With an FC Barcelona director having confirmed that the club will continue to look for top free agents at the end of the season, Lionel Messi is reportedly at the top of a list of four targets, including a Premier League duo, they want to sign on free deals.
Speaking during Barca's latest general assembly on Sunday, club director Mateu Alemany revealed that, with his side having found success in signing players on free transfers in recent months, this will be a trend they will continue in the next windows.
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"Increasingly, we have to focus on the market of players who are free. This year we have done it with [Franck] Kessie, [Andreas] Christensen, Marcos Alonso and [Hector] Bellerin, and there are many more for the future," he said, according to SPORT.
Now, per Barca Universal, Messi headlines a list of free agents the Blaugrana will be targeting at the end of the season.
The 35-year-old has remained coy about his club future, with reports suggesting he will only consider making a decision after the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which he has confirmed will be his last showing at the tournament.
Barcelona have already indicated they can afford to bring their all-time leading goalscorer back to Catalonia, and are ready to rekindle their near-20-year associations with the talisman.
Club president Joan Laporta, who is thought to have a fractured relationship with Messi, also revealed recently that Barca have made the decision to build a statue of the Argentine outside the Camp Nou.
Scroll through the gallery below to the three other players who are being targeted by Barcelona, per Barca Universal:
Per SPORT, Chelsea midfielder Jorginho and Manchester United defender Diogo Dalot have also been identified as free-agent targets for the Xavi Hernandez's team.
The Italy star's agent Joao Santos was reportedly in Barcelona recently to discuss a potential move, with the player set to be free to negotiate a pre-contract with any club of his choice from January.
Dalot, meanwhile, was also on the LaLiga outfit's radar during the past transfer window and has once again emerged as a target, although Barca could face strong competition from Juventus, who are looking to replace Alex Sandro and Juan Cuadrado for the 2023/24 campaign, per CalcioMercato.
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Athletic Club defender Inigo Martinez has also been shortlisted, with Football Espana claiming that an agreement on personal terms is not far between the two parties involved.
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