GENEVA: Barcelona described any deal for Cesc Fabregas as “dead” on Tuesday and admitted that next week’s Champions League tie against Arsenal had been a draw they wanted to avoid.
Raul Sanllehi, Barcelona’s director of football, was involved in the effort to bring Fabregas back to Spain last summer but, with Arsenal having rejected two bids, there are no plans to revive their interest.
“Cesc is a great Catalan player.
“He played for us as a kid and he will be welcome back at Barcelona for the Champions League match,” he said. “Right now, everything is dead regarding a transfer.”
He added that Barca were wary of the threat posed by Arsene Wenger’s side.
“Arsenal are one of the challengers for the trophy,” he said. Arsenal will take Sanllehi’s remarks about Fabregas with a pinch of salt after receiving a similar message from Barcelona last year prior to a concerted attempt to buy their captain.
However, Barcelona’s financial situation makes it difficult for them to fund the sort of deal that might tempt Arsenal.
According to their president, Sandro Rosell, Barcelona recorded a loss of £65mil for 2009-10 and had debts of £272mil. Rossell has said that Barcelona would not pay more than £42mil for Fabregas.
Arsenal are certain to reject any renewed offer that falls below £50miln, particularly given the recent values that have been placed on leading Premier League players.
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