Barcelona sporting director Ariedo Braida has met the Inter Milan hierarchy to discuss a potential deal for Liverpool target Mateo Kovacic.

Though Roberto Mancini has said that the Croat will stay at Inter, it has been speculated that the Nerazzurri are open to the idea of selling him to raise finances for their own transfer expenditure.




Liverpool have been long-term admirers of the midfielder and there is talk that they will soon place a bid on Inter’s table for Kovacic, but with Barcelona’s recent entry into the transfer saga, the deal is expected to get complicated.

The Catalan giants recently made their way into the negotiations for Kovacic and are taking proactive steps to agree a deal with Inter for the 21-year-old.
 


According to Sky Italia, the Barcelona sporting director met Piero Ausilio, his equivalent at Inter, to discuss a potential deal that would take Kovacic to Catalunya in the future.

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While the Catalan giants are serving a FIFA transfer ban and are not allowed to participate in any transfer dealings until January 2016, the club are keen to agree deals for players this summer, which will eventually take them to the Nou Camp next year.

Such an arrangement might tempt Inter as they will be able to hold on to Kovacic for one more season and still earn the cash they need to finance their transfer expenditure this summer.

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