Santos sensation Kaiky dreaming of European transfer as Barcelona hold first refusal option on NXGN star

Santos’ teenage sensation Kaiky admits that he “dreams” of making a move to Europe at some point in the near future, with Barcelona holding a first refusal option on him if a big-money transfer is to be put in place.

The talented 18-year-old defender is attracting plenty of admiring glances after bursting onto a senior stage in his homeland, with Premier League heavyweights such as Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea also credited with interest in the recent past.

They would all sit behind Barca in any queue, though, as Santos president Andres Rueda revealed to Sport that the Liga giants have been given the chance to match any offers after previously seeing similar promises broken when it came to Gabigol, and Kaiky is making no secret of his ambition.

The highly-rated centre-half, who claimed 30th spot on the 2022 NXGN list, told GOAL of his future plans: “Every player dreams of playing for the Brazil national team and to play in Europe, but I'm only in my second year as a professional here at Santos.

“I intend to spend lots of years here, I have such a passion for this club, I'm very grateful to them as well, but only God knows what the future holds.

“We know that things tend to move very fast in football. I dream of playing in Europe one day, but right now I am 100 per cent focused on being here.”

The youngster, who briefly became the youngest Brazilian to score in the Copa Libertadores when netting against Deportivo Lara at the age of 17 years and 25 days in March 2021, has been likened to fellow countryman Marquinhos.

He is happy with those comparisons, with the Paris Saint-Germain captain somebody that he looks up to.

“He is my role model, the guy who inspires me a lot because people compare his style of play