Barcelona transfer news: Arda Turan 'seriously considering super-offer' from China

Barcelona star Arda Turan is 'seriously considering' leaving the Nou Camp for a move to China just months after joining the club from Atletico Madrid, according to Sport. Manager Luis Enrique wants him to stay but the club's board and the player may be tempted by a lucrative offer made by an unnamed Chinese club after failing to make an impact.

The Catalans signed the Turkish international along with Aleix Vidal during last summer's transfer window after he was requested by Enrique from the Barcelona board. The La Liga giants, as they confirmed, agreed to pay €34m (£27.5m, $38.7m) plus add-ons for his services to Atletico Madrid. The 29-year-old star reportedly snubbed several offers from the Premier League – Chelsea and Manchester United were rumoured suitors – to move to Barcelona despite being unable to play for the Catalans until January due to the Fifa transfer embargo.

But Sport now claims that Turan is now "seriously considering" becoming the new major star to join the Chinese Super League. The Catalan publication claims an unnamed club from the Far East has made the player a lucrative offer which will see him earning much more than he currently does at Barcelona.

The Barcelona board, according to the report , will not veto the sale as they could recoup the fees paid for him nearly a year ago. The deal could be similar to the one made by Atletico on Jackson Martinez who joined Guangzhou Evergrande for around £31m ($44m).

Sport however argues that Enrique unlikely to want to part with him because his exit would imply that his signing had been an error. Turan has failed to feature in the manager's plans since January amid the unmovable presence of Andres Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic. Many Barcelona fans have also scapegoated the Turkish international for the recent defeat in El Clasico as the Catalans lost the balance when he replaced Rakitic in the second-half of the game – allowing 10-man Real to secure the win thanks to a late goal from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Enrique, however, said earlier this week that he was still confident that the former Atletico Madrid player would be a success at Barcelona. The Barcelona boss even defended him in a press conference: "It would be really sad to be personally named after a defeat. He came at the worst time in the game We are humans. We have to assess the mistakes," "I am delighted with Arda Turan, he has great quality and brings us lots of things. Not all players adapt at same pace, logically, but Arda is fully adapted, he knows the mechanisms, there is no doubt about that."