Barcelona Sporting Director discusses Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund target with opposite number

Barcelona have been linked with Royal Antwerp midfielder Arthur Vermeeren in the past 12 months, with the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United also watching him. According to MD, Sporting Director Deco opened a dialogue with Marc Overmars this week, his opposite number at Antwerp.

Vermeeren was in action against Barcelona this week, but was blown away with the rest of his side in a brilliant 5-0 win for the Blaugrana. However the 18-year-old is beginning to make a name for himself around Europe, with some of the best numbers for a young deeper midfielder.

The Catalan paper detail that Deco spoke with Overmars about Vermeeren when the two sides faced off, although they do say that it was strictly about the player’s qualities rather than negotiations on fees. Vermeeren reportedly has a price tag of €20m.

Overmars has been very public about his praise for Vermeeren, speaking to the local media this week and comparing him to Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta. Naturally it is in his interest for the hype train to be running as fast as possible.

Barcelona have Oriol Romeu in the pivote position currently, but at 31, they will be looking for at their future options soon if not now. Equally, he does not have natural replacement in the side either, meaning they might look for a cut-price option in January.