entire amount during the upcoming campaign.

At 27-years-old, the Frenchman is still in his prime years, but has struggled with injury issues in recent campaigns. He is said to be in good physical condition and has been training regularly with the Barcelona first-team, which even included minutes in two pre-season games.

Despite being fit, he has been informed that he is not part of Ronald Koeman's plans for the upcoming season. Barcelona have Gerard Pique, Eric Garcia and Clement Lenglet in central defence and Umtiti has been deemed surplus to requirements.