Manchester United and Liverpool are allegedly contemplating an approach for Barcelona midfielder Marc Casado.
Prior to the start of this campaign, the 21-year-old was essentially regarded as a player who was more likely than not to fail to make the breakthrough into the senior ranks.
Just 58 minutes had been accumulated across five appearances in all competitions, leaving the former prospect on the periphery of the squad.
However, Casado has since proven to be a revelation under newly-appointed head coach Hansi Flick, who has placed full faith in the player.
Casado has started eight of Barcelona's 12 La Liga fixtures during 2024-25, helping the Catalan giants establish a six-point lead at the top of the standings.
As well as featuring for 65 minutes of the 4-0 demolition of Real Madrid, Casado also completed the 90 minutes in the 4-1 thrashing of Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
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Man United, Liverpool emerge as admirers
Five assists have been recorded in his 18 appearances for Barcelona, the Spain Under-21 international also pushing for an opportunity for the Euro 2024 winners.
Barcelona extended Casado's contract to 2028 when negotiating fresh terms earlier this year, putting them in a strong position to retain his services in the long term.
Nevertheless, as per Caught Offside, Man United and Liverpool are each giving consideration to a future bid.
Although Casado is seemingly in line to become a mainstay of the team this season, club officials must be open-minded to a sale given their ongoing financial issues.
As an academy graduate, Casado would bring in pure profit should he be sold, leaving the relevant figures to decide whether they view him as an integral part of the team for the foreseeable future.
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Do Man United, Liverpool need Casado?
Standing at just 1.72m, there would be question marks over how well Casado would fare in the more physically-demanding Premier League should he ever make the move.
Liverpool are arguably missing a player who possesses the attributes of Casado, although Arne Slot's side are well stocked for options in the engine room at a time when they overcoming the majority of their opponents.
United have committed to paying an eventual £50m for Manuel Ugarte to partner either Casemiro or Kobbie Mainoo, yet the arrival of Ruben Amorim as head coach may change their thinking in that area of the pitch.
Darren Plant
