Manchester United defender Matteo Darmain has reportedly emerged as a surprise summer transfer target for FC Barcelona, according to Football Italia.
The La Liga giants, who finished one point ahead of fierce rivals Real Madrid during the 2015/16 campaign to claim the Spanish top-flight title, have identified the Italy international as one of their ideal candidates for the left-back role next term.
Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.
The 26-year-old, who has 26 international caps for his country and featured for Italy at EURO 2016 this summer, scored one goal and provided one assist in 39 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils last season.
Darmian; who arrived at Old Trafford from Italian outfit Torino only last July for a fee in the region on £12.7m, is wanted by Barca boss Luis Enrique as he is a versatile player, who can fill in at right-back or left-back, plus part of a five-man midfield.
However the report suggests that Italian Darmian is not the only defender the Spaniards are monitoring, as AC Milan’s Mattia De Sciglio, Borussia Monchengladbach’s Fabian Johnson and Bayer Leverkusen’s Wendell are also being linked.