Nicolás Tagliafico wants to use the last week of the winter transfer period to realize a switch to Barcelona, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported on Sunday. Ajax only wants to talk about a definitive departure of the Argentine left back, while Barcelona only sees a rental period as an option. Trainer Erik ten Hag said on Friday that he ‘wants to fight’ to keep Tagliafico for Ajax, despite his status as a reserve player. The wing defender wants to leave for the Catalans as soon as possible and hopes for the cooperation of the Ajax leadership to make his dream possible.
The Ajax player was already associated with Barcelona last summer, but a transfer to the Camp Nou did not get off the ground at the time. Earlier this transfer period, Tagliafico again came into the picture with the Catalans. A rental deal is preferred by Barcelona, although Ajax only wants to talk about a definitive sale for the time being. The Argentine Medium TyC Sports reported on Tuesday that Barcelona must deposit at least seven million euros for the wing player with a contract until mid-2023 in Amsterdam.
Tagliafico no longer seems to be in the picture at Napoli, which according to Romano is now working with Mathías Olivera, the left back of Getafe. Ten Hag hopes that the interest of Barcelona will also cool, the Ajax coach indicated on Friday at the press conference prior to PSV out. “With him we have seven defenders. If he still goes, the flush will be very thin. I notice that it is also important for him that he comes to play. But sometimes you get into such a situation, that you have to exercise professionalism, and he always shows that. You could also see that against Excelsior Maassluis, when he plays with so much passion and drive.” Tagliafico made the first goal in the 9-0 win in the TOTO KNVB Cup with a long shot.
According to club watcher Mike Verweij, there is a lot of unrest at Ajax because of the situation surrounding Tagliafico. “It is labeled within Ajax as a huge rotten situation,” Verweij said on Friday in the podcast of The Telegraph. “Tagliafico is labeled as a hero within the club. It is often the case that Ajax cooperates in transfers of players who have been loyal to the club and have performed well.” The journalist agrees that there is ‘quite a lot’ of interest in Tagliafico: the Argentine has already been linked, so Barcelona and Napoli and also Olympique Marseille.
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