Barcelona is still interested in signing Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi, according to reports.
The Nigeria international has a contract with Leicester until next June and is unlikely to sign an extension, even if the Foxes are successful in their bid to return to the Premier League.
Barcelona are said to be long-term admirers of the 26-year-old, and a move for the midfielder in 2024 cannot be ruled out, according to Sport.
According to the report, ‘there is a lot of competition’ for Ndidi, but the Catalan club is confident that they will be able to convince him to move to Camp Nou.
Barcelona have also been linked with moves for Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi and Bayern Munich’s Joshua Kimmich, but neither is expected to be available next season due to their respective valuations.
Meanwhile, Xavi’s side is hoping to sign both Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix on permanent deals from Manchester City and Atletico Madrid, respectively, implying that a new central midfielder is unlikely to be in the budget.
Barcelona are said to have expressed interest in signing Ndidi in 2022, but were told that they would have to pay €60 million (£51.4 million) to do so.
Juventus and Sevilla are two other clubs said to be interested in signing the midfielder, who will be able to negotiate a pre-contract with foreign clubs at the start of 2024.
Ndidi has been an important player for Leicester this season, scoring three goals and registering five assists in 18 appearances across all competitions.
The midfielder joined Leicester from Genk in January 2017, and he has played 255 times for his current club, scoring 14 goals and registering 17 assists.
Ndidi has played in the Champions League four times during his time with Leicester City, as well as the Europa League and Europa Conference League.
The Nigerian was widely expected to leave Leicester after the club was relegated to the Championship in the summer, but he stayed at the King Power Stadium past the transfer deadline.
Barcelona will be without Gavi for the rest of the season due to a serious knee injury, but Xavi has plenty of options in midfield in the form of Pedri, Oriol Romeu, Frenkie de Jong, Ilkay Gundogan, and Fermin Lopez.
During the 2023-24 season, young players Marc Casado, Aleix Garrido, Angel Alarcon, and Unai Hernandez have also been in and around the first team.
