Barcelona are considering a January move to strengthen their defence after a 4-2 Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain. Any deal remains tied to the club's finances and their ability to make room on the wage list.
Winter plans under discussion
GOAL, citing Catalan newspaper Sport, said Barcelona have begun discussing the possibility of signing an experienced defender in the winter mercato, whether at centre-back or full-back.
GOAL, citing Sport, said reinforcing the defence was already on the table in the summer window.
Barcelona were also linked with Aymeric Laporte in the summer window, but ultimately invested in the front line instead.
Summer names and Flick's view
GOAL, citing Sport, said Alessandro Bastoni was the most prominent name under consideration in the summer.
GOAL, citing Sport, said Hansi Flick opposed the Bastoni deal because he preferred to give the players already at the club a chance to prove themselves and believed Pau Cubarsi and Gerard Martin could form a suitable partnership at centre-back.
Injuries and the current defenders
GOAL said injuries complicated things further because Flick lost Eric Garcia and Kounde, and the problems coincided with Andreas Christensen's ongoing physical issues.
GOAL said Flick rates Eric Garcia highly and sees him as an important figure in organising the back line, whether at full-back or centre-back.
GOAL said Pau Cubarsi remains the most reliable defender at the club.
Balde returned against Paris after a long absence, but he lacked rhythm. Kounde's standing has declined, and he is now in danger of losing his starting place.
Financial limits on any deal
GOAL said Barcelona could not carry out their plan to change the full-backs because attempts to open the door to the departure of Jules Kounde or Alejandro Balde, or both, failed.
Barcelona face a limited wage margin.
GOAL said the limited wage margin may force Barcelona to sell one of their full-backs before completing any new deal.