KEY POINTS
- Chelsea is linked to a transfer swoop for Barcelona's Miralem Pjanic
- The Blues are likely to compete with Inter Milan in pursuit of Pjanic
- The former Juventus star has been lashing out on his lack of playing time at Barca
A Barcelona star who has been vocal about his frustrations over Ronald Koeman’s leadership has become a target for two big-name clubs.
Not all is happy about the emergence of Barcelona’s young core in Pedri, Ilaix Moriba and Sergino Dest this season. Among them was veteran midfielder Miralem Pjanic, who arrived at Camp Nou from Juventus last year.
With Pjanic seemingly falling out of Koeman’s pecking order, English Premier League club Chelsea has began keeping tabs on his situation, Spanish publication Diario Sport reported.
Despite the “lack of minutes” this season, the report said that Pjanic is still a “sought-after” player in Europe and the Blues are among a handful of clubs ready to make an offer.
Aside from Chelsea, Serie A's Inter Milan is also said to be keen on landing the Bosnian.
Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic, left, is one of several players Liverpool hopes to sign in place of legend Steven Gerrard. Photo: Reuters
Pjanic hasn’t really made quite an impact for Barcelona this season, but his pedigree still makes him a top target in the next transfer window, having been a key figure in Juventus’ four consecutive Serie A championships.
The 31-year-old has yet to score a single goal to his name in 25 appearances across all competitions in the current campaign and has been disappointed with Barca’s system.
“Honestly, I don’t even understand the reason for this situation,” Pjanic told La Gazzetta Dello Sport in December. “It is clear that I want to play a lot more. I know I can give a lot, and when the coach has given me the option, I have always answered. I did well, I played good games. More than that, I don’t know what I can do. I’m training, I’m ready.”
“It’s one hundred percent evident I’m not satisfied and I can’t be, in my career I’ve never accepted the idea of not playing and I don’t even do it now,” he continued .
Two months since he first lashed out on Barcelona’s player management, Pjanic took another dig at his current club and insisted that he should be rewarded with playing time for his hard work.
"I have played at all the clubs I've been at and with all the coaches I've had,” the midfielder told French outlet Telefoot in February. “A situation like this has never happened to me. Of course, it’s not easy, I accept it with great difficulty.”
"I don't have the exact reasons why I've not had the playing time I expected,” he added. "I keep working and you have to respect the decisions that are taken, even if you don't agree. I want to leave my mark at this club."
