Left wing is a position that Barcelona are trying to address in the summer, having failed to do so during the 2024 summer transfer window. Nico Williams was the main target for the Catalans, but he ended up rejecting a move in favour of remaining at Athletic Club for at least one more season.
Barcelona will try again to sign a left winger, although Williams is not expected to be on their list this time around – instead, Liverpool’s Luis Diaz is the preferred candidate of sporting director Deco, who will be determined to get a signing over the line.
However, Deco could have got the job done last summer even without Williams being a consideration. That is because Barcelona were offered the chance to sign Desire Doue when he was still at Stade Rennais, as Sport have revealed.
Barcelona are said to have seriously considered signing Doue last summer, with Deco having had good reports on the player. The 19-year-old was deemed to have a “Barca profile”, which saw him as a left-footed player who unbalances at both ends, very offensive, explosive and spectacular.
Doue was offered to Barcelona around the same time as their pursuit of Williams reached its climax, but in the end, a deal was deemed to be impossible because of financial reasons, and ultimately, the teenager would leave Rennes to join fellow Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain, where he has thrived despite not being a regular starter for head coach Luis Enrique.
Had Doue remained at Rennes until this summer, Barcelona could have had a chance to sign him, with their financial situation seemingly slightly better now compared to 2024. However, it is not to be, and they could even come up against him in this season’s Champions League final at the end of May, should they and PSG get there.
