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This could be the truth — 100 times over. This could just be a way of publicly trying to jack up the price on one of the better players that could potential move teams this summer.
Either way, Barcelona, though club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, has made their first stand when it comes to Juventus' potential courting of Alexis Sánchez and the Chilean's future at the Camp Nou.
Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu has insisted that Alexis Sanchez is not for sale.
...
"He's not for sale," Bartomeu told El Mercurio. "He has a contract with us and is an important part of the squad.
"I know nothing about interest from Juventus. No one has made an official offer.
"Sanchez has had a great season and, of course, will be a part of Barcelona next season as well."
(Source: Football Italia)
Some kind of knee-jerk reaction to the quotes above?
Mr. Bartomeu is doing a little negotiating through the press. There have been rumors of the price it would take for Barca to part ways with Sánchez. But none of those have materialized into anything of note. With the declaration that Sánchez isn't for sale, there's only that much more of a reason for a club to offer a couple extra million euros to try and get Barca to budge on their perceived stance that Alexis is staying put.
Just remember this: It's been reported by a handful of different media outlets in Italy — most notably by Gianluca Di Marzio a month ago — that Sánchez not only wants a move to Juventus, but has basically agreed to personal terms with the three-time Italian champions. And if that's the case, there's just one thing left to do to bring the 25-year-old Chilean to Turin. Yeah, that's negotiate a transfer fee with Barcelona.
Barcelona know they have a wanted commodity in their hands and they're obviously not going to give him up easily. Declaring that he's not on the market is just another likely step in trying to get the most they can for Sánchez.
