Barcelona are in a race against the time to ensure that star midfielder Dani Olmo is registered to play for the club in the second half of the season.
The attacking midfielder was a £50million signing from Red Bull Leipzig in the summer but could only be registered on a temporary arrangement until the end of the calendar year owing to LaLiga‘s ongoing financial constraints on Barcelona.
Barcelona’s second attempt to register the Euro 2024 winner was rejected by the Court of First Instance 47 of Barcelona on Monday.
It means Olmo can leave as a free agent in January if Spain’s football federation continue to block his registration as they push for the Catalan giants to make more cuts, find more revenue and comply with their financial guidelines.
Reports in Spain on Tuesday revealed that the club are working tirelessly to resolve the issue before the 11:59pm deadline on New Year’s Eve.
Unfortunately for the European giants, failure to do so before the deadline would make Olmo ineligible to play for the side from January 1 as, per point 5 of article 141 of the league’s rules, ‘footballers whose licence is cancelled will not be able, during the course of the same season, to obtain a licence from the same team of the club to which they were previously linked.’
Dani Olmo could be forced out of Barcelona in January despite his desire to remain with the Spanish giants
Hansi Flick’s side could see one of their star players depart for nothing if the club are unsuccessful in registering him
Olmo’s agent Andy Bara (middle right) revealed on Tuesday that his client wants to remain with the club
News of their efforts come amid a report that Olmo wishes to remain in the Catalonia.
His agent Andy Bara, who sparked rumours last week when he arrived in Manchester, told Fabrizio Romano: ‘The decision made by Dani is to STAY at Barcelona as he wants play for Barca.
‘We are NOT considering any other option. Dani wants to play for Barcelona.’
Unfortunately for the 26-year-old, the decision may soon be out of his hands, though it’s not for the lack of trying from the club who have reportedly resorted to creative tactics to generate the income that would satisfy the league.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona has sent additional documentation regarding the sale of VIP seats at the soon-to-be completed Spotify Camp Nou for around €100m (£83m).
Additionally, the outlet claim that there is pressure on the league from clubs such as Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla, with the ‘delegate committee and the auditor awaiting the details of all the small print’.
Should Olmo be forced to depart his boyhood club he will find a long list of clubs in the Premier League interested in acquiring his services.
The top-flight’s big six of Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham would all be keen to bring the versatile midfield in next month, reports in Spain claim.
Arsenal were the first of the top six clubs in the Premier League to show interest in the attacking midfielder
Both Manchester clubs have also shown interest in the Spain star, whose agent was reported to be in the city last week
Olmo has scored five times in 11 LaLiga matches for Flick’s side who currently sit third in the league
Indeed, Arsenal are believed to have been the first club to show interest in Olmo, while Chelsea and Spurs have joined the bandwagon more recently.
Predictably, they are not alone in the race for the Euro 2024 winner and German giants Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen weighing him up and his former side Leipzig making it clear that he always has a home there.
Over the weekend, Paris Saint-Germain entered the fray as they continue to look for creative reinforcements with Lyon’s Rayan Cherki believed to be another option amid the French club’s own financial struggles.
PSG boss Luis Enrique already knows Olmo from the Spanish national team and is keeping tabs on his situation at Barcelona.
The player himself, however, is reportedly remaining professional throughout the saga and is committed to seeing out his contract, which lasts until 2030.
He trained from 10am on New Year’s Eve despite not knowing where his future lies, AS reported on Tuesday.
