Samuel Umtiti has been out injured for the majority of the season, and Barcelona are open to selling the defender in the summer. The centre-back has only made 10 appearances in LaLiga this season and has spent only 489 minutes throughout the season.
Moreover, he has fallen behind in the pecking order with fellow Frenchman Clement Lenglet, and La Masia academy graduate Oscar Mingueza being preferred ahead of Umtiti, but with Pique back from injury, it is doubtful that Umtiti will be chosen now that only La Liga matches are left to be played.
Zenit St Petersburg are the club interested in his services, according to Fabrizio Romano. The 2018 World Cup winner has a contract with Barcelona until 2023, and the decision of whether to leave or not is up to the player at this point.
Umtiti joined Barcelona in 2016 from Lyon for a fee worth €25 million. He has since gone on to have a peak market value worth €70 million in January 2018, and is currently valued at €10 million. Things have not gone in his favour over the last few years, and the fitness issues that he has had to deal with can be blamed for the inconsistencies.
While Zenit are pushing to sign the 27-year-old, other clubs from Europe are also interested in his services, and the player is willing to wait and listen to all the offers available before making a decision. Considering that he is in his prime years as a footballer, a move to Russia which isn’t at the highest level, can for a few more years.
