Barcelona pushing to sign 21-year-old, five-year agreement reached

Barcelona are pushing hard to complete the Ferran Torres deal with the Catalan club desperate to reach an agreement with Manchester City for the forward. The two clubs have been in discussions for a number of weeks, but are yet to reach an agreement over the transfer fee, due to which the La Liga club have put in place a "Plan B".

Xavi Hernandez is keen to sign an attacking player during the January transfer window and has made Torres his number one target. The Spain international is seen as the perfect addition to his squad owing to his ability to play across the front line, either on the wings or as a number nine.

Pep Guardiola remains a big fan of the 21-year-old, whom he signed from Valencia in the summer of 2020, but is willing to let him leave if Barcelona can match the Premier League side's valuation. The inclination to let him leave came after it was revealed that Torres is desperate to move to the Camp Nou having found opportunities hard to come by at the Etihad Stadium.

Torres was a regular in Guardiola's starting lineup at the start of the current campaign, and was showing fine form until a foot injury saw him sidelined since October. He is now keen to return to La Liga and made Barcelona his priority going into the January transfer window.

According to Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, the two clubs have been at the negotiating table for a number of weeks with both sides keen to reach a compromise. However, the reigning Premier League champions have no intention of making it easy for the cash strapped Barcelona, who are currently riddled with debt and have an over-inflated wage bill that prevents them spending any money.

Torres has agreed personal terms with Barcelona over a five-year deal, but the two clubs' valuation remain €10 million apart with the Catalan club ready to fork out €50 million. Apart from agreeing a payment structure, the La Liga side will also have to offload high-earning first-team stars like Philippe Coutinho and Samuel Umtiti, who are not part of manager Xavi's plans.

Barcelona are not putting their eggs in one basket and have initiated contact with Chelsea over a move for Hakim Ziyech as a back up plan if they fail to sign Torres. The Moroccan has struggled to break into Thomas Tuchel's side and could be open to making a move to Spain if they can guarantee him regular game time.