Despite Barcelona’s desire to sign Williams from Athletic Bilbao, his future is still up in the air.
This summer, Nico Williams is expected to make a surprise move to a team other than Barcelona.
Barcelona is the front-runner to sign the Spanish international winger from Athletic Bilbao, making him one of the most sought-after players in world football this summer.
The 22-year-old helped Spain win Euro 2024 and finished the previous season with 10 goals in all competitions.
Williams has a £49 million release clause, which Barca president Joan Laporta wishes to activate.
However, Spanish publication SPORT claims that Bilbao wants to utilise a little-known provision to prevent the sale from going through.
The ‘1:1’ rule in Spanish football, which states that teams in La Liga can only spend as much as they bring in on transfers, is allegedly what the Basque club wants to utilise.
Bilbao seems to think that if Barca were to pay £49 million on Williams, they would be breaking this guideline.
As a result, his future is still up in the air, with Manchester United and Arsenal reportedly interested in signing him.
Williams is now expected to sign with Barca’s adversaries in the El Clasico, as former Real Madrid player Luis Figo has stated that he would do so for Los Blancos.
The anger to Figo’s 2000 direct transfer from Barca to Real Madrid was so intense that, during a game at Camp Nou, a fan threw a pig’s head at him.
https://x.com/classicshirts/status/1847684301820756163
The now 52-year-old told AS that he thinks Williams would be a perfect match at Real.
“There are a lot of players I like,” Figo admitted. Nico Williams is someone I would absolutely sign. And in the end, I think the price is fair given what we’re paying today. due to his young as well as his quality.
“We play different games. His position makes him a player I truly like. Where I’ve played, I like the wingers better. However, I wish I had been faster than he was.
“I’m speaking from a market perspective, because for value and price, I think he’s a bargain.”
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