KEY POINTS

  • United failed to sign Perisic earlier in the summer as they were unwilling to meet Inter's valuation.
  • Barcelona have had bids rejected for Dembele and Coutinho by Dortmund and Liverpool, respectively.

Barcelona are desperate to sign a replacement for Neymar, who joined Paris Saint-Germain in a world record €222m (£198m) deal earlier in the month and the Catalan club have identified a number of targets to replace the Brazilian. Inter Milan's Ivan Perisic is said to be on their radar if they miss out on their primary targets.

The La Liga outfit's president confirmed that they will spend the money they earned from the French capital club, with Borussia Dortmund's Ousmane Dembele and Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho identified as the club's primary targets to fill the void left by the Brazilian.

Barcelona submitted bids for both players last week, but their first approaches have been rejected by Dortmund and Liverpool.

The Bundesliga outfit confirmed meeting the Catalan club, but made it clear that their bid was not close to their valuation of around €150m. They are expected to return with a second bid closer to the range of the German club's valuation.

Liverpool, on the other hand, are unwilling to sanction a sale after rejecting Barcelona's initial £90m ($117.1m) offer. The Reds have issued a statement making it clear that Coutinho is not for sale and have rejected the player's request for a transfer.

The Spanish club are now looking at other alternatives in the event they fail to sign their priority targets and according to Spanish publication AS, via Sport Italia, Inter's Perisic has been identified as the backup plan if they fail to land either Coutinho or Dembele.

The Croatian has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester United, but the Red Devils are unwilling to meet the Serie A club's €50m valuation.

Ivan Perisic
Barcelona have identified Manchester United target Perisic as a potential replacement for Neymar Getty

Jose Mourinho has confirmed that he is looking to sign a winger this summer and revealed United's failed bid for Perisic.

Barcelona, however, will not have a problem meeting the Italian club's valuation owing to their coffers being flush with the cash earned from the Neymar deal.

The Inter winger plays in a similar position to Neymar and will be a viable alternate to their primary targets.