Barcelona boss Xavi has publicly spoken of his admiration for Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi – who has been the subject of transfer attention from Arsenal.
Zubimendi, 23, has a £53million (€60m) release clause in his contract at the Basque club, for whom he has made 120 first-team appearances having graduated through their youth system. Reports in the Spanish press claim the deep-lying midfielder rejected the chance to join the Gunners this month out of loyalty to his club.
Xavi is already at odds with Barca's plans for replacing long-serving midfielder Sergio Busquets at the end of the campaign. Barca president Joan Laporta is pushing for the club to sign Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, as the club supremo shares a close relationship with his agent Jorge Mendes.
However, Xavi prefers Real Sociedad midfielder Zubimendi while the club's sporting directorate is unconvinced a new signing is required in the position as they believe Frenkie de Jong can play that role – but Xavi disagrees.
Barca will play La Real this week in a Copa del Rey clash with Xavi heaping praise upon the opposition midfielder. He even went so far as to engage with a question comparing Zubimendi to Busquets.
Xavi told reporters on Tuesday: "He (Zubimendi) is a more physical and faster player than Busquets, who is technically better. But not only Zubimendi, all of Real Sociedad’s midfield players. We are playing a great team and Zubimendi is a great footballer."
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The Barca boss continued when comparing the two clubs and producing their own players: "We work in the same way in grassroots football. But La Real works very well with the academy. We lack a defensive pivot who is the future replacement for Busquets."
A report from Spanish radio station Cadena Ser claims that Arsenal had lodged an offer for Zubimendi that could have triggered his release clause at the Basque club. However, the player had no interest in leaving in the middle of the season.
It is claimed by the same reports that Zubimendi prefers a move to the Premier League ahead of staying in LaLiga, which may give Arsenal an advantage in a long-term race. They are keen to add further competition for regular starters Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey in the centre of the midfield.
