Barcelona Consider Swap Deal Offer to Snare Eric Garcia From Man City

Barcelona's pursuit of Manchester City defender Eric Garcia could lead to a swap deal involving forgotten midfielder Rafinha.

The Catalan giants are known admirers of Garcia, who was on Barcelona's academy books for nine years and has just one year remaining on his City contract.

The 19-year-old has already turned down the chance to extend his contract at the Etihad, meaning he'll be free to negotiate a move away from the club in January. Although the club will not be able to command a transfer fee, City would be entitled to compensation of some sort - because of his age - if he does decide to run his contract down.

Garcia has turned down a contract extension at City / MIKE EGERTON/Getty Images

Barcelona would prefer to get a deal over the line for Garcia now, as they look to rebuild and revamp a squad that needs a complete overhaul to compete for Champions League honours, and Mundo Deportivo claim that Barça could offer Rafinha to City in order to push through a move.

Rafinha is the younger brother of new Liverpool recruit Thiago, and has largely been on the periphery throughout his time at Barcelona. He's spent time on loan at Inter and Celta over the past couple of seasons, and doesn't feature in the plans of new head coach Ronald Koeman.

The 27-year-old is understood to have a market value of around €16m, but Barcelona will still need to include a nominal amount of cash if they are to persuade City into letting Garcia go now. That's despite Pep Guardiola bringing in Ruben Dias from Benfica for £62m, to complement the signing of Nathan Aké earlier in the transfer window.

Rafinha could be offered to City in exchange / Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

MD's report suggests that City are interested in what Rafinha may be able to offer, with his versatility across midfield a desirable trait. Garcia, meanwhile, will continue to lose market value if City opt against doing a deal in this transfer window, and this could persuade the Citizens hierarchy into agreeing to a move now.

Garcia is not the only City player interesting Barcelona, with Oleksandr Zinchenko already thought to have been offered to the La Liga giants. But a deal may hinge on whether or not Barça can move on Junior Firpo, who has attracted interest from Serie A trio Atalanta, Inter and Fiorentina.