Yeray Alvarez laughs off Barcelona rumours

Athletic Bilbao defender Yeray Alvarez has laughed off suggestions that he could join Barcelona after impressing for his Basque club in the early stages of the 2016-17 campaign.

The 21-year-old made his La Liga debut for Bilbao in September and has since made seven starts for Ernesto Valverde's side, with his performances said to have drawn interest from Barcelona.

Alvarez, however, has claimed that he "laughed" when he heard of the reported interest, having only just made the step into the Bilbao first team.

"I know it has been mentioned in the press but I take it as a joke," Yeray told Mundo Deportivo. "When they told me I laughed. I'm not thinking about playing at Barca. I want to play here and play all the games I can.

Barcelona are believed to be keen on signing a new right-back in the January transfer window.