Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Lazio are all considering a summer approach for Barcelona winger Ibrahim Afellay.

The 26-year-old is on loan at Schalke but the Bundesliga outfit have confirmed they have no plans to keep the player and he will return to the Camp Nou at the end of the season. It is understood Barcelona will listen to offers for Afellay in the summer and according to talkSPORT the Premier League trio and Lazio are interested in snapping up the Holland international.

Ibrahim Afellay
Reuters

Afellay, who joined Barcelona from PSV Eindhoven in 2011, failed to establish himself at the Camp Nou mainly due to a series of long-term injuries. He was loaned out to Schalke last summer. The Dutchman has spent most of his time in Germany on the treatment table as well, making just 13 appearances for the club so far this season; some of those were impressive performances though.

Recent reports suggest Afellay has fallen out with Schalke's medical team and has not been seen at the club's training ground or home matches for some time. Sporting director Horst Heldt ruled out the club offering a permanent deal to the winger and also admitted the Dutchman has returned to his homeland, where he is undergoing treatment.

"I assume he will be leaving us. Ibrahim is having treatment in the Netherlands. The rehabilitation is co-ordinated with us and we are informed about everything. Of course it is a great pity that he has not been around so far," Goal.com quoted Heldt as saying.

"We as a club are registered [with Afellay] for the season, for us the identification of a player with our club is very important. Injured players attending our home games is not mandatory, the initiative must come from the professionals themselves," the Schalke chief added.

Despite being injury-prone, Afellay is rated highly across Europe. Inter Milan and Lyon are also understood to be keeping track of the winger's situation.

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