Reports that Barcelona are going to pay €5million to rush through a deal to sign PSG midfielder Adrien Rabiot have been denied by the club.
The Catalonian giants are widely expected to sign the player when his contract expires in the summer but given that the player has effectively been frozen out by PSG, there was a suggestion that Barca were willing to offer a fee to rush the deal through next month.
But Barcelona have denied the existence of any such agreement with Rabiot and insist they have not broken the rules over his potential recruitment.
Rabiot is a player who has been linked with several top European clubs - including Premier League pair Arsenal and Liverpool.
Barcelona issued a statement today saying they had made contact with PSG’s management “last August and then a week ago” to express their interest in Rabiot, but had not spoken to the player.
“In response to the news that has appeared in France, Barcelona state that there has been no breach of regulations regarding the signing of PSG players,” the statement read.
“The only contact was made last August and then a week ago. In both case, the contact was made with the sporting managers of PSG in order to express Barcelona’s interest in the player Adrien Rabiot.
“Barcelona always want to work with the highest level of transparency with PSG and any other club.
“Barcelona deny the existence of any type of agreement with PSG player Adrien Rabiot.”
Despite the statement, Rabiot seems destined to leave PSG where he has alienated the club's fans with his behaviour.