Barcelona have reportedly been priced out of a move for Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves following Bruno Lage's recent transfer admission.
The 25-year-old has enjoyed another strong campaign in the heart of the Wolves midfield with four goals and two assists from 29 Premier League appearances for the European hopefuls.
Lage's side were at one point challenging for an unlikely Champions League berth, but a drop-off in form has left them outside of the European places in eighth position - three points adrift of West Ham United with a game in hand.
Neves now only has two years left on his contract with the Molineux side, and failure to secure a continental spot for the 2022-23 season could tempt the Portugal international into a move elsewhere.
Arsenal and Manchester United have both been linked with a swoop for Neves, with the Red Devils understood to have recently sent scouts to watch the midfielder in action for Wolves.
Despite the impending arrival of Franck Kessie from AC Milan on a free transfer, Barcelona are also thought to be keen to bring Neves to Catalonia as part of their summer overhaul.
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While Lage has admitted that it may be difficult for Wolves to keep hold of Neves this summer, the Portuguese has insisted that the midfielder is worth at least £100m in the upcoming market.
"These days we need to be ready for everything. A player like this has a value of £100m. Anything can happen, not just with Ruben. If we want to improve we need the best guys at the best price," Lage told reporters at a press conference last week.
As a result, Sport claims that Barcelona will therefore be priced out of a move for Neves, who they had initially identified as an ideal long-term replacement for Sergio Busquets.
Busquets will celebrate his 34th birthday in July and still has one more year to run on his deal with the Blaugrana, but Barcelona are understandably planning for life without the Spaniard.
The report adds that Barcelona are not closing the door on a move for Neves fully, with Wolves unable to play hardball in negotiations should the Portuguese continue to wind his contract down.
Neves allegedly dreams of pulling on the Barcelona shirt, meanwhile, and agent Jorge Mendes's strong working relationship with the Catalan side could ultimately aid a bid for the former Porto youngster.
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Neves arrived at Wolves in the summer of 2017 after rising through the ranks in Porto's youth system and immediately helped the club achieve promotion to the Premier League with six goals in 42 Championship matches in 2017-18.
The lynchpin has gone on to make 208 appearances for the Molineux outfit in all competitions, scoring 24 goals and providing 12 assists in that spell.
Fifteen of those goals and eight assists have come in 138 Premier League appearances, and he has made the starting lineup on 27 occasions in the top flight this season.
Neves had missed the start of April due to a knee injury but was fit enough to play the first 45 minutes of the weekend's 3-0 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion - Wolves' fourth defeat in five Premier League games.
As well as Neves, Barcelona are also reported to be interested in Valencia midfielder Carlos Soler, but Los Che were recently forced to release a statement denying the existence of a €20m (£16.8m) transfer agreement between the two clubs.
Ben Knapton
