Barcelona will not reportedly be committed to signing Manchester City defender Joao Cancelo next summer.
The Portugal international is said to be closing in on a loan move to Camp Nou, allegedly rejecting lucrative offers from Saudi Arabia in favour of a switch to the Catalan giants.
Cancelo is set to move on loan for the 2023-24 campaign, but according to Marca, there will not be an obligation to make the deal permanent during next summer's transfer window.
The report claims that Barcelona have been determined to avoid being tied into a move next year, and they will now be free to decide without pressure whether they want to bring him in permanently.
There had initially been suggestions that a move could be completed ahead of Sunday's La Liga clash against Villarreal, potentially opening up the chance for him to make his debut.
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However, Barcelona are currently working to ensure that Cancelo can arrive within their Financial Fair Play requirements, which have caused huge problems at the club this summer.
The 29-year-old moved to Bayern Munich on loan in January following the breakdown of his relationship with Man City head coach Pep Guardiola.
Cancelo was a regular for the Munich giants, featuring on 21 occasions in all competitions, scoring once and providing six assists, but the club turned down the chance to sign him permanently.
The defender has therefore been back at Man City this summer, but he is not in the plans of Guardiola moving forward, which will lead to his departure before the end of the transfer window.
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Cancelo moved to Man City from Juventus in August 2019, and he has represented the English champions on 154 occasions, scoring nine goals and registering 22 assists in the process.
The Portuguese has another four years left to run on his deal, meanwhile, meaning that the Citizens will be in a strong position to negotiate a price with Barcelona next summer, if the club decide to pursue a transfer.
Ronald Araujo's recent injury has added to Barcelona's right-back problems, and head coach Xavi played 16-year-old Lamine Yamal as a right-sided wing-back against Cadiz last time out.
Sergi Roberto is an option in that area of the field, but Xavi has been desperate to bring in a specialist right-back to boost the squad for the 2023-24 campaign.
Cancelo has not been in the Man City squad for any of their three matches this season amid the speculation surrounding his future.
Matt Law
