Buying is hard, selling is ever harder

Years of mismanagement, buying expensive players without a clear idea about how to utilise them and piling up footballers who aren't good enough has finally caught up with Barcelona. It's a big mess that's proving difficult to clean up.

Do you remember Samuel Umtiti, Oscar Mingueza or Clement Lenglet? How about Luuk De Jong, Sergino Dest and Martin Braithwaite? Any of these players would probably make most fanbases and coaches happy, but at Barcelona - they are dead weight.

The latest attempt to get rid of some of the players Xavi deems not needed is a potential departure of French defender Clement Lenglet. Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte wants to add the 27-year-old defender to his squad, but the negotiations are proving less than straightforward.

While Spurs would be happy to take the former Sevilla centre-back on a season-long loan, the Catalans would prefer to sell him outright.

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Lenglet arrived to Camp Nou in a $40 million transfer four years ago and has four more years of contract left to run. According to ESPN, Xavi has personally urged Clement to find a new club because he will certainly not be given playing time next season. The impending arrival of Andreas Christensen only makes Lenglet's position worse. And paying someone $6 million per year to sit on the bench and do nothing is way too much - especially if your finances are already crippled.

If Conte remains hell-bent on a loan deal, Barca would have to give in and at least save a year worth of salary by letting Lenglet go out on a temporary basis.

Spurs will probably let their Welsh centre-back Joe Rodon leave in this transfer window, with Jose Mourinho reportedly keen to take him to Roma.