Barcelona transfer news: Liverpool midfielder Cameron Brannagan among 10 starlets scouted by Catalans

Liverpool starlet Cameron Brannagan is on the Barcelona shortlist of starlets with potential to bolster the Catalan ranks ahead the summer transfer window, according to Sport. The Spanish publication points out that the La Liga giant's scouts have been tracking the development of the 19-year-old midfielder during the current season as part of their plans to find new talent around the world.

Barcelona have not hesitated to break the bank in recent years to strengthen the first-team with big-money additions like Neymar or former Liverpool star Luis Suarez. Yet the Catalans also spend big in bringing in young talents with the hope of them developing into major stars at the Nou Camp.

Lionel Messi, for instance, was brought from Argentina as a kid, while in recent seasons have followed similar procedures to sign the likes of Denis Suarez from the Manchester City academy or Croatian starlet Alen Halilovic, with the first currently excelling at Villarreal and the second on loan at Sporting.

Sport claims that Barcelona are monitoring a number of youngsters to do the same in a summer which is expected to be especially inflated by the Premier League giants due to the new TV rights deal. The Catalans thus are working on trying to get the services of some promising youngsters before they have exorbitant fees.

And the Spanish publication claims that Brannagan is one of the players on the radar after Barcelona technical secretary Robert Fernandez saw him in action during some games this season. The 19-year-old appears in a list of 10 players which also includes Juventus star Paulo Dybala, French coveted starlet Ousmane Dembele and Spanish defensive duo Jorge Mere and Adrian Marin.

Brannagan is considered one of the jewels to emerge from the Anfield academy. The offensive midfielder has progressed through the youth ranks of the club since the age of five, earning his first-team debut earlier this season during the Europa League tie with Bordeaux, with Jurgen Klopp later handing him his first starting appearance in the Capital One Cup victory over Bournemouth. He has since featured in four more games with the first-team, starting in all the FA Cup games of the campaign against Exeter (twice) and West Ham.