Fabrizio Romano discusses Barcelona's transfer strategy this season, including why they chose to recruit Anthony Gordon over Rashford. He also addresses Julián Álvarez's transfer saga and some promising young talents.

Hello Fabri, welcome back to our podcast. As always, I'm Francesco Porzio, with Fabrizio Romano, bringing you the latest from Men in Blazers. Today we're talking about Barcelona, as Barça has started the season strongly. How do you feel about the atmosphere at the club right now?

Honestly, the atmosphere at Barcelona right now is very good. As you say, this season's start has been exceptional. If I'm not mistaken, 22 goals in 5 matches, with 5 goals in 4 of those matches—their performance has been truly extraordinary. The mood among the players is great, and the atmosphere within the club is also great. So this is an exceptional moment for Barcelona. Of course, it's early in the season, but everyone is very pleased, especially after a summer transfer window that was quite different. We all remember, the transfer window began very promisingly for Barça. But after the World Cup, some doubts emerged again about the striker position. Real Madrid was very active in the market during the World Cup, so there was a bit of panic. However, with the arrival of Rodrygo and some other changes, Barça became very satisfied with their squad and truly believe they can achieve something special now.

Speaking of Barcelona, we must of course go back to the summer, because one of the major transfer sagas involved Julián Álvarez, who ultimately didn't join. Was Barcelona's stance that he rejected them, or was he seriously exploring other opportunities?

Yes, he had several opportunities, because we know about the Arsenal situation. Arsenal really tried hard. In the last days of August, there was a call between Julián Álvarez and Arteta. Before that, Arteta and Arsenal's management had worked hard; everyone at the club tried to contact Julián and his team to talk. But Julián didn't even want to talk.

This doesn't mean disrespect to Arsenal, but the same applied to all other clubs that tried to reach him. In June, Paris Saint-Germain made some calls. Manchester City also made some calls, wanting to see if there was potential for a return. These were just calls—not even negotiations, just to see if there was room for further communication. Since Atlético Madrid didn't want to sell him to Barcelona, but Julián's answer was always "no, thank you." He was focused on only one thing: Barcelona. Julián did reject several opportunities, but Atlético Madrid always maintained their initial stance—they didn't want to sell him to Barcelona. So ultimately, that's how the transfer saga ended.

Now, Julián has returned to Atlético's squad. He played as a starter last night against Liverpool. So for now, that issue is resolved. We'll have to see what happens in the future, because I think Julián is still thinking about Barcelona.

Barcelona also has an outstanding number 9 in Raphinha, playing in an adapted position. What's the general feeling about him?

The feeling here is also fantastic. Raphinha has started the season perfectly. 9 goal contributions with 8 goals, playing very well as a striker in his new position. Everyone is very pleased with Raphinha, and not just because of his performance; his attitude in the dressing room is also highly valued by Barcelona. So the latest news we can share today is that Barcelona is in contact with Raphinha's team, preparing to start contract extension talks. These discussions will take place over the next few weeks.

The discussions will begin in the coming weeks. So there will be movement on Raphinha's contract extension. There were many rumors previously that he might leave for Saudi Arabia—even around the World Cup there was talk of Raphinha leaving Barcelona for Saudi Arabia—but that was never true. Barcelona never considered Raphinha's departure as a possibility, and Raphinha is also very happy at Barcelona. So I expect these extension talks will go quite smoothly, as both sides are pleased. Of course, it will still involve salary, contract length, and other details, but discussions should start soon.

Speaking of talks and extensions, is there any other news from Barcelona you can share today? Yes, and it's about future talent. Deco mentioned today in an interview that Raphinha is playing very well as the number 9, and also spoke about the future number 9—Hamza. This Egyptian striker was recruited by Barcelona in the January transfer window.

This was a smart recruitment. Think about it—they signed him for a total of around 3 million euros. Now Hamza has had a good preseason. Of course, official matches for Barcelona's first team are a different matter, but Barcelona truly believes this young player has great potential, and negotiations regarding this are already underway. Barcelona has met with Hamza's agent twice. Barcelona wants to complete a contract extension as soon as possible. Why the rush? Because he currently has a release clause in his contract. Barcelona wants to adjust the amount of this clause and ensure Hamza gets a better contract as soon as possible. So I'm also optimistic about this, because Barcelona is working hard to complete it quickly.

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