Memphis Depay ‘identified as Luis Suarez’s replacement at Barcelona’ with Ronald Koeman prepared to pay £17million for a reunion with Dutch international forward at Camp Nou
- Barcelona are set to sell star striker Luis Suarez to Juventus this summer
- The Catalans want to replace Suarez with Lyon’s Dutch striker Memphis Depay
- Ronald Koeman knows Depay well through his international career with Holland
- Depay has just one year left on his Lyon contract and could be available for £17m
Barcelona want to replace Luis Suarez with Lyon forward Memphis Depay, according to reports.
The Uruguayan forward, who is Barcelona’s third-highest goalscorer of all time, is set to complete a deal to Juventus this summer, with Suarez negotiating his contract termination with the Spanish club.
Lyon’s Depay has been on top form for the Ligue 1 side in recent seasons, having scored 52 goals over the past four seasons in France.
Barcelona want to bring in Lyon forward Memphis Depay (above) this summer for £17million
Depay would be a replacement for Luis Suarez (above) who is set to leave Barca for Juventus
And according to Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona believe they can get Depay for £17million this summer, as the Dutch forward has just one year left on his Lyon contract.
The 26-year-old’s potential move to Barcelona would see him would see him link-up with manager Ronald Koeman once again, who has coached the player at international level with the Netherlands over the past two years.
Depay was also part of the Lyon side who beat Juventus and Manchester City on their way to the Champions League semi-finals, where they were beaten by Bayern Munich.
Depay has started the 2020-21 season brightly with Lyon and scored a hat-trick last weekend
A Barcelona move would see Depay (left) link-up with ex-Holland coach Ronald Koeman (right)
The Dutch forward has started the 2020-21 season brightly with Lyon, as he scored in his side’s 4-1 win over Dijon last weekend to get their Ligue 1 campaign off to the perfect start.
Overall, Depay has 57 goals in 139 matches for the French side, who he joined from Manchester United in January 2017.
The winger was touted as a potential coup at Manchester United and it was predicted that his close relationship with former Holland coach Louis Van Gaal would bring him and the club success at Old Trafford.
Before Lyon, the Dutch winger was at Manchester United where he was branded as a flop
However, Depay scored just seven goals in 53 appearances for the Red Devils as he fell out of favour with Van Gaal and his successor at United, Jose Mourinho.
Despite a return to form at Lyon, Depay’s goalscoring numbers are weaker to Suarez’s, with the Uruguayan forward scoring over 20 goals in each of his last eight seasons at Barcelona and Liverpool.
