Barcelona wanted to sign £26m striker, but failed with a deadline day approach

Barcelona's dire financial situation saw them scouring the market for bargain deals, but they struggled to get many transfers over the line during the summer transfer window. The Catalan club made a move for Leeds United striker Rodrigo on deadline day, but their offer was rejected by the Premier League club with one person close to the deal calling it a "scattergun approach."

Ronald Koeman signed Sergio Aguero, Memphis Depay and Eric Garcia on free transfers and landed striker Luuk de Jong on a season long loan from Sevilla on the final day of the transfer window. The Dutch manager was desperate to add an attacking player following the departures of Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann to Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid, respectively.

According to The Athletic, Barcelona made a last-minute move for the former Valencia forward as part of their search for a striker that could fill the void until the return of Aguero from injury. The La Liga club was keen to take the Spain international on loan, but United were not interested in allowing the player, whom they signed for £26 million just the summer before, to leave the club.

The Premier League side's coach Marcelo Bielsa wanted to retain the forward, who was also ready for his second season in England. Rodrigo scored seven goals in his debut campaign and has started all four of United's games this season. Moreover, the English club would have been able to find a replacement in the final hours of the window.

Barcelona are strapped for cash after all the overspending in recent campaigns. They were looking to massively slash their wage bill with a number of first-team stars put up for sale this summer. They failed to offload the likes of Samuel Umtiti, Neto and Martin Braithwaite, which eventually saw them lose Messi and Griezmann - the two highest earners on the team.

Barcelona were linked with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the final days of the transfer window, but eventually settled for veteran forward De Jong, who was surplus to requirements at Sevilla. He is expected to fill in while Aguero recovers from a calf injury that has delayed his Barcelona debut.