Angel Di Maria and Kalidou Koulibaly are expecting Barcelona to make an offer in the coming days (via Barca Blaugranes). They are ready to wait before they entertain other offers.
Di Maria will be a free agent at the end of the month as he did not sign a contract extension with Paris Saint-Germain during the 2021-22 season. Koulibaly, on the other hand, has a contract with Napoli that runs out next summer. So, the Serie A club might be willing to listen to offers this summer rather than losing him for free next season.
As per Relevo, Di Maria is keen on returning to La Liga but Barcelona are not in a position to meet his demands at the moment.
Di Maria has had talks with Juventus. However, when Barcelona showed their interest, he wanted to hear what the Catalans had to offer before coming to an agreement with the Italian giants.
Meanwhile, as per SPORT, Barca manager Xavi wants to sign Jules Kounde. He has identified Koulibaly as the second choice if the young Frenchman agrees to a deal with a different team.
Barcelona's precarious financial status proving to be a hindrance in the transfer market
Barcelona are reeling under some financial stress at the moment. As per Football Transfers, are aiming to slash their wage bill by €160 million per year. It is understood that the current financial situation is preventing them from flexing their muscles in the ongoing transfer market.
Club president Juan Laporta said (as per ESPN), that they are taking some measures to get their books balanced. Their debt stood at €1.35 billion last August, which made it impossible for them to offer Lionel Messi a new deal last season.
Manager Xavi will have to let go of a few players to make up room for new signings. As per Deportes Cuatro, Di Maria will have to agree to a substantial pay cut to join the club. This is also one of the reasons why the negotiations haven't moved forward so far.
Meanwhile, as per Matteo Moretto, Napoli will likely ask for an amount upwards of €30 million for Koulibaly, a player who turns 31 next week. So the Catalans might look at other players before spending that much money on a player who is arguably past his prime.