Nicolo Zaniolo‘s agent, Claudio Vigorelli, has revealed that the former Roma man had a chance to move to Barcelona before he signed for Galatasaray. The midfielder has a bright start to his career, which was eventually diminished by two ACL injuries.

He was publicly criticised and exiled from the squad by Jose Mourinho at Roma. And during the January transfer window, he had to force a move away to Turkey. Since signing for them, he has seen a decent return to form, scoring thrice in six league games.

Nicolo Zaniolo was on Barcelona’s radar for January

“Zaniolo was on Barcelona wishlist in January, it is true,” Vigorelli confirmed to Relevo.

Nicoló Zaniolo’s agent Vigorelli: “He was on Barcelona list on January, it’s true — they appreciated him but unfortunately it was not possible to proceed due to financial reasons”. 🇮🇹 #FCB

“He needed to change air, he’s happy at Galatasaray”, tells @relevo. pic.twitter.com/QwtFuFbqXl
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 30, 2023

“They appreciated him but unfortunately it was not possible to proceed for economic reasons.”

“Now he’s happy at Galatasaray and wants this to be a chance for a fresh start.”

Nicolo Zaniolo also had a surprise offer from Bournemouth in the Premier League. But, he turned them down in favour of a move to Galatasaray.

Barcelona, on the other hand, are still struggling with their finances and have been asked to trim their wage bill by €200 million by the summer if they are to register any new players. They are in talks to sign Inigo Martinez, Ilkay Gundogan and Lionel Messi, but will need to find a way to raise funds to make room on their books.