Barcelona confirm stance on permanent transfer for Man City defender Joao Cancelo

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has confirmed he will try to sign Joao Cancelo permanently if the Manchester City loanee continues to perform.

City secured a season-long loan deal for the Portuguese full-back on deadline day, following protracted discussions between the two sides over the summer. He was not used in the opening weeks of the season prior to his exit, following last season's rift with Pep Guardiola that saw him loaned out to Bayern Munich.

In his eight La Liga appearances so far, Cancelo has registered two goals and an assist as Xavi's side enjoy an unbeaten start to the season. He and fellow Portugal international Joao Felix have both impressed on loan and Laporta is hoping to make both loan deals permanent next summer.

ALSO READ: Four players coming back to City with a point to prove after international break

ALSO READ: Foden partnership with Bellingham gives City exciting glimpse of the future

“Well, If they continue playing like this, we will have to make the effort to sign the Joaos [Cancelo and Felix]," Laporta told Catalunya Radio. "But it also depends a lot on what [Barcelona sporting director] Deco says.

“I want the best to stay. I really like Joao Felix, always have. There are very competitive players in the Barca squad. We have a team with much higher value in the market than we had when we arrived.

"Many of them have come from the academy too, which is important. It makes us competitive. Who doesn’t like Pedri, Gavi, Balde, Lewandowski, Raphinha, Cancelo?”

Cancelo remains under contract at City until 2025 but a return under Guardiola looks unlikely, given how quickly he was offloaded in January. Bayern refused an option to make the defender's loan permanent in the summer, but the option