Barcelona have been linked with a move for Athletic Bilbao’s Spain international striker Fernando Llorente.
Llorente has established himself as a key member of the Bilbao side but his form has not gone unnoticed and Premier League pair Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have been credited with an interest in recent weeks.
However, Spanish newspaper AS have reported that Barcelona are keeping tabs on Llorente’s contract situation at Bilbao, with the striker’s current deal set to end after the 2012/2013 campaign.
If Llorente does not agree new terms with Athletic Bilbao, the Basque club may decide to cash in on the 27-year-old in the summer, rather than allow him to move on as a free agent at the end of his deal.
Llorente, who has scored 12 goals in 21 La Liga fixtures to date this season, was a member of Spain’s World Cup winning squad in 2010 and seems set to be the subject of a transfer tussle between Barcelona, Manchester City and Spurs at the end of the current campaign.
