FC Barcelona are eyeing Matthias Ginter of Borussia Monchengladbach as their ideal replacement for Samuel Umtiti. This is according to Calciomercato’s Daniele Longo.
Barcelona is rebuilding their squad this season and are in the process of selling the fringe players. Samuel Umtiti is one of the players that the club wants to sell this summer. Matthias Ginter hence is one of the candidates the club are monitoring to replace the Frenchman with.
Ginter had a good season with Gladbach, though the club was only able to finish 8th in the Bundesliga. He is currently playing with the German national team in the Euros 2020 and featured in their first match against France.
SEASON OF REBUILD
Barcelona has already been busy in the transfer market. They signed both Sergio Aguero and Eric Garcia from Manchester City. They lost on the opportunity to sign Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum for free, but are expected to complete the signing of his compatriot Memphis Depay in the coming weeks.
The club reported having more than €1 billion in debts due to bloated wage structure and very high transfer fees. Thus they need to sell this summer in order to keep their books proper. Samuel Umtiti and Philipe Coutinho are top on the cutting board.
Umtiti had a horrid time with Barcelona, suffering from multiple injuries. The French international only made 13 appearances for them this season in La Liga and missed out on the Euro 2020 squad of France. Barcelona will cut their losses and will sell him this summer.
However, selling Umtiti will leave a hole in the backline. Gerard Pique is 34, while Clement Lenglet has seen a decline in his form. The other options at center-back are youngsters Ronald Araujo and Oscar Mingueza and newly signed Eric Garcia. Thus the club does need an established player at the back to help in their hunt for titles.
GINTER ONE OF THE OPTION FOR BARCELONA
Ginter is one of the players on the shopping list for Barcelona. The club is also monitoring the situation of Alessio Romagnoli of AC Milan, Aymeric Laporte of Manchester City, and Merih Demiral of Juventus.
The German international has been a rock at the back for Gladbach, ever since his move from Borussia Dortmund. He played all 34 matches in the Bundesliga this season and also scored 2 goals. An excellent blocker of the ball, he is also good at handling aerial balls.
Matthias Ginter has appeared 148 times for Gladbach and has scored 10 goals for them. A regular for his national side, he has appeared 39 times for Germany. The 27-year-old is a very solid and reliable defender and has only one year left in his contract with Gladbach.
Barcelona can sign him for a cheaper price compared to their other options. The Blaugrana are not the only side interested in Ginter. Premier League clubs like Chelsea, Tottenham, and Liverpool have previously been linked with the player. With a good performance at the Euros, the German could increase his chance of securing a big move this summer.
