Barcelona put Liverpool star and Arsenal target on Nico Williams’ three-man shortlist

Barcelona have named a Liverpool star and an Arsenal transfer target on their shortlist of three alternatives for Nico Williams.

Nico Williams looked certain to join Barcelona after an excellent Euro 2024 campaign with Spain earlier this summer, but it looks like he will be staying.

Although the 22-year-old winger is reportedly open to a move to Camp Nou, having previously decided to remain at Athletic Club, Barcelona’s financial situation has seriously complicated the situation.

Last week, Barcelona completed the signing of Dani Olmo from RB Leipzig for £51m, but they currently do not have enough salary cap space to register him to play in La Liga.

Williams now appears set to remain in Bilbao and on Monday revealed he had changed his squad number from 11 to 10.

Despite having to offload players to register others, Barcelona are still keen to add a new winger to Hansi Flick’s squad.

According to Spanish journalist Fernando Polo, the Catalan giants are evaluating alternative options, with three candidates standing out.

One of them is Liverpool winger Luis Diaz, who joined the club from Porto in January 2022 for an initial fee of £37m.

While Diaz’s form at Anfield has been patchy over the past two seasons, he looks set to play a key role in Arne Slot’s side this season.

Barca are also keeping an eye on Kingsley Coman, who appears to have no future at Bayern Munich under new coach Vincent Kompany.

The French winger – who is one of the most decorated players in history – still has three years remaining on his contract, although Bayern could be open to a loan deal.

Arsenal have been linked with the 28-year-old in recent days, with Mikel Arteta keen to bolster his squad ahead of launching another Premier League title challenge.

Barcelona are also considering a move for Milan star Rafael Leao, although he signed a new contract last summer running until 2028.