Barcelona fail with bid for Betis hitman
Reports in Spain claim Real Betis have rejected Barcelona’s offer for striker Loren Moron as they intend to hold out for his release clause.
Barcelona have been granted permission to make an emergency signing and the Betis frontman is well-regarded by Quique Setien.
La Liga’s protocol allows clubs to reinforce outside of the transfer window if one of their players is ruled out for at least five months.
Ousmane Dembele’s hamstring injury, and subsequent surgery, is set to be sidelined for six months and Barcelona have 14 days to sign a replacement from another Spanish club.
Real Sociedad frontman Willian Jose, who was heavily linked with a switch to the Premier League in January, has been linked, while former Arsenal striker Lucas Perez – now at Alaves – is also understood to be a target.
Reports suggest that Moron is Barcelona’s top choice due to the fact that Setien worked with him at the Estadio Benito Villamarin.
Indeed, Setien promoted Moron from Real Betis II in 2018 and he has notched on eight occasions in La Liga this season.
It’s understood that Barcelona have offered up €15million (£12.5m) to snap up the former Marbella FC man.
Moron signed a new deal with Betis in the summer of 2018 and the club inserted a €40m (£33.2m) release clause.
Betis understandably don’t want to lose their top scorer at this point of the term and are reportedly refusing to let Moron depart unless that clause is matched.
