Barcelona open to selling midfielder linked with Manchester United

Last night saw Barcelona toppled from the top of the La Liga table by a ten-man Girona in a result no-one saw coming.

Nothing was seemingly going right for the Camp Nou side as Lamine Yamal missed a penalty in the first half, then Pau Cubarsi’s goal to give Barca the lead in the 59th minute was matched two minutes later.

Thomas Lemar grabbed one back in the 61st minute as Fran Beltran found the winner in the 86th before Joel Roca was sent off in the 9th minute of extra time after assisting Beltran.

Whilst Girona have a host of well-known names like Lemar, Axel Witsel, and former Red Devil Daley Blind, it can’t compare to Barcelona’s squad list.

With the likes of Dani Olmo, Frenkie de Jong, Fermin Lopez, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski and United loanee Marcus Rashford, it’s no surprise that Barca have been defending their title for so long.

However, their impressive squad list also comes at a cost for some, with one midfielder on Manchester United’s shortlist being labelled a “victim of competition”.

Spanish publication Sport has now revealed that Barca are accepting that they may have to sell Marc Casado despite wanting to keep him and being impressed by his attitude.

Having come through the Barca youth academy, Casado stepped up to cover de Jong’s injury, however has fallen back to being a rotation player with the Dutch international back on the pitch.

As such, Barca are reportedly set to consider offers this summer due to the high level of competition in midfield at Camp Nou.

Whilst Marc Casado wants to remain with his boyhood club, the lack of routine gametime could be used as a key bargaining chip by sides like Manchester United who are looking to him to rejuvenate their midfield.

With Casemiro set to leave this summer and a replacement needed for Manuel Ugarte as he continues to fail to deliver, United are understood to have Casado on their shortlist along with a whole host of other top talents.