Los Blancos 'intercepting' Nico - Barca wanting him for free but 50,000,000 can change it all

Unlike his eight-year-old brother Inaki, 21-year-old Nico Williams is not willing to spend his entire career in the Athletic Bilbao jersey. The young winger has publicly expressed his desire to leave the club at the end of the season, when his contract expires, but because of everything the Basques have given him, he does not want to do so as a free agent. Therefore, his manager started negotiations with the club and suggested that Williams extend his cooperation in January, but only on paper, with the agreement that the current compensation of 50,000,000 euros will not change.

It can be expected that it will be so, which would significantly disrupt the plans of Barcelona, which is trying to persuade the Spanish representative to move to Catalonia as a free agent in the summer. The Catalans are betting on the card of Inigo Martinez, Nico's good friend and former team-mate, who arrived from Bilbao last summer without compensation. A few months ago, the Catalans contacted the 21-year-old footballer through the then sports director Mateu Alemany and hoped that his successor Deco would routinely complete the transfer, however, the announcements that Williams wants to make money for his childhood club are not in Barca's favor. And that opens the door to the economically much more stable Real Madrid.

The well-informed AS writes that the Royal Club joined the race with Barcelona to sign the young Ghanaian and the ever-present Premier League teams (Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Newcastle are mentioned). Madrid are in a much better financial situation than Barcelona and are reportedly ready to pay 50,000,000 euros immediately because they consider Nico Williams to be an excellent investment for the future. It is also assumed that the Bilbao striker would rather stay in Primera, where his brother also plays, than move to England.

"The fact that big clubs like Barca, Real and those from England are paying attention to me means I'm doing my job well. I was clear about the decision I was going to make, but at the end of the day it's something my agents are concerned about, with whom I have been working since the age of 11. And there are also my parents, my brother... We'll see what happens, I'm calm and I want it to stay that way," Nico Williams recently told El Periodico.

His manager Felix Tainta added that Bilbao should not get too stuck in the negotiations.

"The club must listen to the player and try to find an agreement that is good for both parties, but starting from the fact that the contract ends in a few months. That must not be forgotten... We have not set a deadline for negotiations, but we are guided by some items that we have determined in advance," explained Nico's representative.

The young striker has been a regular part of Athletic Bilbao's starting line-up since last season. He finished the previous competitive year with nine goals (six in the championship, three in the cup), and in the current one he found the back of the net once - against Villarreal in a 3:2 victory. He also had five assists, equaling his performance in that column from last season.