Lucas Lima is not the midfielder Barcelona need despite Neymar recommendation

Lucas Lima is close to finalising his transfer to Barcelona in January 2018, according to reports in the Brazilian media. The 26 year-old midfielder, who currently plays for Santos and the Brazilian national team, is rumoured to be joining Barca on a free transfer once his current deal expires on 31st December 2017.

Lima has reportedly received offers from Real Madrid, PSG and Bayern Munich in recent times. However, the gifted Santos playmaker is set to sign a four-year deal with Barcelona as soon as July 1st, exactly six months before his contract with Santos expires.

While I don’t doubt that the Brazilian international is a quality player, it seems obvious that the fact that his agent is in fact Neymar’s dad has helped his potential move to Barcelona. Having dated Neymar’s sister and his close friendship with Barca’s No.11 would not have done much harm to his chances of securing a move either.

If rumours were to become a reality and Lima joined the Catalan giants during the next winter transfer window, it is unclear what the Santos midfielder could add to the current squad. Personally, I seriously doubt his ability to knock either Andres Iniesta or Ivan Rakitic off Barca’s starting line-up — which is the missing piece in Ernesto Valverde’s puzzle.

As we have recently argued at ‘The Barcelona Podcast’, the only playmaker Barca should be considering is Marco Verratti. Listen for more details here:

If, as reported, the talented Italian is prepared to force his way out of PSG, the board should not waste a second to bring him to the Camp Nou.

You can listen to the latest episode of ‘The Barcelona Podcast’ here:

‘The Barcelona Podcast’ is brought to you by Francesc Tomas (as seen in ESPN, The Guardian) and Dan Hilton (Barcablog). Listen in for our opinionated take on the hottest breaking stories from the Camp Nou!

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