Barcelona sought a €35 million-rated World Cup winner before opting for Cancelo.

 During the summer transfer window, Barcelona was in search of a new right-back, and their pursuit ultimately led to the loan signing of Joao Cancelo from Manchester City. Both the Portuguese international and the club had a strong desire for this transfer to materialize. However, there were moments during the summer when the prospect of signing Cancelo seemed highly unlikely, prompting the La Liga champions to explore alternative options.

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Among the names considered by Barcelona were Ivan Fresneda and Juan Foyth. Now, as reported by MARCA, it has come to light that the Catalan club had another potential target in mind. Barcelona had contemplated the idea of signing Nahuel Molina, the right-back from Atletico Madrid and Argentina. Molina, with a market value of €35 million, had a unique connection to Barcelona, having been trained at the Barça academy in Buenos Aires and even spending a brief period at La Masia over a decade ago.

Remarkably, there was a chance for Molina to return to Catalonia, this time as a first-team star, during the summer transfer window. Former director Mateu Alemany had considered pursuing the 2022 FIFA World Cup winner two years prior, but Financial Fair Play regulations had made such a move impossible at the time.

Despite the persistent issues related to Financial Fair Play, Barcelona revisited the possibility of signing the Argentine right-back, even though he had a €90 million release clause in his Atletico contract. Molina had become an integral part of Atletico Madrid's setup but was still earning modest wages, which would not have posed a problem for Barcelona, even given their Financial Fair Play challenges.

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However, negotiating with Atletico Madrid was always going to be a formidable task, and Barcelona was unable to persuade their rivals to part ways with Molina. Given their Financial Fair Play constraints, Barcelona could not make a substantial financial offer for Molina and could only propose the option of Los Rojiblancos signing one of the transfer-listed players in exchange.

Ultimately, the pursuit of Nahuel Molina was abandoned as Joao Cancelo's arrival became a viable possibility, with the Portuguese defender ultimately joining Barcelona.

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