Xavi lifts lid on Barcelona interest in Man City star Joao Cancelo

Xavi has revealed that Barcelona were initially offered Manchester City defender Joao Cancelo in the January transfer window but that City eventually decided against the move taking place.

Cancelo was shipped out in January for the second half of the season, joining Bayern Munich, where he recently won the Bundesliga title.

The 29-year-old has a contract at City until the summer of 2027, a deal which was only signed last February. However, his January exit points to him leaving Pep Guardiola's side on a permanent basis this summer, though it has been reported that Cancelo will not join Bayern on a permanent basis.

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It remains to be seen where Cancelo will play his football from this summer onwards. Barcelona is a potential option for the Portugal international after the Spanish side's previous interest, while Arsenal has also recently emerged as a possible escape route.

Under legendary retired midfielder Xavi, Barca won the La Liga title this season and it appears they will be active in the transfer market this summer to build upon that. If they do make an approach for Cancelo, it will be second time they have done so this year.

Xavi has revealed that Barca were offered Cancelo in January by City and the Camp Nou side were keen to bring the defender to Catalonia. However, following internal discussions at City, Xavi says the Premier League champions informed their Spanish counterparts they did not want to allow the defender to join them, and he later headed to Bayern.

Speaking to Spanish broadcaster TV3, the Barca boss said: "We wanted Joao Cancelo at Barça in January, he was offered and we said yes. Man City discussed that internally and then