Barcelona are to cool their interest in signing Lautaro Martinez due to the amount of money it would take to sign him according to a report from ESPN.
The Catalan club are on the look-out for a long-term replacement for ageing striker Luis Suarez and had identified 22-year-old Martinez as the ideal replacement but are going to look for a cheaper replacement due to Inter standing firm in wanting in excess of €100 million for him.
The report states that Barcelona have an ‘interesting but not very long’ list of alternatives to Martinez, who has scored 13 goals in 20 appearances across all competitions.
Red Bull Salzburg’s Erling Braut Haaland is someone that the Blaugrana have drawn links to but the report stresses that they are not considering the Norwegian as they are looking for a player that more closely resembles Suarez.
Suarez, who will turn 33 in a matter of weeks, has been with Barcelona since 2014 and is under contract with them for a further 18 months. He has scored 11 goals in 17 appearances this season.
