Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum has agreed to join Barcelona this summer, according to reports in Spain.
The Netherlands international has less than a year remaining on his contract with Jurgen Klopp’s side and could leave on a free transfer next summer.
According to Sport, Barcelona are now in advanced talks with Wijnaldum’s representatives and the 29-year-old has given his approval to sign a three-year contract with the Spanish club.
The report claims that Barcelona have yet to agree a transfer fee with Liverpool, but they view Wijnaldum as a replacement for Ivan Rakitic, who returned to Sevilla on Tuesday, and Arturo Vidal, who is in talks to join Inter.
New Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman is also a huge admirer of Wijnaldum having managed him for the Dutch national team.
Barcelona are understood to be hopeful of agreeing a deal with Liverpool worth up to €20 million (£17.7m).
Liverpool are willing to offload Wijnaldum if he does not want to extend his contract and will make a move for Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcantara as his replacement.
Klopp is interested in bringing Thiago to Anfield but Liverpool have not yet submitted an offer to Bayern, who are demanding a €30m (£26.6m) fee for the 29-year-old.
In an interview last week, Klopp claimed that Liverpool needed to be cautious in the transfer market in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
‘There are a lot of interesting players out there but if someone is interesting for us I can’t say right now,’ Klopp told Survus TV when asked about a potential move for Thiago.
‘Due to Covid-19 you have to think five times about what you can and what you can’t do.
‘We always have to pay attention to the financial aspect. We don’t know how much money will come in.
‘Nobody knows but it seems like some other teams have a more positive outlook on the future… if you look at Chelsea for example [laughs].
‘But I am very happy with my team right now. If something transfer related will happen we have to see.’
