Xavi prioritising four deals to help Barcelona land Erling Haaland in the summer

Barcelona's bid to sign the top free agents on the market this summer is gathering pace with Andreas Christensen expected to be the first through the door. The Chelsea defender is close to finalising a move to the Camp Nou after electing not to renew his contract with the west London club.

The Catalan club has been on the Denmark international's trail for a number of years. Barcelona again made contact when he entered the final year of his deal last summer, and have been courting him about joining on a free transfer in 2022.

According to Sport, Christensen is close to becoming a Barcelona player after having already completed the first part of his medical. He is expected to finish the second part this week before putting pen on a six-year deal worth €6 million annually.

Xavi is keen to strengthen his back line ahead of next season, and the La Liga outfit beat off competition from Bayern Munich to land Christensen. The Spanish manager is also looking for bargain deals owing to Barcelona's ongoing financial troubles.

The Catalan giants, however, are not expected to stop with Christensen's arrival. Barcelona will now move on to securing deals for Ajax right-back Noussair Mazraoui, Chelsea veteran Cesar Azpilicueta and AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie.

"Barcelona are on it. After Andreas Christensen, they plan to progress in talks to sign César Azpilicueta, Franck Kessié and Nouassir Mazraoui. Negotiations ongoing," Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano wrote.

All the aforementioned players are into the final four months of their contracts with their respective clubs. Barcelona are expected to have a limited budget going into the summer transfer window, and want to spend most of it trying to sign Erling Braut Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.

They are aware that Haaland's signing will require a significant financial outlay, which is the main reason they are chasing free transfers to bolster other areas of the squad. Kessie is expected to be the closest among the next set of targets, while negotiations with Azpilicueta and Mazraoui are not yet at an advanced stage.